Fatherhood is a movie full of Hollywood stereotypes, complete with tear-jerking one-liners, an unsurprising storyline, and cringe-worthy monologues. However, it is also an easy, wholesome watch featuring endearing characters and a strong lead performance from Kevin Hart.
The latest Netflix movie release is based on the autobiographical novel Two Kisses For Maddy: A Memoir Of Loss And Love by Matthew Logelin. Hart plays Logelin, a man thrown into single fatherhood as his wife tragically dies the day after giving birth to the daughter Maddy.
Directed by Paul Weitz, director of About A Boy and Little Fockers, the film achieves Weitz’s usual flare of turning a difficult real-life tale into nourishing, pleasant viewing. Weitz is no stranger to a film addressing the struggles of fatherhood and family. He is excellent at portraying compassionate, daily struggles as a sympathetic and watchable story. Unfortunately, the heart-wrenching true story of Logelin and his daughter is overwhelmed by cheesy Hollywood anecdotes.
The film follows the father-daughter duo as they try to navigate through life together as they form an unbreakable family bond. The film is crammed with cliches, throwing in every struggle the audience could reasonably predict for a new single father thrust into the dual role of mum and dad. No-one believes he can raise the baby by himself. The over-bearing mother in law constantly demands she takes over as she knows best. He also can’t get the baby to stop crying, but he is determined to do this alone. He is rejected by a new parent group because he is a man but in the end gets the advice he needs. His two reliable but strange friends, an oddball co-worker (Anthony Carrigan) and a bumbling cool personality (Lil Rel Howery), step in as the fun uncles to help raise Maddy.
When he does find love again, he thinks that he isn’t ready and calls it off despite his new lady seamlessly bonding with his daughter. Just as you start to lose hope, he reignites their love after some self-reflection to give you the happy ending that you will be hoping for. The list of unsurprising scenarios could go on and the overly predictable plot does become somewhat tedious.
Despite the cheesiness, it is easy to fall in love with Maddy, who early on in the film is suddenly 5 years old and played by the effortlessly delightful Melody Hurd. The charming nature of the bond between her and her father is a bond that one assumes mirrors that between Hart and Hurd on set together. It is an effortless chemistry that tugs at the heartstrings, bringing Logelin’s love, pain, and grief to life. Hart and Hurd’s connection allows for a believable adaptation of the book, creating a dignified and emotional portrayal of Logelin and his daughter’s story. Hart meanwhile steps into a different role to what he is known for, stepping back as the “funny guy,” and executing many of his emotional scenes with depth and integrity.
On top of this, the film must be given credit for its attempt to tackle (even invert) gender stereotypes. A very feisty and fearless Maddy stands up against school uniform policies, speaks her mind, questions everything, wants to wear boxers and climbs everything she sees. Meanwhile, the portrayal of Hart as the immensely supportive “girl dad” is beautiful and relevant, a portrayal that Fatherhood deserves real recognition for promoting.
The Verdict
Fatherhood will make you cringe. You will know the plot around three minutes in and you will have to adapt to viewing an undeniably witty Hart as an emotionally intense character. Yet this is also a pure and innocent portrayal of a real life father-daughter duo that you just can’t stop watching.
Fatherhood is available to stream on Netflix now.
Words by Nicole Lang.
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