“Daddy’s Home” fails to rise above cliche.
Daddy’s Home is directed by Sean Anders, and written by Brian Burns, Sean Anders, and John Morris, from a story by Brian Burns. It stars Will Ferrell, Mark Wahlberg, Linda Cardellini, Thomas Haden Church, and Hannibal Buress.
A mere half-decade ago, a new Will Ferrell movie was something to be excited about, something of a minor event. His collaborations with Adam McKay were particularly fruitful, and together they produced several modern classics. But lately Ferrell has sort of fallen off the map. His recent projects have been far less consistent and I’m afraid that Daddy’s Home only continues this trend.
Brad (Ferrell) is the new husband to Sarah (Linda Cardellini, unspeakably pretty) and the new step-dad to her two kids: Megan and Dylan. He works at a smooth jazz radio station, and is a buttoned-up, sensitive, caring man who genuinely loves his step-kids. When Dusty (Mark Wahlberg), the kids’ biological father shows up, tensions mount. He is a reckless, dangerous badass, set up to counter Brad’s milquetoast sensitivity. Soon it becomes a battle between dads for the love of the kids and Sarah.
Ferrell and Wahlberg, so good together in the perpetually underrated The Other Guys, are given little of interest to do here. Both actors are committed and bring their respective A-games, but the writing isn’t there. While they have chemistry and seem to enjoy being onscreen together, the material never gives them a chance to really shine. They simply aren’t given anything interesting to do with these stock characters. There’s never any moment where we see the layers of these men pulled back to comedic or dramatic effect. Ferrell is not doing anything here he didn’t do better in The Other Guys or Kicking and Screaming, and Wahlberg is his usually likable self, nothing more.
The film’s more enjoyable moments tend to come from the supporting cast. Thomas Haden Church is endearingly sleazy as Brad’s boss Leo, getting some of the best lines. Hannibal Buress is also very watchable and fun as Griff, a man who, for reasons too convoluted to explain, ends up sort of living with the family. Buress is a reliably enjoyable presence with great comic delivery and I looked forward to seeing him come back whenever one of his scenes ended. As Sarah, Linda Cardellini is fine. The character is just very standard. She’s the supporting, loving wife who has to put up with the hijinks that occurs throughout the film.
As you might expect, this film aims for an “earnest and heartfelt” tone in the third act, which would be fine if it didn’t all feel so by-the-book. It is here in particular that Daddy’s Home feels like a family film, and I wondered why they didn’t lean more in that direction and cut out some of the raunchier jokes. It seems like that might have made more sense with this material.
The overarching flaw with Daddy’s Home is how rote it all feels. The material is not elevated by strong joke writing or interesting filmmaking. Though the performances are all decent, and there are enjoyable moments scattered throughout, there is nothing particularly memorable or interesting about it.
-Anthony Calamunci
