RJ Stevens spends his days giving millions of people the help and motivation that they need to succeed in life; however, as a child RJ never seemed to be able to accomplish anything of his own. When his parents call and urge him to come back home for their 50th Wedding Anniversary he does everything he can to avoid the collision course, but when his new fiancé insists, there is nothing that RJ can do but go back and take the brute of all the family jokes. But interesting things happen when the family gets together as RJ begins to understand his past as he looks to win his ultimate prize "¦ Lucinda. The only problem, his fiancé is a former Survivor champion and is prepared to outwit, outlast and outplay any hometown crush that might try to steal RJ's heart from her.
Containing about a half dozen one liners Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins fails on all accounts as it becomes too outrageous, too unbelievable and ultimately too stereotypical to be considered anything better than a train wreck starring some of Hollywood's most prestigious and hilarious black actors.
Though Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins was a total disaster I do have to give props to Mo'Nique, the lone cast member who really held her own on the screen, making each of her scenes funny, entertaining and unlike the rest of the film, bearable.
Additionally I do have to commend the writers. Though 99.9% of the film was lackluster and lame I do have to say that I thoroughly enjoyed the constant one-liners referring to CBS's popular reality show Survivor. From the usage of alliance and immunity to the constant references to the castaways 'hardships' while on the island the innuendos are everywhere, making random moments classic as they point out the ridiculous level of influence that the show has on our society.
But I have to say that that is as good as the film gets as Martin Lawrence, Michael Clarke Duncan and Cedric the Entertainer give lackluster performances that really don't even come close to their potential. Their chemistry was off, none were funny and all three became tiresome and ultimately annoying in their attempt to portray a family that loves one another so much that they can't even get along.
Additionally I have to criticize the writers. Though there were some classic pop-culture moments and great one-liners I have to admit that for the most part, the script was absolutely terrible. Jokes that were suppose to make you laugh left your mouth motionless and moments that were suppose to be critical in the character development and story line were created and passed so quickly that the viewers never got to fully grasp their effects until long after they were over. And though it is suppose to be a comedy and moments like those are not meant to be instrumental in the enjoyment of the film I have to say that it was too obvious and the film wasn't funny enough to cover them up, creating a final product that wastes the talent of its many high-profile stars and will surely go down as one of great potential that just never materialized.
