4 Is a Bore...

“Scary Movie 4,” much like its predecessors, is a lesson in sloppy filmmaking.

David Zucker, director of “Scary Movie 3,” returns to the moderately successful series. Zucker, the man behind such comedy classics as “Airplane” and “The Naked Gun,” has sucked out the dirty jokes and sick gags that made the first two movies of the series so humorous.

Anna Faris (“Just Friends,” “Waiting …”) returns as the film’s principle heroine, Cindy Campbell. It’s shocking that Faris still returns to the hackneyed series after proving her adeptness and knack for perfect comedic timing in successful films “Lost in Translation,” “The Hot Chick” and “Brokeback Mountain.”

At the root of “Scary Movie 4” is a muddled mess of mildly successful horror and action films from recent years.

Cindy takes a job helping the elderly Mrs. Norris (Cloris Leachman, “Spanglish,” “The Last Picture Show”) in her cursed home. Her neighbor, Tom Ryan (Craig Bierko, “Cinderella Man,” “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas”), is immediately smitten with her. However, an alien invasion puts their budding romance on the back burner.

Cindy’s failed relationship with George (Simon Rex, “Scary Movie 3”) is explained in a strange, brief and out-of-place parody of the Oscar-winning film “Million Dollar Baby.”

However, this isn’t the only sequence that seems out of place. The send up of M. Night Shyamalan’s lackluster film, “The Village,” seems bizarre. Likewise, the majority of the film lampoons last year’s “War of the Worlds” – hardly scary movies. It’s clear the screenwriters are reaching for fresh material to fill a boring hour-and-a-half of film.

A beacon of hope is found with the return of Brenda Meeks (Regina Hall, “The Honeymooners”). Though her character died in “Scary Movie 3,” she auspiciously surfaces as a reporter covering the alien invasion. Her mysterious reincarnation isn’t so much explained as ignored. It isn’t as if the filmmakers are shooting for creditability.

Her character, oversexed and full of trash talk, is one of the few holdovers from the relatively funny original.

The opening sequence, as with the earlier “Scary Movie” films, elicits the most laughs. Though much of the absurdity was documented in TV trailers, the “Saw” spoof with Dr. Phil McGraw and Shaquille O’Neal is stupid enough to draw a few chuckles.

Despite the talent of the seasoned cast and the endless string of cameos (Molly Shannon, “Superstar;” Michael Madsen, “Reservoir Dogs;” James Earl Jones, “Star Wars”), it seems nothing could rescue this sequel from banality.

Unfortunately for moviegoers, the recent success of “Scary Movie 4” only means another trite sequel is in the works.