Daddy’s Home *** (2015, Will Ferrell, Mark Wahlberg, Linda Cardellini, Thomas Haden Church) – Movie Review

Here’s a good, maybe even great, new comedy idea, thanks to a neatly devised, fresh minted story by Brian Burns. It’s dad versus step-dad, and it isn’t the step-dad who’s wicked!

Will Ferrell stars as Brad, a sweet, mild natured, easy-going radio executive who wants to be the best ever stepdad to his wife’s two children. But then real tough guy father Dusty (Mark Wahlberg) turns up on his motorbike at their house and moves in, takes over and disses him. The kids are effortlessly attracted to the charismatic know-all Wahlberg, so Ferrell has to fight back and find a way to compete with him for their affections.

Ferrell and Wahlberg give extremely strong, appealing, full-on comedy performances, but the script is very patchy and screenplay writers Brian Burns, Sean Anders and John Morris don’t make the best of the good, new comedy idea. Only one in three gag lines is funny at all, and then some of those are weak. Some of the situations feel forced and contrived, and don’t flow naturally in an organic funny way.

There’s some rough-hewn slapstick comedy that throws all subtlety and truth out of the window in search of laughs, which to be fair it did get from some of the audience when I saw it. However, there are some good laughs and there is certainly a good spirit with this comedy. Ferrell and Wahlberg are ideal comedy stars, a fine pair, and, while good here, could be great together in another movie. It’s their second pairing after The Other Guys in 2010, where indeed they were great together.

Incidentally, it might have been canny to cast them in the opposite roles. For it’s a slight problem that the 6’3″ Ferrell always seems the more intimidating than the 5′ 8″ Wahlberg, but the latter again shows what a very solid comedy actor he is, as he proved in his starring role in Ted (2012). And we know how funny Ferrell is, especially when the script is right.

It’s also a slight problem that the movie is 12 certificate (PG-13 in America  for thematic elements, crude and suggestive material and for language). The film contains uses of some mild coarse language, including ‘b*tch’, ‘b**tard’, ‘godd*mnit’, and ‘pr*ck’ but it’s one of those occasions when a raunchy, less family-friendly tone and 15 certificate-style language might have raised a lot more laughs. I’m thinking Bad Santa.

Thomas Haden Church gets some laid-back laughs as Ferrell’s laconic boss. Linda Cardellini seems well cast but has a tough time as the wife as, though she has plenty of screen time, it’s all about the guys. WWE star-turned-actor John Cena appears briefly in a cameo at the end.

Nevertheless, despite its downsides, the movie’s likeable enough and quite a lot of fun sometimes.

Get ready for the sequel: Daddy’s Home 2, shooting in Boston for release on 10 November 2017, with returning stars Ferrell and Wahlberg, plus Cena, who will play a more prominent role.

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© Derek Winnert 2015 Movie Review

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