Summary
It won't steal any thunder from the 1979 original, but this breezy remake of The In-Laws offers a few solid laughs. It's blessed by the casting of Albert Brooks as one of two imminent fathers-in-law who embark on the proverbial "wacky misadventure" on the eve of a lavish family wedding. The veteran comedian plays a podiatrist (in the dentist role originated by Alan Arkin) and Michael Douglas (in Peter Falk's role) is a deep-cover agent for the CIA, unbeknownst to Brooks or his daughter, who's about to marry Douglas's son--an event also attended by Douglas's ex-wife (Candice Bergen), who remains spiteful despite her newfound Buddhist enlightenment. As an arms dealer targeted by Douglas's latest covert operation, David Suchet matches Brooks laugh-for-laugh in the movie's funniest scenes, but one drawback can't be avoided: Douglas simply isn't funny. But while the original In-Laws was arguably overrated, this remake, for all its faults, makes for an agreeable rainy-day pastime. --Jeff Shannon