A Funny Eddie Murphy? 'Imagine'

Actor Shows Off Comedic Skills That Have Been MIA Recently

In "Imagine That," Eddie Murphy's Evan Danielson tries to learn the stock secrets hidden in the imaginary world of his young daughter Olivia (Yara Shahidi). (By Bruce Mcbroom -- Paramount Pictures)

Eddie Murphy.

There. I said it.

I know what you're thinking: Eddie Murphy? Dignity? The man who appeared in "The Adventures of Pluto Nash"? Just thinking about going to an Eddie Murphy movie at this point can make you walk lopsided. On one shoulder, there's this tiny little angel whispering " 'Shrek' . . . 'Dreamgirls' . . . 'Mr. Robinson's Neighborhood.' " On the other, there's a Hummer-size demon bellowing " 'Norbit' . . . 'Daddy Day Care' . . . 'Dr. Dolittle'!!"

You don't need a movie. You need a chiropractor.

But "Imagine That," in which the comedian plays a buccaneer stock analyst redeemed by fatherhood and fantasy, is also a redemptive act for Murphy, whose often deliriously misguided efforts have made us forget what a naturally gifted and virtuosic comedian he is. Through pure comic timing, he rescues what's wrong in a movie in which very much is right.

And, to a large degree, he reasserts why he's great, and others aren't: Watching him, as the desperate Evan Danielson, singing a song to an invisible princess in his daughter's invisible fantasy world because he thinks the princess can give him a stock tip, you feel a lot of things. Hilarity, certainly. But also pain. Which makes it all the funnier. If Murphy were Seth Rogen, we wouldn't even blink.

Imagine That" is not a masterpiece, by any means, and it follows a fairly hackneyed premise: Although it's beyond belief, Evan has discovered that his strange little daughter, Olivia (Yara Shahidi), the one he shares custody of with his ex-wife (Nicole Ari Parker), the one who won't give up her blanket (a.k.a. the Goo-Gaa), is channeling stock tips out of her imaginary world. Where was Olivia when AIG needed her? Okay, sometimes the tips come in the form of "she has nice hair" or "he doesn't play well with others," but it's all code for "buy" and "sell." All Evan has to do is go there.

It's refreshing that in a movie out of an effects-besotted Hollywood, Evan and Olivia only imagine their travels, rather than running a gantlet of computer-generated hallucinations; they still look the same to us, as they gather their tips. This may turn out to be one of the more endearing aspects of "Imagine That," at least to its youngest audiences, the ones who are still able to travel widely via the special effects inside their heads.

Shahidi is beautiful and natural as Olivia; she could give a good name to kid actors. But the really distinguished supporting player is Thomas Haden Church, as an inspired character -- Johnny Whitefeather, a faux mystic who parlays Native American spirituality into snake-oil salesmanship and stock portfolios.

Meanwhile, Murphy's Evan is believable, sympathetic and often very funny. And the movie, which may be an anomaly in the career of Eddie Murphy, takes a step toward reasserting his place as the comic heir not just to such obvious models as Richard Pryor (whom he is supposed to be playing in an upcoming biopic) but also Groucho Marx. The return of Eddie Murphy? Imagine that.

source : washingtonpost