Movie Reaction: Instant Family

Formula: Cheaper by the Dozen / 4

I wasn't planning to like Instant Family. I went back and fourth about if I was even going to see it. I haven't cared much for director Sean Anders' movies, especially, Daddy's Home, which this is most similar too. Mark Wahlberg is normally only as good as his scene partners in a comedy. The only reason I saw this is because I have an unhealthy obsession with Rose Byrne.

I'm very glad I saw it.

Instant Family is about an upper-middle class couple (Rose Byrne and Mark Wahlberg) who decides to adopt kids after an offhand comment makes them realize they let their work flipping houses distract them from the plan to eventually have kids. The opt to adopt older kids because, as Walhberg puts it, he doesn't want to be an old dad. They eventually become foster parents and take in three siblings who are 15, 11, and 7 (I think. I'm not looking it up and it doesn't make a big difference).

There isn't much to this movie that you haven't seen before. There are countless movies about people becoming parents suddenly and struggling to make it work. Every conflict and beat is the same. The kids have problems trusting them. Byrne and Wahlberg feel overwhelmed. The birth mom shows up eventually. This movie gets the emotions right though. It doesn't hide the fact that it's a PSA for adoption, and it's hard not to get choked up at points. In the movie's defense, it tries not to be too manipulative about it.

What impressed me about the movie is that it still hit on the jokes hard, and unlike Daddy's Home, really earned the PG-13 rating. Byrne and Walhberg have both put in their time in Comedy Finishing School. This is the first time they've been asked to really drive the comedy without an SNL alum or a talking Teddy bear in the co-pilot seat and they are up to the task. I love that comedies lately have finally figured out how to write couples as teams and not combatants. Byrne and Wahlberg are partners and plus up each other's jokes.

It helps that Anders calls in some heavy hitters for supporting roles. Margo Martindale and Julie Hagerty play the grandmothers, and both have a perfect understanding about what works comedically for their characters. Joan Cusack shows up for a very late oddball cameo that I appreciated. The dynamic duo of the movie, however, is Octavia Spencer and Tig Notaro, who play the foster parent case workers. I want to watch an entire movie with those two as partners right now. Spencer overplays. Notaro underplays. It's perfect. Writers have finally figured out how to use Notaro's unique delivery to great effect and Spencer continues to remind people that she's an Oscar winner because of how easily she can move between comedy and drama; in the same sentence if needed. There's a running joke with Iliza Shlesinger as another foster mom who wants to foster her way into a Blind Side situation. It's a dumb, one-note joke that they hit too many times, but it made me laugh. The three foster kids are typical child actors. The oldest, played by Isabella Moner, who has a pretty extensive filmography already, plays the emotional beats well, but otherwise, they aren't asked to drive the story or the comedy.

One negative thing I do have to say about the movie is that it's either too long or poorly paced. It's right at 2 hours and feels like it. There's a lot of up and down in the story. It moves between serious and silly moments a lot. While I was still enjoying it by the end, I was very aware of how long it was running by then.

There's a very good chance that Instant Family was a right place, right time movie. My theater had an engaged and receptive audience. I went into the movie in a good mood and left in a great mood. My low expectations going in and desire to like anything with Rose Byrne certainly helped. At this point, I don't really care why. I just liked Instant Family a lot.

Verdict (?): Strongly Recommend