Mad Money

Does Queen Latifah always get all the good lines? Or does she just deliver whatever lines she gets so well that it just seems that way? It certainly did in "Hairspray!"

Between Katie Holmes ("Thank You for Smoking" and "Pieces of April"), Diane Keaton ("The Family Stone" and "Something's Gotta Give") and the Queen herself ("The Perfect Holiday" and "Beauty Shop"), there is absolutely no contest! For one thing, her character has much more common sense, has something to lose (her children!), and is on the brink of a new relationship.

As you may already know, this is a "Heist" film. Their target is the Federal Reserve Bank where all three hold flunky jobs, thus are under constant scrutiny but are not considered capable of being any threat to the overall security of the place. Keaton's husband, Ted Danson ("Bye Bye, Benjamin" and LOTS of TV work) has been downsized and they are quickly slipping into a quagmire of unpaid bills and potential bankruptcy. She can't even pay her cleaning lady for work already done! They have a spacious house in an upscale neighborhood and are desperate to save face! She quickly discovers that she has NO job skills and at her age isn't a very marketable job applicant.

Diane eventually gets a job as a cleaning attendant at the Federal Reserve Bank simply because it is unskilled labor and she doesn't have a prison record. Katie pushes highly secured carts of paper money slated to be shredded because it is worn or damaged. Queen is in charge of the shredder.

Suffice it to say, beyond all logic and reason, these three gals devise a "fool-proof scheme" and thus unfolds the plot.

If I had to choose a favorite scene, it would be early on when Katie drops her bag and her personal effects are strewn all over the floor. The two older gals help pick it up and can't help but spot a syringe. Naturally, they refuse to include her in their scheme until she gets "clean." As they voice their concerns, a thought slowly dawns on Katie's face and she begins to smile..."Are you guys doing an intervention?" She is so honored she fails to tell them for awhile that she is a diabetic.

Predictable, entertaining, flimsy, nothing to promote here...sorry. Just kinda cute.