It must be the season to be romantic with Aussie leading men, with the release of The Back-up Plan featuring Jennifer Lopez and Australian actor Alex O’Loughlin.
Zoe (Lopez) is a sweet-natured, gorgeous-looking pet-shop owner who sells dogs that aren’t in-bred pure-breds. Zoe is somehow still single and wants to have a baby on her own. Not long after going through IVF treatment, she walks cross-legged into the rain to catch a cab and bumps into the hunk of her dreams: Stan (O’Loughlin). They argue, get wet, take a train and when they emerge dry and flirting under a blazing sun, you know this is for real.
The procedure takes and Zoe is soon pregnant. Very. What’s a new boyfriend supposed to do? He flees into a local park and is accused of being a pervert. Stan sells cheese for a living (he’s not the only one) and is developing a sustainable farm. And he looks great with his shirt off. Can they be more perfect? And do they still have sex with their clothes on in the 21st century?
Kate Angelo’s (Will & Grace) script delves into new territory — the single mother — but then squibs it. We find out both Zoe and her Nanna (Linda Lavin, Alice) have commitment issues stemming from the premature death of Zoe’s mother. There’s no independence statement here; this is the gals’ fault, which even the single mothers’ group accepts.
The script has some sharp edges, but not many. Zoe’s best friend Mona (comedian Michaela Watkins) tells Zoe: “You don’t want to have kids and I’m going to show you my vagina to prove it.” And the vagina, vagina, vagina scene with Dr Harris (Robert Klein) could have been a classic in a better movie. There is even some self-depreciating humour about Lopez’s butt, and Anthony Anderson tries ad-libbing, but ends up making poo jokes. Get the picture?
Despite the number of Saturday Night Live comedians in the cast, there isn’t enough funny material for them, although the birthing scene, which seems like something out of The Exorcist, garnered lots of laughs from a group of older females. But even they were quiet as the movie moved through the waters-breaking-at-an-inconvenient-time routine.
Lopez struggles with her comic timing and instead goes for funny faces to create her comedy. O’Loughlin does a good job but his abs are more impressive and should land him more modelling jobs than acting ones. And disabled dog Nutsy steals the show.
The whole cast, script and direction have a real TV comedy feel about them — light, airy and not what you expect to pay good money for. It could be a nice way to wind down a rainy Sunday, or wind up a girls’ night out. But make sure you have a decent back-up plan yourself. This won’t be the highlight of your night.
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