Big Momma's House 2 (2006) / Comedy-Action

MPAA Rated: PG-13 for sexual humor and language
Running Time: 99 min.

Cast: Martin Lawrence, Nia Long, Emily Procter, Mark Moses, Zachary Levi, Kat Dennings, Dan Lauria
Director: John Whitesell
Screenplay: Don Rhymer
Review published February 8, 2006

Just when you thought you thought the first Big Momma would be the only one you'd have to endure, here we have another "B.M.", both literally and figuratively, almost six years later.  Astonishingly, this wholly needless and exceedingly worthless sequel even rivals the first entry in terms of insipid plotting and wretchedly unfunny gags.  It's hard to imagine the premise being any more contrived than the one shown here, and worst of all, the amount of convolutions and permutations that screenwriter Don Rhymer (The Honeymooners, Agent Cody Banks 2) has to make to squeeze out chuckles proves to be not nearly worth the effort or energy expended.  For a movie about a fat woman, this film is lean - flimsy dialogue, paltry direction, anemic inspiration, and nary a laugh to be found. 

In this entry, FBI agent Malcolm Turner (Lawrence, Rebound), now married with kids to his sweetheart Sherry Pierce (Long, Are We There Yet?), is reassigned to desk duty, as his wife doesn't want him handling any dangerous assignments with a baby on the way.  Malcolm isn't happy with the arrangements at all, so when he overhears an assignment that seems right up his alley - an undercover agent must pose as a nanny in order to infiltrate the home of a potentially criminal software engineer - Malcolm decides it may be time to dust off the Big Momma suit and get into the "thick" of things again.  However, without the bureau's consent, and with his wife not in the know, Malcolm has his hands full trying to keep his identity under wraps.

Many sequels are really rehashes of the original film, and while the bulk of Big Momma 2's gags are retreads of fat jokes done before, even the change of scenery proves to be derivative of other films. Nearly every gag is merely a variation of humor found in Mrs. Doubtfire and The Pacifier, and when you consider how bad those films were, you can only imagine how desperate the creators were to look for funny moments to inject this lame brained idea for a comedy with. Seeing Martin Lawrence in a fat woman suit might have been amusing at first glance, but after watching him in it for one whole movie already, the gas has already run out of the tank.  While the suit has gotten more realistic in appearance, at least in terms of the lower body, the mannerisms and voice have taken a nosedive for the worse.  It's hard to believe anyone would fall for the disguise this time out.

With no laughs, no new spin on the familiar material, and trite shenanigans we were already quite tired of about 5 "men in drag" movies ago, there's absolutely nothing redeeming about this puerile misfire.  Perhaps the only surprise about Big Momma's House 2 is that there are studio execs that still think Martin Lawrence is worthy of carrying big budget releases.  Yes, it's another nail in the coffin of Lawrence's once-promising career, but seeing as he is still going strong even after an already impressive string of terrible movies, one gets this impression that he's chosen to bury himself in the Big Momma suit, just to make sure there are a few more nais used before it's sealed for good.  

Qwipster's rating:

©2006 Vince Leo