THIS is one of those films that you want to love but, as with all love affairs that go wrong, end up feeling cheated by.

It should be great - feisty heroines, plenty of action, some good cameos and Demi Moore in a great comeback role.

But somehow it all falls a bit short of the mark thanks to its director, the ridiculously-named McG.

McG used to direct pop videos and it shows. Distracting us from the plot-line and charismatic performances from all the leads are showy, jumpy camera-work, rapid cuts and a tendency to focus on the Angels' chests, legs and derrieres.

In fact, the latter is one of the main problems with this film - on the one hand we're being told that these are strong, independent women that we should aspire to be like and on the other hand, we're begin shown that one of their main functions is to give the lads in the audience a cheap thrill.

This problem comes to a head in a scene in which the Angels take part in a striptease, including a spot of lap dancing - all in the line of duty of course.

Not that there's anything wrong with them being beautiful - which film stars aren't - but James Bond gets to fight crime without having to dance around in a thong, thank god.

But major gripes aside, this movie is well worth watching if you want something fun and, even with the stripping, fairly empowering for female viewers.

One of the real delights of the movie is Demi Moore, who steals every scene and hopefully will use this role to springboard her career. The other stars also shine and Diaz, Liu and Barrymore make a great team, with bags of chemistry.

There are plenty of great action sequences, including several fight scenes, dirt-biking, surfing and some improbable lucky escapes to keep you thrilled.

And anyone who can fight 20 baddies, look great and wear spike high-heels at the same time deserves a round of applause.

Rating: 7/10