Monster-In-Law

Since it's propped up by most of the same jokes and plot devices featured in other comedies about obnoxious in-laws (most recently Meet the Fockers), there's really only one question to answer about Monster-in-Law: namely, is it worth the time to watch Jennifer Lopez and Jane Fonda retread the same sitcom territory? The short answer is "no." But while hardly original and definitely predictable, the film does have some good chuckles--although few of them come from Lopez, who gives a shrug-worthy performance as an off-the-shelf romantic-comedy heroine. Her engagement to an annoyingly clueless, utterly vanilla nice-guy doctor (Michael Vartan from Alias) comes with the baggage of his nightmarish apron-strings mother--a jealous, washed-up TV chat-show host played with gusto by Fonda, returning to the big screen in sharply funny form. Unfortunately, the obvious, over-the-top script concocts asinine excuses for Fonda to move in with the couple and wreak havoc as she tries to sabotage their relationship. Ultimately, even though the laughs are decent, they often come from scene stealers (like Wanda Sykes as Fonda's sassy personal assistant) and aren't enough to overcome the trite plot and stock characters. Optional. [Note: DVD extras on this double-disc set include both widescreen and full screen versions, an audio commentary (by director Robert Luketic, costar Wanda Sykes, producer Chris Bender, production designer Missy Stewart, and cinematographer Russell Carpenter), a featurette on director Luketic titled “The Man Behind the Monster” (19 min.), seven deleted scenes and a brief director's introduction (12 min.), a “Welcome Back Jane Fonda” featurette about her return to acting after 15 years (9 min.), a “Keeping it Real with Jennifer” featurette on costar Jennifer Lopez (6 min.), a “Vartan, The Man!” featurette about costar Michael Vartan (6 min.), two “trendsetters” featurettes--“Fashion” about the wardrobe (6 min.), and “Lifestyles” about the location (5 min.)--a gag reel (5 min.), a “Ruby's Make-up Bag” music video (2 min.), a soundtrack spot, and trailers. Bottom line: a Macy's size bag of extras for a disappointing comedy.] (R. Blackwelder)