Labor Pains [Blu-ray]

LABOR PAINS - Blu-Ray Movie

Labor Pains stars Lindsay Lohan as much-abused secretary Thea Dixon, whose boss makes her clean his dog when it rolls in poop. On the brink of being fired, Thea makes a desperate claim: She’s pregnant! Fear of a lawsuit prevails and she keeps her job... but now she’s got to keep up her story. It’s a chore at first, but Thea soon discovers that pregnancy has its privileges; she ends up with a promotion and a fledgling romance--all threatened by the possible revelation of her deceit. Labor Pains has the kind of preposterous but plot-driving premise that might have made for a great screwball comedy in the 1940s. Unfortunately, the clumsy script fumbles every promising scene with obvious jokes and no sense of how to maintain the tricky balance of absurdity and genuine feeling that the story requires. The movie gets a boost from its bouncy soundtrack, Lohan’s likability (only a few years ago she was riding high from Freaky Friday and Mean Girls), and an enjoyable supporting turn from Cheryl Hines (Curb Your Enthusiasm) as Thea’s caustic co-conspirator in the secretarial pool. Janeane Garofalo has a cameo as a talk-show host. --Bret Fetzer