Review: Big Mommas: Like Father, Like Son

Reviews

Flawless

Strange but slickly done

By TOM MEEK | March 27, 2008

2.5 Stars

Michael Caine and Demi Moore

Demi Moore in a British heist caper and dressed like Jackie O? Strange but true, and it works as Moore plays Laura Quinn, an American businesswoman up against the glass ceiling in 1960s London. Quinn toils ceaselessly for the fat cats at an international diamond exchange. Her thanks? She’s passed over and, later, played for the goat when a mine disaster triggers political repercussions with South African and Russian counterparts. The “blood diamond” edge never gets honed; instead, the film moves into bank-job territory when Mr. Hobbs (a cagy Michael Caine), the kindly janitor, enlists Laura’s help in jacking the vault. Veteran director Michael Radford (Il postino, Nineteen Eighty-Four) navigates the twists and turns adroitly, and given the muddled premise, this is a slick piece of filmmaking. But all the sparkling facets don’t make it a precious gem. 85 minutes | Kendall Square

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