SNL vets deliver a funny but forgettable ‘Baby Mama’
Monday, Apr. 28, 2008 @ 8:41 pm
Fey and Poehler have chemistry but can’t carry movie
With two “Saturday Night Live” alumni taking center stage and a few others dropping in for cameos, “Baby Mama” never disappoints, but rarely surprises. Tina Fey (“30 Rock”) stars as Kate Holbrook, a single, upper-class businesswoman at the peak of her career. When she decides it is finally time to bring a child of her own into this world, her dreams are crushed by her fertility specialist who tells her she only has a million-to-one shot of getting pregnant. When she learns that adoption takes up to five years for a single woman, she turns to another option: finding a surrogate mother.
Through a surrogate agency, Kate is set up with Angie (Amy Poehler, “Horton Hears a Who!”), a white-trash blond in the middle of a bad relationship. Soon after the eggs are implanted, Kate realizes that over the next nine months, she will have to help raise two babies.
“Cute” and “harmless” are the words usually used to describe babies, but in this case, they are also the best two words to describe “Baby Mama.” With witty dialogue and strong chemistry between Fey and Poehler, the film flies by and quickly becomes just another spring movie that will soon be forgotten.
Ever since Fey made her comedic presence known on “Saturday Night Live,” she has quickly become one of comedy’s leading ladies.
Her subtle approach to intelligent humor is what makes her interactions with Poehler’s typical moronic character so humorous. A perfect example comes when the two are going to birthing classes. When learning about the “great stretch” during birth, Angie asks, “Can I just spray a little PAM down there?” Unembarrassed, Kate quickly retorts, “You have to admit – it is a feasible question.”
First time director and former SNL writer, Michael McCullers makes the film work, but overall, shows his filmmaking juvenility. While Fey and Poehler are left to do their routine, the rest of the cast never seems to find its place in the movie. Sure, Steve Martin makes a cameo as the egotistical hippie boss, but most of his lines fall flat and come off as awkward.
McCullers also fails by not giving enough background information on Kate and her need for a baby. As soon as Kate starts the surrogate program, she gets a promotion to be the vice president of her organic food company. Throughout the rest of the movie, she seamlessly blends both her lives plus a cutesy romantic affair with Greg Kinnear (“Little Miss Sunshine”). Women are known masters of multitasking, but without extreme doses of amphetamines, not even Wonder Woman could pull that off.
While not as ground shaking as last Friday’s earthquakes, “Baby Mama” succeeds in being a comedy that plays well with almost any audience. It’s just one that few will remember.
‘Baby Mama’
Release Date: April 25
Director: Michael McCullers
Starring: Tina Fey and Amy Poehler
Genre: Comedy
Rating: PG-13
Grade: B
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on Monday, April 28th, 2008 at 8:41 pm and is filed under Arts & Entertainment, Film Reviews, Vibe.
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