‘Imagine That’ is By the Book, and Not Very Funny
-----People judged this film before it was even out. And after flops like ‘Meet Dave,’ they may have had a point. Indeed, the small revenue generated by the most recent Eddie Murphy kiddy flick is a resultant of that, and the movie itself isn’t that great either.
-----‘Imagine That’ is the story of Evan Danielson and his daughter Olivia. Evan is a financial executive who advises clients on where to place and maneuver their stocks. Having had a divorce, Evan finds his daughter to be more of a nuisance than a blessing. When Olivia’s imaginary friends turn out to have perfect information regarding the stock market however, Evan starts to take interest in his daughter.
-----Eddie Murphy plays Evan, a selfish and greedy workaholic who cares more about his job and money than his daughter. He gets very few laughs in what is a typical Murphy routine, and his supposed “transformation” at the end of the film is forced, and even a bit unbelievable. That being said, I spent more time disliking Murphy than enjoying the humor between him and costar Yara Shahidi. You know the true reasons behind his sudden interest in her even if she doesn’t, and it’s disgusting to an extent. Shahidi plays his daughter, Olivia, in a surprisingly captivating performance. Even at her very young age she manages to avoid the stereotypical child and is actually reasonably entertaining. I’m not petitioning for her Oscar by any means, but she has proven to be one of the better child actresses I’ve seen in recent memory. Her performance is two parts innocence and two parts being cute, and without her the film could have been absolutely dreadful. Also costarring in the movie is the usually funny Thomas Haden Church as Evan’s competition in the workplace. He plays a supposed Indian in what would have been a completely stupid role if not for his being called out at the end as a stupid character. Church seems to be doing his normal routine and while that usually brings laughs, here it’s just annoying and even frustrating as we watch Murphy’s anger for him.
-----The problems with the movie are many. Even if you just want to go see a heartfelt and cute tale about a father bonding with his daughter, the reality is you’ll be put off. Murphy’s character is just too nasty in the beginning, and his token transformation comes far too late. There is a very occasional laugh, and even the kids will get bored during all of the stock-talk at Murphy’s work. The plot, largely revolved around Murphy’s work, makes sure that even the very narrow demographic of parents and their young children is alienated, even if just a bit.
-----The plot is cliché, weak, and the transformation of Murphy unbelievable; but that’s not all. There are a few scenes so obnoxious and terrible that I wished I could have muted the screen. Two come from the otherwise enjoyable Shahidi, as she lets out a horrific, high pitched scream that drove me to cover my ears. The final horrible scene is the climactic conflict between Murphy’s need for imaginary advice, and his relationship with other adults. He storms into a house where Olivia is sleeping-over with a bunch of friends, and is caught trying to steal her “magical” blanket. When the parents of the house wake up, the conflict is loud, aggravating, and ultimately painful to sit through as Murphy has basically lost his mind, thinking he needs Olivia’s blanket for success the next day at work. This too shows just how unlikable Murphy’s character can be at times, as he cares more about his money than his daughter. He even starts to care more about the blanket than his daughter, and this becomes irredeemable over the course of the film.
-----Technically, ‘Imagine That’ is run of the mill for the most part. There are however, some quality aspects. I thought the contemporary tracks used in parts of the film worked well setting the mood of their respective scenes. The classic, chill-inducing Beatles song ‘All You Need is Love’ is also used effectively, even though it’s sung by children. I also liked the fresh locations used. Filmed in Denver, a place Hollywood rarely utilizes, ‘Imagine That’ has some quality shots of the city. Familiar with Denver myself, I enjoyed seeing Denver cornerstones like INVESCO Field where the Broncos play. There’s even a fun cameo from NBA superstars Carmelo Anthony and Allen Iverson, despite the fact that Iverson has been traded to the Pistons since the movie was filmed.
-----Ultimately, the lack of a convincing metamorphosis from Murphy (no thanks to the script) takes away most of the sweetness the movie is built around. Shahidi gives a strong performance, but hardly enough to save the film. The plot is just too typical and lacking in laughs to really enjoy, and some scenes are just downright irritating. ‘Imagine That’ set out with too thin a demographic to make the money it would have liked, and the film doesn’t even work for its primary audience. In the end, there are just too many superior family and children’s films out there to constitute a viewing of ‘Imagine That,’ a movie that I sympathize with for effort, but is pretty terrible all the same.
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