Skip to: Content
Skip to: Site Navigation
Skip to: Search

July 25, 2008 11:57:13 AM CDT

Learn about Newser Points »

« Back to the grid | Next story »

Nothing Funny About This Money

Posted Jan 18, 08 4:29 PM CST in Gossip,  Arts & Living 

(Newser) – Even Oscar-caliber talent like Diane Keaton and Queen Latifah can't save Mad Money, about three cash-strapped women who join forces to pull off the perfect heist. The movie, which also stars Katie Holmes, "fails to hit the stratosphere," Stephen Schaefer writes in the Boston Herald, because it "just isn’t funny enough to be truly engaging."

Keaton's performance as an upper-class housewife whose husband (Ted Danson) has been downsized makes the film "worth a few bucks," writes Robert Wilonsky of the Village Voice. And Latifah demonstrates "grit and verve" as a hardworking single mom, says Entertainment Weekly's Owen Gleiberman, but the stars "need all their charm" to compensate for their underwritten roles.

Sources Metacritic, ReelViews, Village Voice, Entertainment Weekly

0 comments | Print E-mail | Digg Seed this on Newsvine Add this link to Del.icio.us StumbleUpon

Related Newser Stories

  • Love Guru Is Beyond Help

    Jun 20, 08 8:40 AM CDT
    Love Guru Is Beyond Help Love isn't the right word to describe how most critics feel about The Love Guru, Mike Myers' first live-action comedy in 5 years. Myers stars as a self-help guru paid to revive the love life of a hockey player, but his mugging isn't enough to salvage "a collection of scattershot jokes clothes-pinned to such a slender plot," Colin Covert writes in the Minneapolis Star-Tribune. More »

  • Bueller, Er, Bartlett Is a Pill

    Feb 22, 08 12:06 PM CST
    Bueller, Er, Bartlett Is a Pill Charlie Bartlett, about a charming but troubled high school student who dispenses advice and prescription medication to his classmates, is being given mostly passing grades by critics. Sure, the teen film hits the expected themes of "angst, alienation, loneliness, disenchantment, and drug use," writes the Hollywood Reporter's Kirk Honeycutt. At the same time, it maintains a deft comic touch through "keen observation." More »

  • Rewind Spins Out of Control

    Feb 22, 08 8:13 AM CST
    Rewind Spins Out of Control The Jack Black comedy Be Kind Rewind isn't predictable, but at times it's not coherent either, critics say. The film—about a guy who inadvertently erases a video store's VHS inventory, then, using a camcorder, re-creates popular movies for the store to rent—"never stops experimenting, even when the experimentation works against the movie's best interests," writes James Berardinelli of ReelViews.com. More »

  • Definitely a Winner

    Feb 15, 08 1:22 PM CST
    Definitely, Maybe, the story of a soon-to-be-divorced dad whose 11-year-old daughter wants to hear how he met her mother, is definitely a cut above most romantic comedies, critics say. "It's a lot fresher and a bit more sophisticated than the ordinary run of maudlin chick flicks," writes Ken Fox of TV Guide. More »

  • All That Glitters Isn't Fool's Gold

    Feb 8, 08 3:29 PM CST
    All That Glitters Isn't Fool's Gold Fool's Gold reunites Matthew McConaughey and Kate Hudson, to less-than-golden effect. Playing off the name of their successful 2003 collaboration, Michael Rechtshaffen of the Hollywood Reporter snipes that the "soggy, listless" adventure comedy "could have been called How to Lose an Audience in 10 Minutes." More »

This undated handout photo provided by Overture Films shows Queen Latifah, left, Diane Keaton, center, and Katie Holmes during a scene from "Mad Money." (AP Photo/Overture Films)   (Associated Press)
Actresses Queen Latifah, Diane Keaton and Katie Holmes attend the opening bell of the Nasdaq stock market on Wednesday, Jan. 16, 2008, in New York. They are promoting their latest film, "Mad Money," scheduled...   (Associated Press)
« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow
"Mad Money" trailer   (crewcreative (YouTube))

« Prev « Prev  |  Next » Next »
Our editors also recommend:

Threads (1 of 4)

Tags

movie  • movie review  • comedy  • Katie Holmes  • heist  • Queen Latifah  • Ted Danson


Loading...

Loading...

Today's Most Popular


Other Arts & Living Stories

What is Newser?

2008 Codie Finalist

Newser gives you more news in less time. We search for the best and most important stories all over the web, read them for you, and deliver concise and sharp summaries—along with links to the full text. Newser provides a way to stay on top of an ever-expanding horizon of news and opinion—politics, sports, business, trends, technology, personalities, crimes, and controversies. Newser keeps you not just better informed, but, with our signature graphic interface and smart condensed format, more enjoyably informed.

Learn more »