Latifah’s latest lacks development

Back when she was better known as a rapper than an actress, Queen Latifah took part in a number of interesting projects, portraying a lesbian bank robber in “Set It Off” and a torch singer who inspires Holly Hunter in “Living Out Loud.”

“Chicago” notwithstanding, Latifah’s recent efforts haven’t lived up to her regal moniker. “Beauty Shop” is her best movie in years, but that’s not much of a distinction given the basis for comparison.

Directed by Bille Woodruff (“Honey”), the movie is a spin-off of Ice Cube’s popular “Barbershop” franchise. The location is switched from Chicago to Atlanta, and a new group of characters dish while getting coiffed. Latifah leads the cutting crew as Gina, a strong-willed stylist briefly seen in last year’s “Barbershop 2: Back in Business.”

Gina opens her own shop after leaving a mega-salon run by a pretentious Austrian (Kevin Bacon cloaked in grotesque bangs and an accent). She’s a maestro with scissors, but she faces some challenges as a business owner, including a hostile staff, a zealous building inspector and daunting expenses. She also has to strike a balance between her career and single motherhood, raising a daughter (Paige Hurd) who’s studying to become a pianist.

With her steadfast sass and enthusiasm, Gina is an undeniably appealing character, yet there’s something missing. In the original “Barbershop,” Ice Cube’s protagonist evolved over the course of the story, letting go of his music biz aspirations and embracing the business he inherited from his father.

Gina has no such arc. Her dream is to open her own place, and she accomplishes it in the first 30 minutes. There’s the inevitable love interest, a sensitive electrician (Oscar nominee Djimon Hounsou), but their romance is barely present on the storytelling radar. Because Gina’s nature doesn’t change much from beginning to end, the film has an air of aimlessness.

In “Beauty Shop,” the snip-curl sisterhood of gossip tackles topics like cosmetic surgery, interracial romance and body image. Dominating the chatty segments is Alfre Woodard, cast as a hairdresser who recites Maya Angelou poetry and models eye-straining animal print outfits.

Alicia Silverstone is the shop’s only white employee, a naive shampoo girl graduated to stylist courtesy of Gina. Other staffers include the pregnant Ida (Sherri Shepherd), feisty comb-wielder Chanel (Golden Brooks) and Gina’s niece Darnell (former “Cosby Show” kid Keshia Knight Pulliam), a teen minx courted by men who lavish her with jewelry.

Laugh-wise, “Beauty Shop” falls short of its predecessor, but the performances are kinetic enough to give the limpest punch lines some pizzazz.