In the new Netflix film directed and written by John Hamburg, Sonny Fisher (Kevin Hart) is a stay-at-home dad who finally finds a moment of alone time, the first chance in years, while his wife, Maya (Regina Hall), spends quality time with their two kids at her parents’ lake house. Sonny takes this time to reconnect with his old friend who he hasn’t seen in several years, Huck Dembo (Mark Wahlberg), on Huck’s 44th birthday. Sonny expects a crazy week with Huck since his birthdays are notorious for insane trips and feats. Upon the start of Huck’s birthday, Sonny is surprised left and right with how much his friend has changed over the years, but Huck is still extravagant, nonetheless. Unfortunately, the party does not go quite as planned: Sonny is attacked by a mountain lion, Huck’s loan shark finds him to demand his money back and Sonny hears that his wife’s male client Armando (who he thinks is trying to steal Maya from him) showed up at the lake house. It goes from bad to worse when Sonny, in a moment of wanting to just party, decides to tell Huck to move his birthday party into his home.
There are parts of the film that tend to drag on as opposed to being humorous as expected in a comedy film. One example is the scene where Huck and Sonny break into Armando’s home while he’s not there. In this scene, they pull annoying pranks on Armando, such as stealing all of his left shoes, throwing away all his spices and putting a spatula in Sonny’s pants. Instead of coming off as funny, the audience cannot help but cringe while watching it since the pair are only doing it because they think Armando is trying to steal Maya, but do they know for sure?
While some scenes are not as funny as intended, a character that steals the spotlight is Thelma, an unlikely important side character with several scenes that are just made that much funnier by her personality and hilarious antics.
Throughout the film, there are parts that are quite funny while there are others that fall surprisingly short, but there is still a very heartwarming message in the film. From the very start of the movie, it is clear that Sonny’s son, Dashiell (Che Tafari), does not want to play the keyboard in the school’s talent show like Sonny so adamantly wants him to. At the talent show, Dashiell flips out on his father on stage about how much he hates the piano, sparking regret in Sonny and inspiring a great speech that induces a change in him and his family. It also brings Maya back to Sonny after a short separation between the two, due to Sonny breaking into Armando’s house and Sonny paying off Huck’s $40,000 debt. So, instead of playing the piano like originally intended, Dash breaks out into a witty stand-up comedy act that gets laughs from everyone in the audience, both in the film and those watching the movie.
Overall, it may not be the best comedy movie Kevin Hart or Mark Wahlberg have acted in, but the film is still worth a watch.