Kids create imaginary friends for any number of reasons. For some, they just can't help it, what with their fertile imaginative minds working in hyper-drive. For others, it often stems from loneliness, such as being an only child or having few or no friends, sometimes due to living in a remote area or having moved somewhere new.
The more troubling kind are those that arise from some sort of physical and/or mental trauma, such as direct bodily or psychological abuse directed at the child, or as a result of stress at home, such as that involving parents who are fighting, separated or divorced.
At first glance, the latter would seem to be the explanation for young Olivia Danielson (a cute Yara Shahidi) and her make-believe world of princesses, princes and such, all channeled through her obviously comforting blanky. After all, her parents, Evan (Eddie Murphy back in family comedy mode, although thankfully without fat suits, farting or the like) and Trish (Nicole Ari Parker stuck in the obligatory disappointed wife role) are separated and continue to bicker within earshot of their daughter.
Well now, doesn't that sound like the makings for an entertaining family movie? To be fair, many a "fairy tale" has its darker elements, but the imaginary friends stemming from an unhappy marriage element here is just a cheap intro for the film's high concept premise, concocted by scribes Ed Solomon & Chris Matheson.
In a nutshell, that boils down to what if those imaginary friends just so happen to somehow have insider trading information regarding the investment decisions made by Evan? And what if they not only help the financial manager impress his boss (Ronny Cox) but also stave off his up and coming and unorthodox but effectively ruthless coworker (Thomas Hayden Church)?
Hmmm. Investment decisions. Allegations of insider trading. Talk of corporate doings. And talk during a business meeting of a nuclear blast in an eastern European country ("Mommy, what's a mushroom cloud?"). Maybe this isn't really a movie for young kids. Granted, one of the main characters is a child, and Murphy's back to doing his normal shtick with bug-eyed reactions, big grins, various voices and the type of exaggerated behavior rarely exhibited by real parents, but often is supplied by cool relatives and/or friends of the family.
Even so, if the under 10 audience at our recent screening is any indication, the chattering, crying and running around clearly signaled a certain boredom in many of them. While the adults didn't display any of the same, they probably wished they could have, as the film is not only boring, but trite, utterly predictable, and again makes one ponder whatever happened to the comedy genius that was once Eddie Murphy so long ago.
In fact, about the only thing that made the film a tad amusing and slightly interesting was the fact that some of the reels were out of order in our print. After a brief bit of confusion about some glaringly obvious bits of missing details, it became clear what happened. And that led to jokey whispers among the critics that director Karey Kirkpatrick (who previously directed the highly entertaining "Over the Hedge") was trying to go all Quentin Tarantino on us, what with this unexpected development of non-linear storytelling.
Alas, I'm guessing that was a one-time presentation just for us, and the rest of you will have to sit through this tired and drawn-out comedy from point A to Z. Had the filmmakers been more creative and/or imaginative with the premise -- that's pretty wide open considering the setup of unseen but obviously financially knowledgeable imaginary friends -- it might have turned into something of a pleasant and perhaps entertaining diversion.
To the disappointment of kids and adults alike, none of that happens and Murphy's family friendly shenanigans can only carry the picture so far (and the glaring difference between this and the superlative "Up" with its engaging characters and creative story that appeal to kids and adults alike only further points out the weaknesses here). While it's not awful, as painful to watch as "Meet Dave" or as bad as "Norbit" or "Pluto Nash," this is yet another flick where the once gifted comedic actor just seems to be cashing in rather than trying to make something good, not to mention great.
Considering his track record of recent, however, I can't even use the title as an expression of disappointed surprise. "Imagine That" might entertain preteens with its goofy moments and has enough covers of "Beatles" songs to make one suspicious of why that is, but is otherwise so boring and predictable that it will likely have viewers of all ages making up imaginary friends just to pass the time until the end credits roll. The film rates as a 4 out of 10.
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