Mi abuela es un peligro

Old school fun. Action. A movie you can watch on a Friday night for a laugh.

Martin Lawrence is often trusty in the world of comedy. Maybe I'm just overcoming his awful "Blue Streak," but I felt this comedy--though saggy at times--was quite funny. The premise is undoubtedly implausible. How's a whole neighborhood going to believe that this undercover cop with a latex body that looks somewhat like Big Momma is actually Big Momma? There's a lot of disbelief to suspend. But the gags often worked and I can say I laughed about 75 percent of the time. Some are predictable, like when Big Momma takes a karate class and starts beating the teacher--played by Anthony Anderson--to a pulp, but they still work due to the way they're handled. And Lawrence turns in yet another fine comic performance, with a script that could've used a rewrite but was nowhere near as bad as the crackerjack script he had to work with in "Blue Streak." The talented comic helps keep the movie togehter, with a little assistance from the supporting cast. Paul Giamatti, who was great as Pig Vomit in the acclaimed "Private Parts," is funny as Lawrence's partner. We also have "Me Myself and Irene's" Anthony Anderson and Cedric the Entertainer.

The plot is chaotic, sometimes predictable, and becomes more and more implausible by the minute but the comedy works and because of that we're able to excuse the script's shortcomings. "Big Momma" doesn't deliver the biggest laughs, but it's good, fun entertainment on a lonely weekday afternoon.

My score: 7 (out of 10)

I loved "Big Momma's House" way back when it first came out & watched it alot on video, i already liked Martin Lawrence in Blue Streak & Bad Boys so seeing him play another Cop type of role in another big Comedy was exciting to me, & i have always loved Cop Films or the Buddy-cop genre.

Now, most films i loved as a kid or in my younger days i still genuinely love now & hold them dear to my heart or have deep Nostalgia for but with "Big Momma's House" i now find it a little too stupid & too silly now, but hey IT'S supposed to be isn't it. Martin Lawrence gives a very energetic performance & can be funny (not on an Eddie Murphy level) as he plays an FBI agent who goes deep undercover as a popular southern Big Momma to try & locate a running witness (Nia Long) to a big crime. The scenery is lovely with its summertime glow & the small town cosiness that those little Southern towns have. This is like a silly, goofy & rubbery mix of Stakeout meets The Nutty Professor, not as good as those films but still lots of fun. Terrence Howard plays the bad guy of the piece & Paul Giamatti plays Martin's fun FBI partner.

Anyway a few laughs are still there & there is a fun, frantic comedy energy present, & Martin is always good fun.

If you enjoy silly comedies like: The Nutty Professor films & Norbit then the Big Momma's House films will be right up your street.

I was in my early teens when this was released ten years ago, and I never heard of it at the time. In early 2006, I went to the theatre while this movie's sequel, "Big Momma's House 2", was playing, but since I had never seen the original by this point and could see that the sequel was widely hated, it was obviously not the movie I was going to see. Instead, I went to see "The Matador" on that particular trip to the movie theatre. It took me over four years after that to get around to watching the original "Big Momma's House", and just before seeing it, I had low expectations, thinking it would probably be a very unfunny comedy, even if it wasn't absolutely terrible. However, while it's unsurprisingly not that great, I did laugh.

Malcolm Turner is an FBI agent who is very skilled in disguising himself for undercover operations. After it is announced that a murderer and robber named Lester Vesco has just escaped from prison, where he was serving his life sentence, Malcolm and fellow FBI agent John Maxwell are sent to catch him. The FBI believes that the criminal's ex-girlfriend, Sherry Pierce, was also involved in criminal activity, but they haven't been able to prove it. Malcolm and John go to the neighbourhood in Georgia where Sherry's morbidly obese grandmother, Hattie Mae Pierce (a.k.a. Big Momma) lives, and begin to spy on her. Sherry is on her way to her grandmother's house with her son, Trent, but before they arrive, Big Momma leaves town unexpectedly, so Malcolm decides to pose as the feisty elderly woman! He takes on her lifestyle while trying to get the truth from Sherry, and also finds himself falling for the criminal's ex-girlfriend!

Before it is announced that Lester has escaped from prison and Malcolm and John go to spy on Big Momma's house, the film begins with the two FBI agents busting a dog fight, and I guess parts of this sequence are somewhat funny, but no more than that. The film continues to be mostly straight-faced after this, as we learn about the escaped prisoner, the two agents are sent on their mission, and Malcolm disguises himself as Big Momma. The early part where Malcolm has to hide in the shower while Big Momma defecates is memorable, but not in a good way. For a while, it didn't seem like I would be able to give "Big Momma's House" a rating higher than 5/10. I frequently snickered, but it didn't look like I would ever find any BIG laughs in the film. However, that eventually changed. While it's still not that consistent later on, it certainly can be funny with the things Malcolm has to do while in disguise, including a baby delivery. The scene with Sherry seeing Malcolm as himself and the FBI agent claiming to be a handyman is also a really funny part. The story and characters can also be interesting.

This 2000 release is definitely not generally considered one of the great modern-day comedies, and after seeing it, I can understand why, but I've seen much worse excuses for comedy. I wouldn't have been too surprised if I had thought "Big Momma's House" was really lame when I watched it, but while I'm sure many people think it is, I can't say I do. It is uneven, but sometimes funny. Also, there isn't nearly as much juvenile toilet humour in the movie as that one defecation scene suggests! Martin Lawrence plays the lead role here. I haven't seen him in any other film and have only seen a bit of his stand-up comedy, so I'm not that familiar with his work, but think he does a pretty good job with his performance here. This film is a little cheesy and doesn't have the most original plot, and more thought could have been put into the ending as well, but if you want a silly, raunchy comedy, this particular one might work, at least in some parts.

Looking at how this movie looked in advertising, part of me wanted to avoid it. However, years later I gave it the benefit of the doubt, and while it is an uneven film it is nowhere near as bad as it could have been. The story is briskly paced, but rather predictable and thin in places and some scenes do feel a little rushed. There are some funny lines and gags, but also ones that rely on gross-out humour and come across as uninspired. The characters can have a tendency to be irritating and also to be stereotyped. However, the movie does look good with striking locations and the filming is more than decent, and there is an energetic soundtrack. In the dialogue and gags that work, they are actually quite funny. The direction is better than average, as are the performances. Martin Lawrence seems to be really enjoying himself, and it was nice to see Paul Giamatti in support. In conclusion, not great but not bad either. 6/10 Bethany Cox