Mother's Day

Director Garry Marshall is back with another holiday ensemble movie from a script by Tom Hines, Anya Kochoff Romano and Matt Walker. Like Valentine's Day (2010) and New Year's Eve (2011), the film covers several intersecting character in some personal crisis so we can laugh at their predictable confrontations. Set in a small Georgia town where mostly Caucasians reside in perfectly appointed homes dealing with the day to day trials of being a parent. It's amusing and ultimately forgettable.

We are introduced to Sandy (Jennifer Aniston), a divorced mother of two boys whose ex-husband Henry (Timothy Olyphant) has confessed he had eloped with his young girlfriend Tina (Shay Mitchell). She is feeling possessive of her boys, not wanting to have some young thing share motherhood with her. She is friends with Jesse (Kate Hudson) and her sister Gabbi (Sarah Chalke) who share a house with Jesse's Indian doctor husband Russell (Aasif Mandvi) and their son, and Gabbi's lesbian wife (Cameron Esposito) and their child. They are hiding from their conservative parents (Margo Martindale and Robert Pine) who live in Texas. Britt Roberston plays Kristen is a waitress who had a baby with her long time boyfriend Zach (Jack Whitehall) who wants to marry her, but she has some issues to resolve like finding her bio mom. Gym owner Bradley (Jason Sudeikis) is still mourning the loss of his wife (briefly seen on video, Jennifer Garner). He has two girls and thinks they will skip mother's day. Then there is Julia Roberts playing the uptight career woman Miranda who has built her fortune on the home shopping network and her books telling everyone that she doesn't have kids, but of course, we know that will be resolved later in the movie.

Garry Marshall is a master of these romantic comedies, simple, sappy, and quickly served. Everyone gets just enough story to keep you interested in how they will resolve their conflicts. No one seems to have any money, housing, or drug problems. They live in nice homes, have good cars, and dress well. There's even some token people of color in the background. It's all so pasteurized and easy to swallow.
A few set ups like the womb float for mother's day, and the racist/sexist comments by Jesse and Gabi's parents are all played for laughs. But you know in the end, everything will work out all right. You can leave the theater happy waiting for the next holiday film.
(Review by reesa)