A Thousand Words - F

Rated PG-13, 91 minutes

Poor Eddie Murphy. After the release of the comedy "Tower Heist" last fall there was hope that he was returning to his edgier comedic roots. Then things started to fall apart: there was his Oscar host fallout and now the utterly forgettable, genuinely terrible "A Thousand Words," a long-delayed comedy that was originally shot in 2008 and just now getting a wide release. There would be just two words to describe "A Thousand Words" the movie: it stinks. Scoot over "Tower Heist" and welcome back "Meet Dave" and "Norbit." Murphy is a loud-mouth, big-time Hollywood agent named Jack trying to sign a new-age guru to a big contract and he ends up with a tree in his backyard. Except that every time Jack speaks, leaves fall off, signaling the death of the tree and Jack himself and he must discover what to do to save his life from falling apart. Dismally and painfully unfunny, "A Thousand Words," directed by Murphy's "Norbit" and "Meet Dave" director Brian Robbins, it's a truly awful high-concept comedy that will only make you shudder in disbelief. The movie also takes down Allison Janney, Clark Duke (seen to much better effect in "Hot Tub Time Machine"), the lovely Kerry Washington and the always wonderful Ruby Dee, who should've slapped some sense into Eddie for making this piece of Razzie-award inducing dreck. Annoying and predictable until the end, when it becomes some maudlin clap trap about forgiveness and doing the right thing. Do the right thing and avoid "A Thousand Words" at all costs.