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Former Saturday Night Live "Weekend Update" co-anchors Tina Fey and Amy Poehler co-star in this baby-fever comedy about a single, career-oriented woman who previously put parenthood on hold, and is forced to hire a surrogate mother when she discovers there is only a one-in-a-million chance that she will be able to get pregnant. Kate Holbrook (Fey) is a 37-year-old business executive who has always put her professional life before her personal life, but these days her biological clock is ticking louder than ever before. As with everything else she has accomplished in life, Kate is determined to have a child on her own terms. Unfortunately for Kate, the chance of her ever becoming pregnant is slim to none. Undaunted, a willful Kate drafts South Philly working-class girl Angie Ostrowiski (Poehler) -- a woman who may just be her polar opposite -- to be a surrogate mother. Subsequently informed by the head of the surrogacy center (Sigourney Weaver) that her surrogate is indeed pregnant, the excited mother-to-be soon purchases every child-rearing book she can find and excitedly begins the nesting process. But life hasn't quit throwing Kate curveballs just yet, because when a pregnant Angie shows up on her doorstep with no place to live, the woman who once thrived on order finds her life descending into chaos. Now, as Kate attempts to transform Angie into the ideal expectant mother, this odd couple will discover that families aren't always biological, but occasionally formed through friendship as well. Writer Michael McCullers, who authored the screenplays for Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me and Undercover Brother in addition to working on Saturday Night Live, makes his feature directorial debut with a self-penned screenplay.Read full review
Normally I run as far as possible from any film described as both "female" and "comedic". To quote the late great John Belushi, "Chicks aren't funny". And 9 outta 10 times I gotta agree with him. But there is just something about Tina Fey. Is it that she's hot while humorous? No, that's not it. Or maybe because unlike every other female comedian, she doesn't tell jokes about how bad her boyfriend is or how it sucks to have a period? Nope, she at times goes there too. So what is it about her? To put it simply, it's her timing. Along with the ability to write her own material without a man to spell it out for her, she has one of the most endearing ways to speak-out those typical lines, making anything she says to be ironicly funny no matter what the content. It's no wonder her NBC sitcom 30 Rock has been showered in Emmy's, including the words of it's male lead, completely written from her female mind. This is one lady twenty years from now could be placed next to Lucille Ball and Roseanne Barr as one of the Comedy Queens of all time. So now we have her first starring role in Baby Mama. It's what you'd expect from her, much like her 30 Rock character, of a late 30-something trying to make it in a crazy-filled world. But instead of a television show scenerio, this time she's trying to have a child while realizing that in order to do so because of her dreaded T-shaped uterus, a surrogate mother will be needed. Now don't get me wrong, her character is exactly like Liz Lemon going as far as wondering just when Alec Baldwin was going to pop his head in. But again, it's her lines and delivery that make this typical lighthearted comedy worth watching. Fellow SNL cast member Amy Poehler plays a decent underprivileged not-so-bright bun-carrier, though at times she seems a little too old to play the part, but does very well in bouncing off Tina's reactions. In fact, the film also has a great and capable supporting cast featuring Sigourney Weaver, Steve Martin, Dax Shepard, and in one of his most likable parts in quite awhile, Greg Kinnear. And even when you think you figured out how the whole movie's gonna be ten minutes in, it throws you a curveball that you didn't think the movie had in it. This is the type of film that both parts of a couple can enjoy without the male involved looking for a reason to leave the room. Funny, but smart. Goofy, but fresh. Laughs without the eye rolling. And also all things said that relate to Tina Fey as well. The DVD presentation is typical: a two-sided, single layer each disc with a few extras on each side with decent picture/bit rate/audio. Not that this film will make you think you've found one of the best female buddy pictures of all time, but it won't make you want to turn on Nascar immediately to redeem yourself either. Tina Fey might be one of the best things to happen to female comedy in a long, long time. Let's hope that unlike alot of her gender peers, she only gets even better with age. (RedSabbath Rating:8.0/10)Read full review
