For a movie so obviously aimed at families, why couldn’t it be just a bit more family friendly? Some of the language was needlessly crude; if you wouldn’t use certain words in a job interview, why would you use them in a family movie?
The plot was sweet enough, and the little girl played by Yara Shahidi was adorable. The Johnny Whitefeather character was an amusing lampoon of new-age mysticism, though the whole movie experience was more like a laughing-on-the-inside kind of funny.
I was also troubled that kids might walk away from this movie with the impression that truly loving parents are supposed to be their child’s ultimate playmate. What kid wouldn’t love their parents playing dress-up, being the object of a beauty makeover, making and eating (or pretending to eat) disgusting foods, and being a dancing puppet controlled by their child’s commands? Kids need parental love and attention; pandering to them is a cheap substitute for consistency.
Eddie Murphy frequently goes as overboard as Jim Carrey or Robin Williams, but Imagine That manages to have just the right amount of silly. It’s a family friendly movie that fortunately presents equal doses of immaturity and seriousness, making the event more evenly entertaining than one might expect from seeing the obnoxiously childish trailer. Performances on a whole are sincere (subdued for Murphy) and convincing; unlike similarly plotted stories like Disney’s The Game Plan, Imagine That never gets to the point of annoying, which is becoming a more and more difficult feat for formulaic yet effective children’s features.
Focused, driven, and always in control, Evan Danielson (Eddie Murphy) is a financial wizard, organizing and leading his many clients in the direction of monetary prosperity. This doesn’t leave much time for his seven-year-old daughter Olivia (Yara Shahidi), who is socially detached and dependent on her security blanket (named Goo-Gaa) that transports her to an imaginary world with princesses and dragons. It’s all in her mind, but when Evan plays along, Olivia’s invisible friends miraculously produce accurate advice on stocks, investments and insider tips. Suddenly he’s immersed in his daughter’s invented fantasy, forcing himself to redefine his relationship with Olivia and the meaning of true success.
“I imagine it was a lot of fun to watch,” Evan remarks after undergoing his inevitable early-movie mental breakdown. That might be a slightly generous statement in regards to the entire film, which maintains a worthwhile level of lighthearted humor and father-daughter relationship-mending drama. It isn’t overly preachy even though at times it’s sickly sweet; Murphy’s likeable Evan is a man who wanted kids but probably shouldn’t have had one, especially considering his relatable lack of time and subsequent failure to connect with his daughter. Learning to be a better parent through success and defeat with initial manipulation followed by quality bonding, the process is understandably generic – the blueprints for this family flick aren’t original but definitely more watchable than similar exploits that can’t seem to include any mature bits for older crowds (such as the parental audience assumed to be present with children).
Supporting character actor Ronny Cox plays a role comparable to his famous villain turns in Robocop and Total Recall and Thomas Haden Church steals many scenes as Johnny Whitefeather, a competitive financial executive who exaggeratingly mocks Native American culture with creatively hilarious quotes and unorthodox meditative methods for gaining stock market knowledge (”It’s not the paint that makes the warrior,” he advises Evan, along with constant references to the “dream sparrow,” insulting “little elk” nicknames and other funny Indian riffs). He’s quite convincingly phony. There’s nothing artificial about the film as a whole, however, which makes Imagine That quality family amusement, even if it doesn’t exude total originality.
I saw this movie with my husband and daughter. The movie was great but I only wish that Eddie Murphy showed more singing talent like he used too when he did the Party All the Time song back in 1985. But it was still a great movie
For a movie so obviously aimed at families, why couldn’t it be just a bit more family friendly? Some of the language was needlessly crude; if you wouldn’t use certain words in a job interview, why would you use them in a family movie?
The plot was sweet enough, and the little girl played by Yara Shahidi was adorable. The Johnny Whitefeather character was an amusing lampoon of new-age mysticism, though the whole movie experience was more like a laughing-on-the-inside kind of funny.
I was also troubled that kids might walk away from this movie with the impression that truly loving parents are supposed to be their child’s ultimate playmate. What kid wouldn’t love their parents playing dress-up, being the object of a beauty makeover, making and eating (or pretending to eat) disgusting foods, and being a dancing puppet controlled by their child’s commands? Kids need parental love and attention; pandering to them is a cheap substitute for consistency.
It is a family friendly movie. But it is so lame, it is very hard to watch it all. I could not.
Eddie Murphy frequently goes as overboard as Jim Carrey or Robin Williams, but Imagine That manages to have just the right amount of silly. It’s a family friendly movie that fortunately presents equal doses of immaturity and seriousness, making the event more evenly entertaining than one might expect from seeing the obnoxiously childish trailer. Performances on a whole are sincere (subdued for Murphy) and convincing; unlike similarly plotted stories like Disney’s The Game Plan, Imagine That never gets to the point of annoying, which is becoming a more and more difficult feat for formulaic yet effective children’s features.
Focused, driven, and always in control, Evan Danielson (Eddie Murphy) is a financial wizard, organizing and leading his many clients in the direction of monetary prosperity. This doesn’t leave much time for his seven-year-old daughter Olivia (Yara Shahidi), who is socially detached and dependent on her security blanket (named Goo-Gaa) that transports her to an imaginary world with princesses and dragons. It’s all in her mind, but when Evan plays along, Olivia’s invisible friends miraculously produce accurate advice on stocks, investments and insider tips. Suddenly he’s immersed in his daughter’s invented fantasy, forcing himself to redefine his relationship with Olivia and the meaning of true success.
“I imagine it was a lot of fun to watch,” Evan remarks after undergoing his inevitable early-movie mental breakdown. That might be a slightly generous statement in regards to the entire film, which maintains a worthwhile level of lighthearted humor and father-daughter relationship-mending drama. It isn’t overly preachy even though at times it’s sickly sweet; Murphy’s likeable Evan is a man who wanted kids but probably shouldn’t have had one, especially considering his relatable lack of time and subsequent failure to connect with his daughter. Learning to be a better parent through success and defeat with initial manipulation followed by quality bonding, the process is understandably generic – the blueprints for this family flick aren’t original but definitely more watchable than similar exploits that can’t seem to include any mature bits for older crowds (such as the parental audience assumed to be present with children).
Supporting character actor Ronny Cox plays a role comparable to his famous villain turns in Robocop and Total Recall and Thomas Haden Church steals many scenes as Johnny Whitefeather, a competitive financial executive who exaggeratingly mocks Native American culture with creatively hilarious quotes and unorthodox meditative methods for gaining stock market knowledge (”It’s not the paint that makes the warrior,” he advises Evan, along with constant references to the “dream sparrow,” insulting “little elk” nicknames and other funny Indian riffs). He’s quite convincingly phony. There’s nothing artificial about the film as a whole, however, which makes Imagine That quality family amusement, even if it doesn’t exude total originality.
- Mike Massie
I saw this movie with my husband and daughter. The movie was great but I only wish that Eddie Murphy showed more singing talent like he used too when he did the Party All the Time song back in 1985. But it was still a great movie
This movie was very enteraining. Eddie Murphy is a very talented actor. I hope he continues to do more movies like this one.