The In-Laws
If nothing else, buddy comedies live and die based on their chemistry, and while there are no unexpected explosions in the remake of “The In-Laws,” the formula appears to have become somewhat diluted. In the original 1979 comedy, Peter Falk and Alan Arkin played the mismatched soon-to-be father-in-laws, Falk the seasoned spy, Arkin the timid dentist, thrown together by fate and pending nuptials.
In the remake, Michael Douglas stars as Steve Tobias, an American secret agent who really digs the gig, dashing around the world in order to save the day. In the other corner is Albert Brooks as Jerry Peyser, a mild-mannered podiatrist, whose daughter Melissa (Lindsay Sloane) is marrying Steve’s son Mark (Ryan Reynolds).
What should be a marriage made in heaven turns Jerry’s sedate life into a living hell when he is finally brought face-to-face with Steve, who inadvertently engages him in one of his dangerous missions. Whereas Falk and Arkin were able to mine gold from the premise, Douglas and Brooks play to type, and while they are adequately engaging, they’re playing with fool’s gold.
Not that “The In-Laws” is a bad movie. It punches all of the right buddy comedy buttons, but unlike the original film, it does so on auto-pilot. The recent remake of “The Italian Job” not only updated the 1969 film but managed to make the material its own. “The In-Laws” feels like a case of been there, done that. The screenplay by Nat Mauldin and Ed Solomon feels manufactured and mechanical, lacking the satiric wit of Andrew Bergman’s original.
Douglas seems to be enjoying himself as Steve, whose latest assignment is to intercept gay French arms dealer Jean-Pierre Thibodoux (David Suchet) before he can take possession of a Russian submarine. When Jerry uncovers Steve’s real identity, he becomes an unwitting target, and finds himself being flown overseas by Steve and his assistant, Angela (Robin Tunney). Instead of making last minute preparations for the wedding, Jerry finds himself fending off the advances of Jean-Pierre, who has become smitten with him.
Brooks is a master of dry humor, and manages to wrangle enough laughs out of the script without embarrassing himself, yet seems uneasy with the script’s passing nods to James Bond. Once his character becomes involved in Steve’s spy gimmickry, he feels like a passenger on an out of control train, just hanging on until the end.
Except for Candice Bergen, who has some funny moments as Steve’s ex-wife, a woman who has obviously put the children of her therapist through school, the rest of the cast feel like props for director Andrew Fleming (“The Craft,” “Dick”) to decorate the frame. The writers attempt to toss Douglas and Reynolds a father-son bonding moment, but it lacks emotional sincerity.
Neither fair nor foul, “The In-Laws” never rises to the giddy level of the original, which has become a semi-classic in some camps.
IN-LAWS AND DISORDER
Everything’s relative in remake of buddy comedy
THE IN-LAWS
Michael Douglas, Albert Brooks, Robin Tunney, Ryan Reynolds, Candice Bergen, David Suchet, Lindsay Sloane. Directed by Andrew Fleming. Rated PG-13. 98 Minutes.
LARSEN RATING: $5.00
