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Daddy Day Care

The concept of a good Eddie Murphy might, by this point in the comedian’s career, seem about as logical as that of two fathers with no previous experience starting a child day care center in their own home. Let’s face it—Murphy’s career has returned to the slump it was suffering before 1997’s successful The Nutty Professor, and he’s been in dire need of a good project ever since then. While Daddy Day Care might not exactly be the boost his resume needs, it is at least not as weak as some of the actor’s other recent films. It also marks a continued change of character for the now older comedian and father.

Eddie Murphy used to be synonymous with crass, obnoxious humor and loudmouth, trash talking, but quite entertaining, characters. The name was almost a genre unto itself, which dictated a certain comedic style that appealed to a particular audience. Murphy, now in his forties and raising a family, seems to be more conscious of his act—or maybe he’s just realized that he needs a new one, which would explain such projects as the Dr. Dolittle films, Shrek, and, most recently, Daddy Day Care. Family oriented films, it seems, are his alternative to loudmouth characters to which no one cares to listen anymore.

It’s a smart move on Murphy’s part, one that has brought limited success and allowed the comedian to demonstrate unexpected versatility as an actor. Unfortunately, when not playing one of his more signature roles, he often ends up being upstaged by his co-stars—the animals of Dr. Dolittle and the children of Daddy Day Care. It’s not that Murphy has lost his charisma onscreen—in fact, his presence alone sometimes has been the saving grace of an otherwise weak script. Daddy Day Care allows Murphy to showcase a more tender side of himself, much the same way Sherman Klump did in The Nutty Professor. Unfortunately in this case he was not given enough of a character from which to work.

Lack of character development is only one of Daddy Day Care’s most glaring flaws. Murphy plays a former corporate hotshot who has recently been laid off, along with his friend and co-worker, Phil (Jeff Garlin). At the same time, his wife (Regina King) has just returned to the workforce, leaving Eddie alone to look after their adorable young son, Ben. After trying to place him in a prestigious preschool run by a militant, snobby director, Miss. Harridan (Anjelica Huston), Eddie and Phil decide the answer to both their problems—financial and domestic—is to open a day care center for the neighborhood children, including their own.

At first the idea of a male-operated day care center meets with skepticism from local mothers, but soon enough the word catches on and the two entrepreneurs find themselves with a herd of unruly kids to look after, each with their own particular behavioral quirk. Predictably, the sputtering fathers, who are joined by a third caretaker and former co-worker, eventually master the art of kid control, and even grow to truly enjoy caring for their young charges, all while dodging the efforts of Miss. Harridan to shut them down.

There are a number of laughs, ranging from bathroom humor to cute-kid antics, though most of the humor is aimed at younger audiences. Grown-ups will be entertained as well, but this film is geared towards youngsters. Some of the jokes, however, are a bit advanced for such a young target age group. The film’s two main problems are that Eddie Murphy often ends up being upstaged, and too little attention is paid to the growing rift between him and Ben, who often ends up being pushed to the wayside while his father tends to the needs of the other children.

The potential existed for a more heartwarming comedy that would have been perfect for a Father’s Day release; unfortunately, the movie is more concerned with goofy humor and bathroom jokes than caring about character development.

Written by: Michael McDonough

Reviewers Rating: 7
Reader's Rating: 8.91
Reader's Votes: 11

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