The Back up Plan

Plot

Zoe (Jennifer Lopez) has given up on finding the man of her dreams and decides to become a single mother and undergoes artificial insemination. The same day she meets Stan (Alex O'Loughlin) when they both try to hail the same taxi. They run into each other twice more at a farmers market and a pet store. Stan convinces Zoe to go on a no-obligations date. Zoe is still uncertain whether she is pregnant or not and if she should tell Stan. The night she takes the test, Stan takes her for a romantic dinner in a garden. Things don't turn out as well as planned when he spills the wine and a fire occurs. At the end of the night Stan asks her to come to his farm during the weekend and Zoe finds out that she is pregnant.

She goes to the farm determined to tell him that she is pregnant. They have sex and afterwards Stan is confused and angry that she didn't tell him before and Zoe leaves the next morning believing that things are over between them. However, Stan decides he still wants to be with her and they reconcile. They go to the doctor and find out that Zoe is actually carrying twins. Overwhelmed, Stan goes to a children's playing area to figure out what it means to be a father, but is suspected to be a pervert; this is soon cleared up. He finds a friend there that he can talk to about the pregnancy throughout the movie, while Zoe gets little support from her Single Mothers and Proud group when the group members discover she is no longer single. Stan takes the next step to becoming a father and orders a stroller for the twins. After many misunderstandings and comedic revelations, Zoe and Stan are walking into the Market when they run into Stan's ex-girlfriend. Due to Stan's remark that the twins are not his, Zoe believes that he is not ready to become a father to them, and breaks off the relationship.

Later, the stroller that Stan ordered arrives and Zoe figures out that Stan was never planning to leave. At her grandmother's wedding, Zoe's water breaks and on the way to the hospital they make a pit stop at the Market. Zoe apologizes to Stan and they begin to work things out. He pulls out the penny that she turned over when they first met and Zoe promises to trust him more. Zoe gives birth to twin girls, one of whom they name Penny. In the end, Stan opens a store/restaurant next to Zoe's pet shop and after the Grand Opening speech Stan asks Zoe to marry him and she says yes. On their way home, she spontaneously throws up into a rubbish bin and realizes that she may be yet again pregnant.

Production

The film, originally titled Plan B, was written by Kate Angelo and produced by Todd Black, Jason Blumenthal and Steve Tisch. Lopez's casting was announced in December 2008 by multiple sources. Digital Spy announced in February 2009 that Alan Poul was in "final talks" to direct Plan B, which would be his first feature film. On April 8, 2009, The Arizona Republic reported that O'Loughlin was "in negotiations to nab the romantic male lead". The Back-up Plan was Lopez's first film in three years, and she confessed to feeling "really nervous". Filming began on May 11, 2009, in Los Angeles, California. The film was also filmed in Pasadena, California where Lopez was spotted wearing her prosthetic pregnancy belly. The film's production budget was $35 million.

Music

The soundtrack and the score were released on March 26, 2010 on iTunes. They are available on Amazon.com since April 13, 2010. The soundtrack has various artists, while the score was composed entirely by Stephen Trask.

Score

The film's score was composed by Stephen Trask.

Box office

The film was moderately a box office success. The Back-up Plan earned $4,257,676 in 3,280 theaters on its Friday debut, but managed to make #1 at the box office. It dropped to #2 at the weekend box office with a gross of $12,201,710, averaging $3,720 per theater. In its 2nd week it dropped to #4 with $7,255,762, averaging $2,212 per theater. In its 3rd week the film dropped to #5 grossing $5,033,471, averaging $1,676 per theater. The following week it dropped to #6 grossing $2,387,480, averaging $956 per theater. As of July 14, it had grossed $77,237,270 worldwide, and is CBS Films' highest-grossing film to date. The Back-up Plan reached #1 on Top Ten Hot Movies On Demand.

Critical response

The film received negative reviews from critics, with most critics panning the script, but reacting positively to Lopez's performance. Rotten Tomatoes reported that 18% of critics gave the film positive reviews based on 142 reviews with an average score of 3.6/10. Its consensus states "Jennifer Lopez is as appealing as ever, but The Back-up Plan smothers its star with unrelatable characters and a predictable plot." Another review aggretator, Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average from 0 to 100 on top reviews of mainstream critics, gave the film an average score of 34% based on 32 reviews.

Kirk Honeycutt of The Hollywood Reporter gave the film a positive review saying, "A winning performance by Jennifer Lopez overcomes a formulaic and predictable rom-com that involves a planned pregnancy." The New York Times film critic Manohla Dargis wrote that the film is "not very good" and "bland". Amy Biancolli of the San Francisco Chronicle praised the cast in her review writing "Lopez does a fine job mortifying herself in pursuit of physical humor, shifting her center of gravity in more ways than one. O'Loughlin, in the blander role, acts hurt or shocked or besotted where required, but the supporting players nearly steal the show." Chicago Sun-Times film critic Roger Ebert gave the film 1/4 stars, claiming the film "plays like an unendurable TV commercial about beautiful people with great lifestyles and not a thought in their empty little heads."

Jennifer Lopez received 2 nominations for Best Romantic Comedy Actress and Best Romantic Comedy for The Back-Up Plan at the Teen Choice Awards.

Home media

The Back-up Plan was released on August 24, 2010 on DVD and Blu-ray and sold 277,183 ( $4.7 million) copies in its first week of release debuting at #2 on the charts behind the sixth season of Lost. The Back-up Plan also ranked #1 at both the Top 10 Renting DVD Titles and Top 10 Selling DVD Titles at U.S. BLOCKBUSTER stores, as well as #1 at the Top 10 Online Renting DVD Titles at Blockbuster.com. #3 at Top 10 Renting Blu-ray Titles at U.S. BLOCKBUSTER stores, #1 at Top 10 Selling Digital Titles on BLOCKBUSTER On Demand. The Back-up Plan also reached #1 on Top Movie Sales on iTunes.