Daddy's Home

This review may contain spoilers!

This was a really fun film to finish 2015 on. I would give Daddy's Home a 6.5/10.

The rivalry between the protagonist and antagonist is so entertaining in this film, you really can't wait to see how Ferrell or Wahlberg will escalate a situation. The comedy within this film is really solid and is a return to some of the stronger American comedies from the past. The soundtrack works in really well with the film, heightening some comedic moments for the better. I also enjoyed the special effects in this film despite there not really being much, the big one of course is the motorbike scene which I thought was done really well.

Will Ferrell, who played Brad Whitaker, is back to true form in this film; this protagonist is one of the best that Ferrell has played in a long time. Thomas Haden Church, who played Leo Holt, was really entertaining as the hyper masculine boss; his stories about his ex-wives are some of the better scenes of the film. Scarlett Estevez, who played Megan, was one of the stronger comedic talents of the film; I love child actors that can go toe to toe with comedic talents like Ferrell and Wahlberg. Bobby Cannavale, who played Dr Francisco, is a really fun appearance in this film; I love the banter between Cannavale and Wahlberg. Hannibal Buress, who played Griff, could have been a complete throw away minor role but Buress made Griff one of the funnier characters of the film; the best part about his performance was his great line delivery that could completely steal scenes. John Cena, who played the Cool Dad, was the greatest cameo of the film; ending the film on Cena was such a strong and funny move.

However the best performance came from Mark Wahlberg, who played Dusty Mayron. In this film you really enjoy the banter and conflict that exists between Ferrell and Wahlberg; it takes you right back to The Other Guys but in a completely refreshing way. Wahlberg creates and antagonist that you can like just as much as you like Ferrell and he isn't someone you're completely against for the entire film. Ultimately Wahlberg is a strong comedic presence in this film and I hope to see him in more comedy films in the future.

This film runs a little too long at the end of the day, there's just a few too many scenes where the plot keeps returning to the same problem and it affects the film negatively. The cinematography in this film is quite basic, this is quite common for comedy films as they rely on the jokes to progress the film without creating much in terms of visual style. As a result of what I have previously mentioned the editing in this film is really simple; there just doesn't seem to be any desire to make this film look visually interesting. The score for this film isn't very memorable, it falls second fiddle to the soundtrack.

Linda Cardellini, who played Sara, isn't really funny in this film nor does her dramatic performance really fit into the film; I think the worst part is that Ferrell and Cardellini have absolutely no chemistry in this film so you really question why she'd marry him. Owen Vaccaro, who played Dylan, is quite a monotone child actor; vaccaro ultimately feels like he's reading his lines and playing out a very two dimensional performance.