By Michael O'Sullivan
In the universe of Will Ferrell films, it's helpful to think of "Daddy's Home" as the misbegotten love child of "The Other Guys" and "Kicking & Screaming."
The genetic code of this film - a reunion of Ferrell and his "The Other Guys" co-star Mark Wahlberg - retains that 2010 cop film's crackling character DNA, courtesy of the odd coupling of Ferrell's doughy, saucer-eyed naif with Wahlberg's grim, gimlet-eyed tough guy. Add in a kid-centric story line, reminiscent of the "Kicking & Screaming" plot about dysfunctional family dynamics, and voila.
While falling short of the demented hilarity of, say, "Anchorman," "Daddy's Home" nevertheless avoids sinking into the seriocomic slough of Ferrell's alcohol-soaked divorce dramedy "Everything Must Go." Instead, "Daddy's Home" is destined to be remembered among Ferrell's most middle-of-the-road, if not exactly mirthless, comedies. (See: "Blades of Glory.")
The story centers on Ferrell's Brad, an insecure suburban stepdad, and his desire to forge a connection with his new wife's young children, Megan and Dylan (Scarlett Estevez and Owen Vaccaro). The kids - for reasons that are entirely understandable, given Brad's namby-pamby nature - prefer their cool, if absentee, biological father Dusty (Wahlberg) to the loser their mom (Linda Cardellini) married. When Dusty suddenly reappears in their lives, Brad must work even harder to gain their affection.
There are a few laughs here and there. Most come at the expense of Ferrell, who plays the kind of hapless (and occasionally shirtless) straight arrow that the actor could turn out in his sleep. As the film's chronically over-emotional and underachieving antihero, whose rivalry with his wife's ex escalates into passive-aggressive war, Ferrell makes for a reliably inept clown, as when Brad is sent hurtling through a couple of sheets of drywall after he tries to impress Dusty by riding a motorcycle without knowing what he's doing.
For his part, Wahlberg is a dutiful straight man, setting his co-star up for the film's anemic gags. Except for an unusually amusing scene in which Dusty engages in a goofily poker-faced dance-off with a father who is upset that Dylan has kicked his daughter in her "swimsuit area," as she puts it, Wahlberg isn't especially funny.
About that kick in the crotch: If you were thinking that "Daddy's Home" might make a nice movie to take the family to over the holidays, think again. There's a bit more coarse language and vulgar, squirm-worthy humor than one should expect from a family movie.
That said, Ferrell's sad-sack performance doesn't entirely disappoint. His face, when contorted in impotent rage, is always good for a giggle.
"You can find the good in just about anything," Brad's wife tells him. "That's what I love about you." Maybe I suffer from the same soft heart. It's hard to hate "Daddy," even when the movie falls flat.
Two stars. Rated PG-13. Contains coarse language and slapstick violence. 96 minutes.
Ratings Guide: Four stars masterpiece, three stars very good, two stars OK, one star poor, no stars waste of time.
The Washington Post
