Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins

46

Universal Pictures (114 minutes)
and Malcolm D. Lee
Martin Lawrence , Margaret Avery , Michael Clarke Duncan , Louis C.K. , Mike Epps , Mo'Nique , Cedric the Entertainer , and James Earl Jones

Rating: PG-13 for crude and sexual content, language and some drug references

Summary: Talk-show sensation RJ Stevens left behind his modest Southern upbringing and family name to transform into a self-help guru dispensing his "Team of Me" philosophy to millions of adoring fans. With a reality-TV-star fiancée and money to burn, there's no piece of the Hollywood dream RJ hasn't achieved. After his parents request that he come home for their 50th wedding anniversary, the TV host packs up his 10-year-old son and diva bride-to-be and heads back to Georgia. It's a chance to prove to his family that he's no longer the awkward kid they relentlessly picked on. At least, that's the plan...But when his crazy, lovable family calls him on his big-city attitude and challenges him at every turn, RJ is forced to take a hard look at the man he's become. He may be a superstar in L.A., but he's just one of the guys in Dry Springs as folks say "Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins." (Universal Pictures)

Kyle Smith
New York Post:
(75) Turns out to be formulaic and broad but also skillfully paced and big-hearted, with a sharp cast of comics that makes the most of a sunny script.

Chuck Wilson
Village Voice:
(70) Although the big comic setups in Lee's script feel a bit forced--the director continually sets up moments of rapid-fire, barb-filled interplay among his accomplished cast.

Clark Collis
Entertainment Weekly:
(67) Mo'Nique is similarly given little opportunity to show off her indisputable comedic chops, though her freewheeling monologue during the closing credits hints at what might have been.

Kelley L. Carter
Chicago Tribune:
(63) Under normal circumstances, too many comics spoil the show.

Jason Anderson
The Globe and Mail (Toronto):
(63) More than sufficiently funny.

Matt Zoller Seitz
The New York Times:
(60) It’s a cut above other films of its type because every scene is packed with details like those pliers -- touches that suggest that the film’s writer and director, Malcolm D. Lee (“The Best Man”), is working overtime to smuggle life into formula.

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