“Scary Movie 4,” the latest installment in the ongoing movie series that spoofs popular horror movies, features many of the same cast returning, along with some new faces, to make fun of such movies as “The Grudge,” “War of the Worlds,” and “Saw.”

Anna Faris returns as Cindy Campbell, from the past three films, who is now watching over a haunted house. That is, until there is an alien attack and she goes to search for the man who may, or may not, know how to stop the aliens.

Some interesting actors make brief appearances throughout the film, like Michael Madsen (“Reservoir Dogs”), James Earl Jones (“Star Wars”) and Cloris Leachman (“Spanglish”), each adding their own funny quirks giving the film a few more jokes to help it move through its lackluster story.

The jokes in “Scary Movie 4” follow the same pattern as the other films in the series, filling the passing time with a series of hit or miss visual gags from beginning to end.

The film does manage to be somewhat entertaining; there are quite a few moments that were entertaining in their own stupid way, but for every joke that was funny, there was one or two that were just flat-out bad.

Also, the movie clearly goes on a few minutes too long when they try to tack on one last joke that is completely pointless and stupid, and as a result causes it to end on a very bad note.

“Scary Movie 4” is exactly like the other films in the series, so if you were a fan of those movies, then this film is right up your alley. Otherwise, if you are looking for a mildly amusing film that will offer a few laughs than should see it too. Just don’t go into it expecting anything more, or you will be disappointed.