The Back-up Plan

Plot: A woman gets artificially inseminated, then meets the man of her dreams later the same day.

Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8FZuNElrx7A

Clip: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BZXKH4OHW_Y

Starring: Indie Spirit award nominee Jennifer Lopez (My Family & "How I Met Your Mother"), Alex O'Loughlin ("Three Rivers"), Michaela Watkins ("Miami Medical"), Eric Christian Olsen ("Neighbors From Hell"), Anthony Anderson (Sammy's Adventures: The Secret Passage), Noureen DeWulf ("Hawthorne"), Melissa McCarthy ("Private Practice"), Jennifer Elise Cox ("Svetlana").

Written by: Emmy nominee Kate Angelo ("Will & Grace" & "What About Brian")

Directed by: Director's Guild of America Award nominee Alan Poul ("Six Feet Under" & "Swingtown")

Review: Good premise, average product. I like the original premise and that it didn't follow the typical rom-com structure. The chemistry was decent, there were some very funny side characters, and a few laugh out loud moments. Unfortunately, it never felt real. Though Lopez has good comic timing, I never felt her sincerity in the love scenes and the laugh out loud moments happened in completely implausible scenarios. It also seemed as if you were coming in on the end of an argument. I never understood those moments where they'd have a rift or why, so I never completely felt invested in the story or the characters. Another pet peeve of mine was that they left out some of the best lines that were in the trailer out of the final cut. I laughed out loud a few times, and I got teary-eyed right at the end. That's it. Better option: The Object of My Affection.

Rating:

Writing-C

Acting-B

Directing-D

Music-D

Cinematography-B

Editing-D

Costumes-A

Art Direction-A

Hair-A

Makeup-B

Visual Effects-B

*1/2 Stars