There's an unspoken declaration of intent to entertain in the title of Dean Parisot's remake of the 1977 comedy, which originally paired George Segal and Jane Fonda.
Alas, the road to hell is littered with good intentions and the new Fun With Dick & Jane, co-starring rubber-faced Jim Carrey and Tea Leoni, is an unappealing diversion en route to the fiery abyss.
Mugging has never been a crime in Hollywood - Carrey has got away with it unpunished his entire career - and he's guilty of shameless overacting here. Unfortunately, all of the pratfalls are painfully unfunny and there's no synchronicity with partner Leoni.
Both actors are poorly served by Judd Apatow and Nicholas Stoller's screenplay which careens from one manic set piece to the next.
Dick Harper (Carrey), beautiful wife Jane (Leoni) and their son Billy lead a comfortable life. Dick slowly climbs the corporate ladder at Globodyne and, after 15 years of patience, is finally promoted. But their American dream becomes a nightmare when the firm becomes embroiled in scandal and goes bust.
When bailiffs threaten to repossess their house, Dick and Jane turn to crime to finance their lifestyle. All the while, Dick yearns for revenge on his old boss.
The film runs to a modest 90 minutes but it's a slog in the absence of any decent laughs.
