Monster-In-Law

This movie kind of stinks, but there is a pretty nice rush in seeing Jane Fonda back on screen after a long absence. Yes, the script is a tired old rehash of mean-mother-in-law clichés, but Fonda makes them come alive on occasion, and it’s fun to see her pulling out all the stops in a comic performance. As her prospective daughter-in-law nemesis, Jennifer Lopez is cute but sometimes a little too cute, as if overdoing efforts to erase that mean-girl image the tabloids have created. She wears goofy outfits and does cute little things like chewing on her straw and talking like a little girl. Lopez has talent as an actress, but there are moments here when it seems she’s overacting to lighten her public image. The scenes where she squares off with Fonda and goes toe-to-toe with the nastiness are much better. Overall, you’ll probably feel as if you’ve seen this before, but you might get a charge out of seeing Fonda again.