In Big Momma’s House 2, Martin Lawrence returns to play the role of Malcolm Turner, the idealistic FBI agent who brought down a crook in the previous film by impersonating a boisterous Southern granny nicknamed Big Momma. Now, though, being a married man and having a baby on the way, Malcolm has taken himself out of the field and settled down in a desk job so he can spend more time with his new family.

But when Malcolm receives word that an old partner of his was killed during an undercover assignment, he can't take that sitting down. He decides to take action by donning the wig and fat suit one more time to become Big Momma, infiltrating the house of a man connected to the case his partner was investigating by getting hired as a nanny. While trying to get behind his partner's murder as Malcolm, our hero also ends up having his hands full as Big Momma, contending with absentee parents, a rebellious teen, a shy middle daughter, and a three-year-old who enjoys jumping off high places. His experiences slowly teach him how to better his relationship with his own family.

A few months ago, I ranted about Yours, Mine & Ours concerning  how little Hollywood must think of mainstream moviegoers. That particular film boiled down to little more than 90 minutes of loud noises and slapstick violence being inflicted upon Dennis Quaid. Well, Big Momma’s House 2 continues this downward spiral, serving up a simplistic package of tired gags and unfunny jokes that cause me to wonder how much real effort the filmmakers actually put into plotting it all out. Nothing is done to advance the characters or show them in any different light than the first time you saw them. The phony drama generated by the story, focusing on the tension between Malcolm and his family as he lies about heading out into the field on a case, only serves to worsen the situation. The jokes are uninspired, the kind that fall flat on their face upon delivery, yet they persist in coming back to fail over and over again.

There are only so many times Lawrence can get caught up in an awkward situation while wearing the Big Momma suit before it's not funny anymore (like, once). He should be using his talents to tap into the bawdy sense of humor that put him on the map in the first place instead of phoning it in and making a cheap, dull and unoriginal sequel to one of his few huge hits. That's right -- Martin Lawrence is slowly becoming Eddie Murphy, although to Eddie's credit, when he put on drag in The Nutty Professor, it was actually funny.

In the end, Big Momma’s House 2 fails to reveal even one valid reason why it had to be made. There's essentially no difference between the first Big Momma’s House movie and this unimaginative sequel, just a 2 slapped on the end of the title and a slightly different plot for the same kind of gags and set-ups.   

MY RATING: * (out of ****)

(Released by 20th Century Fox and rated "PG-13" for some sexual humor and a humorous drug reference.