Latest screening: It's Complicated

These days you know something is bad when the best thing about your comedy is Steve Martin. Don't get me wrong, i am a big Martin fan but i can't avoid the fact that in the last 15+ years the only comedy he's made that was good was the self-penned Bowfinger. Mostly, sadly, he sucks now! Unless he takes an occasional serious role - like in David Mamet's excellent The Spanish Prisoner. And weirdly that is why he works here. Despite his second-billing on the poster the poster image (left) tells the truth for once. Martin is barely in this film. When he is he is mainly a subdued straight-man version of Martin, only getting to let out the better known Steve in one extended scene. So, for what little he's around, he comes out of this best.

And thank god for him and John Krasinski. Without the pair of them this film would be so tedious as to make you wonder by about half way through if suicide is a preferable option to sitting through another hour (plus) of this obvious, unfunny, cliched, dreck!

Nancy Meyers knows how to plum the depths of obvious, supposedly witty but really hackneyed comedy. Films like the fun What Women Want, the saved-by-the-leads Something's Gotta Give and the odious The Holiday have shown that she likes to write a so-called observational comedy, which couldn't bare less resemblance to real life if aliens invaded halfway through - and at least that might add some interest.

Here we have Meryl Streep as the long divorced wife of Alec Baldwin with three grown children. He is now married to a much younger woman and they are trying for a baby. Streep and Baldwin rekindle a flame and start an affair. Martin comes on the scene as a straight-laced divorcee suitor for Streep and... (see title)

The thing is none of it is even vaguely convincing. Streep and Baldwin have zero chemistry. Martin, again, fares better but has the thankless - only serves as a plot point - character that has no depths to explore. Streep and Baldwin are fine within their own characters but aren't convincing together.

In standard movie cliche way Streep's band of "outrageous" girl friends are always on hand for some sage advice and "outrageous" innuendo at a moments notice, but of course have no real characters beyond screeching here, going "Oh My GOD!!!" there and generally behaving "outrageously" in a way no actual human being does. They also, of course, disappear from the plot when no longer needed without another reference. Rita Wilson pops up here and does all the wrinkled brow, hand flapping, oohing and aahing that these characters tend to demonstrate, showing once again why she's never made it big as an actress in her own right.

These aren't the only cliches, the movie positively revels in them, and the whole doesn't have an honest moment in it - a problem, surely, for an "observational" comedy?

The Streep-Baldwin kids are also badly cast. Not only has the casting director managed to cast three young actors without the remotest resemblance to either Streep or Baldwin, but they've cast three without a passing resemblance to each other. Heights, shapes, facial features. Nothing links a single member of this family with another. That might not matter if it were because they'd gone for the best actors, but the son - geez, if they couldn't find a better actor than him than there ought to be an actor-shortage alert put out to get aid to Hollywood.

The saving grace is John Krasinski. Playing son-in-law to Streep and Baldwin he has the only genuinely funny moments after he inadvertently (and unwillingly) becomes the sole recipient of the knowledge of Streep and Baldwin's affair. He plays this beautifully, hitting every moment for maximum comic-effect. It wouldn't be hard to stand out in a film this lame and irritating, but he really is quite good.

Generally though what a waste of good talent. Streep should know better. This feels like her cashing in on her recent label of being "bankable" thanks to Devil Wears Prada and Mamma Mia! This has to be the worst role she's ever played and the laziest performance she's ever given. I'm sure the millions will keep her warm at night but she ought to be ashamed. Baldwin is trading off his 30 Rock success and has Kim Basinger to keep off his back and Martin couldn't spot a good script these days if he was mummified in it so i can forgive them, but Meryl, what were you thinking?

A hackneyed, cliched, tedious, obvious, trite mess. It's Complicated is not complicated, it's just rubbish.