MovieChat Forums > The Family Plan (2023) Discussion > Generic, predictable screenplay and plot...

Generic, predictable screenplay and plot with a few genuine laughs

posted a year ago by jekporkins (1973)
3 replies | jump to latest

Look, if you've seen the preview it's a movie that's been done a few times before - an assassin or old spy who is also a suburban dweeb (True Lies, Long Kiss Goodnight, etc.). This time it's breathless Wahlberg pulling the boring 'ol dad with three kids and a smoking hot wife. Suddenly they are found out and hyjinx ensues.

So what is the difference this time? This time they go on a road trip and he tries the whole time to keep them in the dark while bad guys try to murder the entire family.

Is it predictable as all get out? Yes. Nothing is groundbreaking, you can see how the kids are going to evolve throughout the thing, you know the daughter isn't going to stay a communist, you see certain lines are going to come back, and you know the wife is going to do some track and field antics to save the day at some point, and you know the family is going to live even better lives when this is over.

So then the question is... Is it fun? If you're looking for something silly and can throw reality out the window for a while, you'll be entertained. I can't stand Marky Mark in action/drama, but in comedies he's passable, and I would consider this a comedy over anything else. The cast is solid, the baby is actually great (never cries), and the action scenes are pretty fun. Mark trying to fight a guy in a supermarket while having the baby in a Bjorn was inspired.

It's not a bad way to spend 90 minutes. However, the movie is two hours long. There is zero reason for this movie to be that long whatsoever.

A random stranger's opinion: Nothing you haven't seen before, but if you're looking for some PG13 family fun and know you're not getting anything groundbreaking, there are worse things to put in a DVD player. As such it's worth a Redbox rental on a sleepy Sunday afternoon.

[–] maximmm (3344) a year ago

Yeah - I give it 6.5/10
Generic - but old-school generic, which gives it an extra point for avoiding taking the new normal woke route. Old-school generic films are so uncommon these days, that I'm not sure 'generic' term really applies in the modern era.

I'd also say that actors appear to have enjoyed being in this film - there's some chemistry there.

The amount of music in this film is a tad much - the film could be 15 mins shorter (cutting out those musical bits) and not lose much in the process.

Apparently the director of this film is teaming up with MW for another film in 2024 - I'd say based on this film, Mark Wahlberg may actually do a good job in terms of acting under his direction.

[–] ronatola (374) 6 months ago

Ya - no wokeness - just noticed that. Refreshing to NOT have to involuntarily dwell on that during a movie.
Except in the diner scene - every table (3) was black/white. I try not to notice - just old-school I guess.

[–] MikeCable (1860) 5 months ago

It reminded me very much of Yes Day. At least it gave us something new as a family to watch together on a weekend night but is not something we'd probably re-watch within a few years.