Monster-in-Law
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| Monster-in-Law | |
|---|---|
 Promotional poster for Monster-in-Law |
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| Directed by | Robert Luketic |
| Produced by | Chris Bender, J.C. Spink, Paula Weinstein |
| Written by | Anya Kockoff |
| Starring | Jane Fonda Jennifer Lopez Michael Vartan Wanda Sykes |
| Music by | David Newman, Rosey |
| Cinematography | Russell Carpenter |
| Editing by | Scott Hill, Kevin Tent |
| Distributed by | New Line Cinema |
| Release date(s) | May 5, 2005 |
| Running time | 101 min. |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $60,000,000 (estimated) |
| IMDb profile | |
Monster-in-Law is a 2005 romantic comedy film, directed by Robert Luketic. It marks a return to cinema for Jane Fonda; her first film in 15 years. The screenplay is written by Anya Kochoff. The original music score is composed by David Newman and Rosey.
Tagline 1: She met the perfect man. Then she met his mother.
Tagline 2: This relationship is going to be a real mother.
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[edit] Plot summary
Charlie Cantilini (played by Jennifer Lopez) is a dogwalker from Venice Beach, California, who meets surgeon Kevin Fields (played by Michael Vartan). Kevin asks her out, and Charlie believes that she's finally found the right man.
Things start to go wrong when Kevin introduces Charlie to his mother, Viola Fields (played by Jane Fonda). Viola has recently been replaced as a newscaster for someone younger, and is in meltdown. Loathing Charlie from the outset, and fearing that she'll lose her son the same way she lost her career, she decides to destroy her son's relationship. With her trusted assistant, Ruby (played by Wanda Sykes) who is secretly working against her, she tries everything possible to drive Charlie away but she does not succeed until Kevin and Charlie's wedding day. Viola turns up wearing a white dress. Charlie decides to back down as she cannot take living life with her mother-in-law trying to destroy her relationship. Then Viola's own dreadful mother-in-law, Gertrude, appears and they have an argument.Gertrude bears a strong resemblance to Viola. It is then after the argument that Viola realises that she wants Charlie to stay, and they reconcile.
[edit] Cast
- Jennifer Lopez — Charlotte "Charlie" Cantilini
- Jane Fonda — Viola Fields
- Michael Vartan — Kevin Fields
- Wanda Sykes — Ruby
- Adam Scott — Remy
- Annie Parisse — Morgan
- Monet Mazur — Fiona
- Will Arnett — Kit
- Elaine Stritch — Gertrude
[edit] Reaction
The movie was generally panned by critics ([1], [2]), but the $43-million movie became a box-office success, earning $83 million ($153.8 worldwide) [3] during its theatrical run in summer 2005. This was considered good news for Jennifer Lopez, for this is her second box-office hit (the previous one was 2004's Shall We Dance) following the notorious failure Gigli (2003). It was also good for Jane Fonda, since it was her first film since 1990's Stanley and Iris, and the two actresses were among the film's strongest points.
