The monster mother-in-law is 67-year-old Jane Fonda, returning to the screen after 15 years. Immaculately turned out, in the scary style of veteran American women trying to hold back the passage of time, she plays Viola, a TV anchor who is sacked to make way for a younger woman.
Just when she's feeling low, she finds that her adored son, Kevin (Michael Vartan), wants to marry a pretty dog-walker (Jennifer Lopez, as Charlie) with no discernible prospects. On the edge of a breakdown, popping pills and downing alcohol, Viola does her best to prevent the match while pretending to approve of it.
That's the plot of Robert Luketic's comedy, and it is about as sophisticated as Meet the Fockers. At first, it looks as if it's going to turn out better, when Viola goes bananas at the idiot bimbo she has to interview for her farewell appearance.
After that, though, nothing really works, since Lopez's acting ability is only just sufficient; Vartan's role only requires him to be charming and, as the mother-in-law, Fonda does a Gloria Swanson at her most neurotic. Only Wanda Sykes, as her long-suffering assistant, seems able to mouth the mediocre screenplay with any bite.
While it's a pity that Fonda's role forces her to overplay, sometimes grossly, it's still nice to see her again. But it would have been nicer to watch her in a decent part - and in clothes and make-up that didn't look stitched on. She clearly has little need of them. Nice dogs, though - entirely devoid of make-up.
Monster-In-Law
Cert: cert12A
