Queen Latifah lends her comic sparkle to The Cookout; a new comedy she also helped conceive. Todd Anderson (Quran Pender) becomes a first draft pick in professional basketball and starts spending like there's no tomorrow; he buys a car; diamonds for his golddigging girlfriend (Meagan Good); and a huge house in a gated community. But though his life has been turned upside down; his family hasn't--and when everyone assembles in his new ritzy neighborhood for a celebratory cook-out; chaos follows. The Cookout is loaded with charismatic performers; such as Jenifer Lewis (Juwanna Mann) as Todd's no-nonsense mother; Eve (Barbershop) as his former best friend; Danny Glover (Lethal Weapon) as a new neighbor; and the aforementioned Latifah (Bringing Down the House) as an over-ambitious security guard. Unfortunately; the underdeveloped script gives them little to do and nowhere to go. Many lessons are learned; but few laughs are had. --Bret Fetzer