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By Sandra Olmstead

Director Gerry Marshall continues his exploration of holidays with Mother’s Day, which celebrates moms and at the same time reduces them and those they mother, marry, divorce, or abandon   to stereotypes played by a large ensemble cast of good actors. Unfortunately, despite some laughs, the trite dialogue and predictable, soap-operaish plots make Mother’s Day a pleasant but less than memorable diversion.

Jennifer Aniston stars as Sandy, a divorsed mom, who briefly thinks her ex-husband Henry (Tim Olyphant) wants to get back together and who has trouble making rules stick with her two grade-schooler sons. Instead, Henry has married the much younger Tina (Shay Mitchell), who tries hard to be a good stepmother. Sandy’s neighbors, Gabi (Sarah Chalke), her wife Max (Cameron Esposito), and Jesse (Kate Hudson), who married and had a child with Russell (Aasif Mandvi) after telling her bigoted parents they broke up, get a surprise visit from their Texas parents, Flo (Margo Martindale) and Earl (Robert Pine). Many truths have to be confronted. Russell’s mother, Sonia (Anoush NeVart) also has something to say.

Living in the same suburb, Bradley (Jason Sudeikis), a widower and ex-master sergeant, grieves his soldier wife (cameo by Jennifer Garner), who it is implied died in the war, and raises two teenage daughters. Meanwhile, Zack (British comedian Jack Whitehall) has an adorable baby girl with Kristin (Britt Robertson) and wants to get married, but Kristen is have doubts about herself and about love because she’s adopted. Julie Roberts, in a role with too little screen time, plays Miranda, a high profile, powerful home shopping star. Three guess whose mom she turns out to be.

Sandy makes plenty of jokes about Tina’s age, and the confrontational climax of between the sisters and their parents is played for too-big\, too unrealistic laughs. Even the widower Bradley’s situation is played for more laughs than it should be and feels like a series of skits in the theme of a single dad rather then the family’s honest grief. While Kristin’s story has some potential pathos, and the story line is more realized and the performances are, therefore, better, it is wrapped up in a neat little bow a little too easily and quickly.

Like the ideal Mother’s Day celebrations, Mother’s Day lacks drama. Humor needs a dramatic story where something is actually at stake to make the comedy work, and this film lacks the real drama of being a mother, daughter, wife, ex-wife, girlfriend, baby mama, or stepmom. Marshall’s other forays into holiday themed movies, Valentine’s Day and New Year’s Eve, were also disappointments. Mother’s Day is an Open Road Films release and is rated PG-13 for language and some suggestive material. In theaters now, Mother’s Day, which probably will appeal more to women who need a respite than excitement, a runs a bit long at 118 minutes, but every minute is necessary to wrap all those stories up in neat little pink ribbons and paper

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