Baby Mama
Movie details
Successful and single businesswoman Kate Holbrook has long put her career ahead of a personal life. Now 37, she's determined to have a kid of her own until she discovers she has no chance of getting pregnant. Undaunted, Kate allows working girl Angie to become her unlikely surrogate. But her well organised strategy is turned upside down when her Baby Mama shows up at her doorstep with no place to live.
Director Michael McCullers
Stars Amy Poehler, Tina Fey, Greg Kinnear, Sigourney Weaver
Mild coarse language and sexual references
Our review
Director Michael McCullers of "Austin Powers" fame pokes fun at the issues surrounding fertility and conception in his new gyno-centric comedy, "Baby Mama".
The plight of corporate high-flyer Kate Holbrook (Tina Fey) will strike a chord with many modern women. At the ripe "old" age of 37, Kate's decision to put work before love has caught up with her well and good. With her body clock ticking and not a man in sight, Kate's chances of having a baby aren't looking too rosy.
Not being one to muck around, Kate takes matters into her own hands and decides to become a single parent. But her plan goes horribly pear-shaped upon discovering she has a million-to-one chance of getting pregnant due to her "T-shaped uterus".
Unperturbed, Kate embarks on a mission to find a surrogate mother. Cue Angie (Amy Poehler), a country hick who's happy to carry Kate's unborn baby in return for a big wad of cash. A high-school dropout, Angie is the complete opposite of conservative Kate, and the juxtaposition of the two characters is the source of many a comedic moment.
It doesn't take long for Angie to become the surrogate mother from hell as things gradually go from bad to worse.
Steve Martin is a laugh-a-minute as Kate's oddball boss, Barry. Sporting a long silver ponytail, Barry is a nightmare: weird, slimy and inappropriate, his idea of a pat on the back is partaking in five minutes of uninterrupted eye contact.
More laughs come from Sigourney Weaver who makes a surprise appearance as the self-righteous director of the surrogacy centre.
Fey, who is best known for her work on "Saturday Night Live", is a refreshing change from Hollywood's usual list of current leading ladies. Her performance is understated with just the right amount of pizzazz to make it memorable.
Despite a good twist early in the piece, the film's ending is somewhat predictable and far-removed from reality.
But this is a light-hearted comedy, after all, not a heavy-duty drama. What the film lacks in substance it makes up for in laughs, making it a flick well worth catching.
7/10
Amy McIntosh
In compiling yourTime content, HWW relies upon information supplied by a number of sources. yourTime content is supplied on the basis that while HWW believes that all the information in it will be correct at time of publishing, it does not warrant its accuracy or completeness.
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