Are you in the mood for a sensitive, thoughtful and beautifully acted film about sibling relationships? Well, you’ll have to wait. The Skeleton Twins doesn’t open till next week.

Meanwhile, we have This Is Where I Leave You, which addresses the same topic with an adolescent sensibility. Unfortunately, the siblings in question are all adults.

The comedy is based on a novel by Jonathan Tropper, who also wrote the screenplay—and that’s part of the problem. A friend of mine refused to see the film because she’d read the book and found it totally lacking in merit.

This helps to explain why director Shawn Levy (A Night at the Museum) fails to mine the tale for familial gold despite being blessed with a top-shelf cast.

Justin Bateman (Arrested Development) plays Judd Altman, who leaves his wife (Abigail Spencer) after finding her in bed with his boss. As luck would have it, he then learns his father has died, and he has to face his extended family while attempting to hide his marital problems.

To make a bad situation worse, he has to face his extended family for an extended time. Even though Judd’s father was never serious about his Jewish faith, widow Hillary (Jane Fonda) insists on sitting shiva, which means her three sons, one daughter and their significant others must spend a week cooped up in the family home.

This could give the sibs and their partners time to come to terms with their many differences in a mature and supportive manner. But because “maturity” doesn’t seem to be in author Tropper’s vocabulary, they mostly pass the time fighting, getting high, swearing (usually in front of children) and, in general, acting as inappropriately as possible.

Are Tropper and Levy trying to make a point about the state of the family in modern society? No, they’re merely going for laughs, and they’re doing it in a totally contrived and juvenile manner.

And when they’re not going for laughs, they’re going for easy sentimentalism with the help of Michael Giacchino’s invasively sappy score. There isn’t a moment in the entire film that rings true.

Playing the other siblings are Corey Stoll, Adam Driver and Tina Fey. Driver’s Phillip is depicted as the least mature, but really, it’s a tossup. Everyone seems to think it’s fine to, for example, jab the local rabbi in his crotch while referring to him by his childhood nickname, Boner.

Even the supposedly rational Judd isn’t above getting back at a rival by vandalizing his vintage sports car. Warning to enthusiasts: The ride in question is a Jaguar XKE, widely considered the most beautiful car of all time, making this scene particularly painful.

“Is it the whole world, or is it just this family?” Judd wonders during one of his many dejected moments.

It’s just this family, Judd, and you’re welcome to it.

Rating: 2 stars (out of 5)

This Is Where I Leave You, rated R, opens Friday (Sept. 19) at theaters nationwide.