Oh, Mama. The lighthearted Atlanta-filmed comedy "Mother's Day," with Jennifer Aniston, Kate Hudson, Jason Sudeikis, Julia Roberts, Shay Mitchell and others is getting some seriously terrible reviews.
"If you love your mother, do not make her see this movie," Entertainment Weekly writes in its review, giving the movie a D for its "offensive comments, choppy dialogue, lifeless jokes" and other sins.
Deadline hates it a little bit less, but laments that the star-studded cast is "wasted on a low-level, by-the-numbers shtickcom script ... that has no spark, wit or real drama and surprisingly no laughs at all."
Variety hates it a lot more: "Atrociously written, begrudgingly acted, haphazardly assembled and never more backward than when it thinks it's being progressive."
And Time just zings: "Hate your mom? Take her to see Mother's Day."
Credit: Jennifer Brett
Credit: Jennifer Brett
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The Garry Marshall-directed movie, if you still plan to see it, is set in Atlanta and connects various narratives as Mother's Day approaches. Sudeikis is a widowed dad struggling to raise a teen and tween on his own after his military wife (played by Jennifer Garner in a sweet cameo) is killed in action.
Aniston is a newly divorced mom whose clueless ex has just married a young hottie. Roberts plays a prominent jewelry artisan who never had kids. Only she actually did and we're about to find out what happened there.
Hudson and Sarah Chalke play sisters who are hiding secrets from their own mom and dad.
So .. is it really that bad? Let's see: We have a cameo from Jon Lovitz who creepily carries a little dog everywhere he goes. In a city as diverse as Atlanta, none of the main storylines involve a family of color. No one has a Southern accent except Flo and Earl, played by Margo Martindale and Robert Pine. The Texans travel in an RV, wear American flag apparel and hate gays and minorities until they suddenly stop and everyone's friends, courtesy of some faulty brakes.
And Aniston's character is flummoxed by Twitter.
But let's stop there. Mama taught us if you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all.
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