To its credit, "Baby Mama" is not your typical one-joke movie starring "Saturday Night Live" alums. It's more of a one-and-a-half joke movie. In "Mama", Tina Fey's OCD career woman, unable to conceive and unwilling to wait for an adoption, hires Amy Poehler's ADD surrogate mother to carry her baby. How will this odd couple survive nine months together? With hilarious results, of course. Well, moderately hilarious, at least, thanks in large part to its two seriously talented comedic leads. This contemporary comedy draws our attention to the business of babies. It does so however in such a hackneyed fashion that if it weren't for the talented mama's at the forefront of it all, it would be little more than a painful delivery. Personally I feel that "Mama" is written, with one contrivance too many, by Michael McCullers who co-wrote the last two "Austin Powers" movies. Mr. McCullers makes his directorial debut here but, even at 96 minutes, "Mama" eventually runs awfully thin. There are certainly some good moments, particularly when the two leads are given time to riff off each other. Ms. Poehler, in particular, is given a wide berth (pun intended). Ms. Fey however, so winning on the small screen, is put to the test here. As the consummate straight-woman, her range (and the script) is too limited to inject any real depth into the material. "Mama" treats the sensitivity of its topic with kid gloves - it's missing Ms. Fey's deft comic hand (the one that has made "30 Rock", against all odds, one of the best comedy on television). Even 1987's similarly-themed Diane Keaton vehicle "Baby Boom" held more weight. Even without a gestation specialist. Like I said before Michael McCullers made the comedy here far too broad and predictable, robbing the talented actors of anything with which to play. I don't know if someone at Saturday Night Live had a surrogate, but that idea certainly was kicking around the set. I would recommended this film only if you have a few lazy days put aside.Read full review
This movie is like a disappointing party... All the right people are there, but it just isn't as much fun as it should be. Writer-director McCullers has created more than a few fascinating characters, but has not mixed them together in ways that generate the energy for a great gathering. The movie also has a predictable arc, and even though there are two major plot twists they will come as a surprise to no one. And yet, I liked this movie. One reason is Tina Fey. (Okay, I do have a crush on her, but that has nothing to do with it!) She is one of the most watchable actors at work today, both on TV and in the movies. There is genuine comic chemistry between her and Poehler, and we can only hope for future films that feature them. Though it all wraps up just a bit too neatly, along the way there are some captivating characters, very well-played. These include a pony-tailed Steve Martin as the whole-foods, new-age guru who rewards his top employees not with cash bonuses, but with five minutes of eye contact. Sigourney Weaver is also wonderful as the head of the surrogacy agency who charges $100,000 for its services. "That's more than it cost to have a person killed, " jokes Kate. "That's because it takes longer," deadpans Weaver. Some of the film's best laughs come courtesy of Oscar (Malco), the doorman at Kate's building who knows way more than he should about the odd couple upstairs. One minor character should look familiar, if you watch any TV at all. Kate's gynecologist is John Hodgman, the guy who plays "PC" in the ubiquitous Apple commercials. He provides Kate's prognosis with the words, "I don't like your uterus."Read full review
Kate Holbrook (Tina Fey) is a workaholic career woman, who works for a organic food company and who is constantly trying to accomodate owner tycoon Barry (Steve Martin).One day Kate relizes that the one thing that she wants more in life than anything is a baby.After many failures of trying to get pregnant, she learns from the doctor that she isn't able to have children.Desperate to still have a baby she comes to the decision to hire a surrogate to have a baby for her.Kate seeks the help of an agency to find the perfect surrogate for her.Chaffee Bicknell (Sigourney Weaver) is the "baby broker" owner/president of the company who goes through the surrogates hopefuls and looks life & background of each person.Finally when the perfect candidate has been choose Kate agrees to have Angie be her surrogate.When Kate & Angie first meet it is definitely two worlds colliding, two very opposites, with two very different personalities!When Angie and her boyfriend break up Kate lets Angie live with her.The more time they spend together the more the begin to like each other and connect.But when Angie's secret is out of the bag will it ruin everything?You will have to watch and decide for yourself! I had very high expectations of this movie with this outrageous comedy duo on SNL.I was dissapointed with this movie, there were many funny parts, but not anything that will have you laughing so hard your cheecks will hurt.Im glad that I rented this movie instead of buying it, I don't plan on watching it again.Read full review
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