'Imagine That' a solid family comedy

• By JOHN WIRT
• Movie critic
• Published: Jun 12, 2009

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Imagine That may not restore blockbuster luster to Eddie Murphy, but it’s a big step up from Norbit, Meet Dave, Daddy Day Care and The Adventures of Pluto Nash.

A family comedy with a familiar moral, Imagine That casts Murphy as a financial whiz in Denver. A workaholic who’s always striving to beat his in-house competition, Murphy doesn’t make quality time for his 7-year-old daughter. She knows her father is essentially absent from her life, but he has yet to learn that hard lesson.

Compelled by his ex-wife to keep Olivia for an entire week, the self-centered Murphy does a poor job of parenting. Redemption, however, is at hand. Despite the easily anticipated developments that happen on the way to Murphy’s amusing attitude adjustment, Imagine That, a film directed by former Baton Rougean Karey Kirkpatrick,  contains magical scenes, touching moments and comedy for kids and adults.

The plot revolves around Olivia’s security blanket, aka the goo-gaa. Olivia produces piercingly high screams whenever Murphy attempts to separate his girl from her goo-gaa.

And the goo-gaa is no ordinary blanket. Or so Murphy comes to believe. The actor easily makes the leap of faith necessary for his normally all-business character to believe in the goo-gaa’s transformative power.

With barely an ounce of special effects in sight, Murphy enters a magical world. In many ways, he finally shares the realm of childhood with his daughter. It’s here that Murphy does his most engaging Imagine That work. His character wholeheartedly believes, though initially for selfish reasons, in that which cannot be seen.

Playing Olivia, Yara Shahidi makes a seemingly effortless big-screen debut. A veteran of TV commercials and a cast member of the ABC comedy series In the Motherhood, Shahidi goes one-on-one with Murphy like the pro she is. The playfulness and joy in their best scenes lift the film to its greatest heights.

Even though Imagine That is thankfully tied to a child’s imagination, the film eventually obeys well-worn, adult-imposed conventions of story and character. The enchantment found on the way to the movie’s foregone conclusions outshines its destination by far.