| In the pantheon of Hollywood gimmicks – up there with explosions and breast shots – cute little kids are a favourite cinematic ploy.
Nothing says box office appeal like the cherubic face of the next Shirley Temple, and in Daddy Day Care, Eddie Murphy surrounds himself with a gaggle of adorable toddlers in yet another attempt to jump-start his dying career. The result is a tepid family flick that doesn’t offer much beyond cute faces and forgettable poop jokes.
Working off of a flat script that doesn’t allow Murphy to make the best use of his comedic abilities, Daddy Day Care relies entirely on the appeal of its young stars. In the end, the kids are hopelessly irresistible, but there’s little here to entertain older members of the audience.
When Murphy’s successful ad exec, Charlie, gets laid off from his agency job along with his best friend Phil (Jeff Garlin), the two newly crowned stay-at-home dads decide to start a daycare centre for the local kids. The only competition in the neighbourhood comes from the Chapman Academy, a rigid boarding school-type institution (where the little ones are subjected to SAT prep and foreign language classes) run by a scheming headmistress, Ms. Harridan (Anjelica Huston).
What few laughs there are involve Charlie and Phil chasing after the kids and somehow getting kicked, knocked over or injured in the process. Since that’s the extent of the film’s comedic endeavours, the best thing Daddy Day Care has to offer is young Khamani Griffin, the five-year-old who plays Charlie’s son, Ben. Although Griffin does little more than look cute and occasionally pout, the tiny actor steals most scenes from his fellow thespians.
Murphy, who shares much of his screen time with Griffin, never looks totally comfortable with him and most of their exchanges miss the comedic mark. Ultimately, Daddy Day Care is a film in search of a punchline. |
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