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Draper Journal

Dan's Review: Nothing new in "Daddy's Home"

Dec 24, 2015 01:32PM ● By Dan Metcalf

Mark Wahlberg and Will Ferrell in Daddy's Home - © 2015 Paramount.

Daddy’s Home (Paramount)

Rated PG-13 for thematic elements, crude and suggestive material and for language.

Starring Will Ferrell, Mark Wahlberg, Linda Cardellini, Scarlett Estevez, Owen Vaccaro, Hannibal Buress, Paul Scheer, Bobby Cannavale, Thomas Haden Church, Billy Slaughter, Jamie Denbo, Bill Burr, Mark L. Young, John Cena, Alessandra Ambrosio, Chris Henchy.

Written by Sean Anders, Brian Burns and John Morris.

Directed by Sean Anders.

GRADE: D+

REVIEW:

Remember that Will Ferrell movie where he does something crazy and inappropriate? Yep, pretty much all of them. Daddy’s Home is no exception, and will add to a string of forgettable Ferrell movies, since he seems to play the same character in all of them.

Ferrell plays Brad Taggart, a smooth jazz radio station producer married to Sarah (Linda Cardellini) and stepdad to her young son and daughter. Brad is shooting blanks, so he and Sarah can’t have any more kids. Everything seems blissful until Sarah’s ex-husband (and father to her kids) Dusty (Mark Wahlberg) announces that he’s coming for a visit. Feeling a little threatened, Brad tries to warm up to Dusty, who seems intent on destroying the Taggart family dynamic and taking over.

Through a series of sight gags and patented Ferrell outbursts, Brad and Dusty must learn to coexist or the happiness of the kids they love will suffer.

Yeah, that’s pretty much it.

If you like Ferrell’s brand of humor that consists mostly of inappropriate responses to everyday challenges, then Daddy’s Home is for you. If all these Ferrell-esque rowdy comedies all seem like the same movie to you, then stay away.

There are a few laughs in Daddy’s Home, but it’s like laughing at the same joke over and over again. Two exceptions are the supporting performances of Thomas Haden Church (who offers several off-topic stories and advice to Brad throughout the film), and Hannibal Buress (who uses the “race card” to take advantage of Brad’s good nature while offering sage advice). These fleeting comedic moments are overshadowed by overall silly, unoriginal movie.


Daddy's Home Trailer