Riding in Cars With Boys

Drew Barrymore is pretty darned good in this pretty darned OK movie. It tells the story of an aspiring writer who gives birth to a son as a teen and faces various nasty obstacles on her way to getting published. Barrymore is good here, although she doesn’t quite top her cameo performance in Freddy Got Fingered. Also good are Steve Zahn as Barrymore’s hapless husband and Brittany Murphy as her best friend. Director Penny Marshall keeps things humorous, which works for and against her at times. While some moments seem to call for a more serious touch, keeping things light helps propel the film along and give the film a nice, warm glow.