DADDY DAY CARE

REVIEWED BY CHARITY BISHOP

Our rating: 4 out of 5

Because of: crude humor

Rated:

Whether society likes it or not, more and more mothers are working full time. If their husband has been laid off and cannot find a job, the reversal of roles must be contended with. This is basically the premise of Daddy Day Care, a surprisingly touching and very funny family movie about the "what ifs" of fathers being in charge. You might believe it's another calculated stab at fatherhood, but there you would be wrong. Although packaged as a slapstick comedy in which dad makes a lot of mistakes, it's actually a very sweet and humorous film about realizing the full potential in your children and striving to bring that out in them. It's not for everyone but most will find it enjoyable.

Charlie Hinton (Eddie Murphy) has everything he ever wanted. A gorgeous big house in the suburbs. A beautiful and talented wife Kim (Regina King) who is a prestigious lawyer. An intelligent little boy just heading into preschool, and a fine job in advertising with a cereal company. His son isn't old enough to hit school yet and so Kim has found him a place with a highly-praised preschool where children are taught as well as entertained. The school is very strict, already teaching tots to speak four languages and demanding from them excellent reading schools. It's presided over by the terrifying Mrs. Harridan (Angela Huston), who requires discipline and obedience from her students. It also comes with an enormous entry fee... and just around the time when Charlie and his associates are all fired as the company downsizes. Searching for a job without success, Charlie is forced to either be a stay-at-home dad or find another day care.

All of Mrs. Harridan's competitors are horrible, and the Hintons aren't about to leave their child anywhere without proper supervision. Therefore Charlie and his best friend Phil (Jeff Garlin) decide to set up a daycare of their own. It cannot be that difficult to take care of kids, right? WRONG! Keeping track of eleven sugar-fed children is every father's worst nightmare. There's the brainaic, the little girl who can already read, the boy who refuses to take off his Flash suit from the comic books, and the rude little fiend from a wealthy household who sees Charlie's shins as target practice. But where there's a will there's a way and rapidly "Daddy Day Care" becomes popular as an inexpensive alternative to the "kiddie prep preschool." Mrs. Harridan is losing her business and will use any means possible to take Charlie and his associates down.

True, there are the normal toilet jokes and potty training experiences to be contended with, but the bottom line of Daddy Day Care is a healthy respect for both parents. It encourages whichever one stays home to nurture the child. It's been proven that children with at least one parent home in the before-school years are better behaved and more secure than tots packed off to day cares, but if you must place your child in one, Daddy Day Care would be a good place. The children not only have fun, they also learn together. They are encouraged to be kind, compassionate, friendly, and take turns. This is contrasted with the strict atmosphere of Harridan's, where children are pressured to grow up too fast. I liked the view the film took of parenting and also the outcome. Some might be offended with the notion that the woman is working full time and her husband holding down the house, but I found nothing amiss with it.

Mild issues pop up in the script but most are of an amusing rather than offensive nature. There is naturally some debate over whether or not two men should run a day care. This is an understandable fear and the parents' concern is merited, but Charlie and Phil soon prove themselves trustworthy. (Allow me to provide a minor spoiler and point out that eventually the business expands and they start hiring female employees.) One woman accuses them of being perverts. There's a teeth-grating joke in which two little girls color Phil's face with makeup while he's asleep. Not knowing he looks like a transsexual, he answers the door to find the inspector at their door. Charlie and Kim start to get romantic but are interrupted by their son hollering in his room. Language is mild and nearly nonexistent, just a few profanities and one or two uses of God. There is some crude humor; gags are made out of flatulence and belching. Phil's son hasn't been potty trained and it's implied (but not shown) that he messes up the bathroom. A stream of urine comes into range of the camera as Phil tries to change a diaper (no baby nudity).

For the most part these elements can be forgiven and the result is a funny movie all about the joys and horrors of fatherhood.