Critics giving Jennifer Lopez' new romantic-comedy 'The Back-Up Plan' a savage beating

Jennifer Lopez' The Back-Up Plan might need its own back-up plan. Oh, snap.

Hey, everybody! Did you know that Jennifer Lopez has a brand-spanking-new romantic comedy in theaters, starting tomorrow? Yeah, me neither, but now that I've found out, I thought it'd be a good idea to see what critics had to say about the film-- titled The Back-Up Plan-- before purchasing my ticket. And, shockingly, it turns out that movie critics aren't on J.Lo's side with this one. Currently sitting at a 22% on RottenTomatoes.com, The Back-Up Plan may be J.Lo's last chance to really win back the audience she used to have. Will she succeed, or is this one dead on arrival? Let's take a closer look at some reviews below, my gentle Examiner readers...

First of all, you're probably wondering what The Back-Up Plan is. It's not like CBS Films has been churning out eighteen different posters and thirty new TV spots per day like Iron Man 2 is. So, here's the plot: Jennifer Lopez plays a rich, successful, single woman who's unlucky in love ('Cause when ya look like Jennifer Lopez, it's not just like you can get any man). She's tried for years to get pregnant, and after finally deciding upon artificial insemination as a means to having a kid, she meets the man of her dreams.

...Is anyone still here?

Anyway, that's the plot, and the film's arriving in theaters tomorrow. This film represents what may be J.Lo's last chance at getting back in the good graces of American audiences, following several years of lame-ass projects, pathetic sales for her new album, and a series of botched live TV appearances (and, yeah, I'm counting her hosting gig on SNL in that thought). So, let's see what the critics have to say about The Back-Up Plan, the most important flick in Jenny-from-the-Block's career:

Jennifer Lopez has never looked better. That's about all she does here, is look better. She is talented and deserves more than this bird-brained plot about characters who have no relationship to life as it is lived by, you know, actual people. (Roger Ebert)

Just another boneheaded replay of the dumbest sitcom pregnancy and parenting cliches. They scrape the bottom of the barrel and then they dig a little deeper. (BeliefNet.com)

This sitcom style exercise in planned parenthood is blandly predictable. If it were a cheese, it would be Velveeta. (USA Today)

This tepid romantic comedy falls somewhere between a weak sitcom pilot and a second-tier Hallmark movie. (Variety)

A romantic comedy about single motherhood -- or mom-rom-com -- that manages to be both bland and offensive. (TIME Magazine)

Yikes. That's just three random reviews. Out of 32 critics, only seven have planted their seal of approval on the romantic comedy. For those that like numbers, that means that only 22% of critics are down with what J.Lo's selling, and that's not good news for her, CBS Films, or "Alex O'Loughlin", which is apparently what the male lead of the film is called. Good luck to you, good sir. As Good Will Hunting might say, "It's not your fault".

What do you think, Examiner readers? Can J.Lo pull outta this nosedive, or is this the death rattle of her movie career? Didja buy her last album, and if so, how's that working out for ya? Sound off in the comments section below, my precious snowflakes: we wanna know what you think about all this! And, while you're here, be sure to check out some of these other recent articles from the Comedy Examiner's Office:

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