4) Mother’s Day
Throughout his career, Garry Marshall changed the face of entertainment. In addition to creating classic television series like Laverne & Shirley and Happy Days, he directed several popular films like Pretty Woman, Beaches and Overboard. His death this year is even sadder then, considering that this saccharine mess turned out to be his final directorial project.
Marshall’s third consecutive ensemble comedy centering on a holiday (alongside Valentine’s Day and New Year’s Eve), Mother’s Day is the type of film that throws so much at the screen and hopes in vain that audiences are too distracted by big-name talent like Julia Roberts, Jason Sudeikis and Kate Hudson to notice the lack of anything compelling in any of its multiple storylines. Emotionally manipulative and predictable, Mother’s Day feigns a mission to celebrate the all-important bond of motherhood. However, the ludicrously obvious lack of effort causes the entire production to ring hollow.
Ultimately, the film reveals itself to be nothing more than another attempt to frontload a movie poster with recognizable faces in an effort to convince the unsuspecting moviegoing public that it might be worth their time.