The Rocket

Issue date: 5/2/08 Section: Focus

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"Baby Mama"

"Baby Mama" is a mediocre comedy. It's well-intentioned and mildly amusing but nothing more.

The movie begins with Kate Holbrook, played by Tina Fey ("Mean Girls," TV's "30 Rock"), talking about her desire to have a baby. She is 37 and unmarried, adoption is not an easy process, and she finds out that her chances of conception are extremely low. After some discussion with her sister, Maura Tierney ("Semi- Pro," TV's "ER"), she decides to check out a company that provides surrogate mothers.

This is where Kate meets Angie Ostrowiski and her common law husband, Carl, played by Amy Poehler ("Blades of Glory," TV's "Saturday Night Live") and Dax Shepherd ("Idiocracy," "Without a Paddle"). After Angie and Carl break up, Angie movies in with Kate.

The relationship between Kate and Angie is extremely enjoyable to watch. Both Fey and Poehler deliver humorous performances without going over the top. There were some scenes that could have been absolutely hilarious except for the fact that the movie preview gave them away. When they happen in the movie, instead of being genuinely hilarious, I was left thinking, "Oh yeah, I remember that from the preview." In fact, the biggest flaw with this movie is that it showed almost all of its laugh-out-loud scenes in the preview, leaving nothing surprising in the film itself.

"Baby Mama" also wastes the talents of Greg Kinnear ("Little Miss Sunshine," "Invincible"). Kinnear plays Kate's love interest, Rob. His role is paper thin, and although he delivers his lines perfectly and even adds more to the character than it deserves, he is unnecessary.

Another problem with "Baby Mama" is the script, which was written by Michael McCullers (the "Austin Powers" films). It seems that McCullers is trying his hand at more serious comedy, and while the script isn't a disastrous mess, it certainly is cluttered. The story lacks focus. Is it about the relationship between Kate and Angie, or is it about the relationship between Kate and Rob? It tries for both and suffers because of it.

There was an offbeat humor to the script that was enjoyable. Kate's boss is played by Steve Martin ("Cheaper by the Dozen," "The Pink Panther") in an odd and subtly hilarious performance. Even with this, though, I was left wishing for a stronger script.

In fact, I couldn't help but think that the script would have been better served if Tina Fey would have written it herself. I believe that Tina Fey is one of the funniest comedians in recent years. Her TV show "30 Rock" is, for me, second only to "The Office," and her time on "Saturday Night Live" as the Weekend Update anchor is among my favorite memories of that show.

While the movie takes on a subject that we don't often see in mainstream Hollywood (surrogate motherhood), it does it in a completely clichéd way. The main cliché here is what I like to call the "romantic comedy snowball of lies." The "snowball" seems to happen in almost every romantic comedy. One character has a secret and tries on several occasions to tell the other person, but they never find an opportune time. By the time they tell their secret, it has been going on for so long that it is much like a giant animated snowball rolling down a mountain. "Baby Mama" uses the "snowball" twice.

Honestly, I didn't dislike "Baby Mama." I smiled through the entire movie and even laughed out loud a few times. There are many comedies, like the laugh-free "Drillbit Taylor," that don't fare this well. While I had some issues with the script, I don't feel like the movie was a waste of my time. I do, however, believe that it isn't a movie that needs to be seen in the theaters. Save yourself some money and rent it on DVD.

RENTAL PICK

"The Kite Runner" is one of the best films of 2007. It is directed by Marc Forster ("Finding Neverland," "Stranger than Fiction") and is based on the hugely popular book of the same title. The story centers around childhood friends, Amir and Hassan. The movie does not rely on any hugely popular Hollywood actors and instead lets the story be the star.

Brian McCumsey is a junior history major and a regular contributor to The Rocket.

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