Johnson Family Vacation

Cedric the Entertainer (Barbershop, Intolerable Cruelty) lends his stubborn, skeptical charm to Johnson Family Vacation. Though separated from his wife (Vanessa Williams, Soul Food, Shaft), Nate Johnson (Cedric) pulls his family together so that they can compete for an award at the Johnson family reunion. Of course, the road trip from California to Missouri--featuring a sexy but crazy hitchhiker, motel high jinks, and an afternoon in jail--threatens to split up the family permanently. The humor of Johnson Family Vacation is rambling and ridiculous--for example, Williams fools Cedric into taking his swim trunks off in a motel hot tub, then leaves him to tiptoe through the motel naked. But Cedric and Williams both have undeniable charisma; together, they carry this shaggy dog of a movie through its more lackadaisacal moments. Also featuring Bow Wow, Solange Knowles, Shannon Elizabeth (American Pie), and Steve Harvey (Love Don't Cost a Thing). --Bret Fetzer