Daddy Day Care

San Francisco Chronicle C.W. Nevius

A harmless and amusing summer comedy.

Washington Post Stephen Hunter

If you attend the movie with your expectations lowered by Murphy's recent films, you'll be reasonably amused.

Boston Globe Wesley Morris

The Daddy Day Care business model appears to be the 1983 Michael Keaton vehicle ''Mr. Mom,'' put on an unstoppable sugar high.

Dallas Observer Robert Wilonsky

Murphy inhabited Jif like a sweet, innocent child, almost as though he were delighted to shed the cynicism and get down to the sweet, chewy center. Or day-care center, in this case.

Washington Post Desson Thomson

An easy-on-the-sensibilities family film, Eddie Murphy practically assumes the easygoing manner of Mister Rogers, a character he used to wickedly lampoon on "Saturday Night Live."

Seattle Post-Intelligencer William Arnold

It's a formula job all the way, filled with pratfalls, flying food, much male incompetence in the face of child-rearing realities, and a cast of violence-prone children on sugar highs who somehow turn into angels by the film's last sappy moments.

The Onion (A.V. Club) Nathan Rabin

A big-screen sitcom so sleepy and juvenile it might as well come with its own nap break.

Salon.com Stephanie Zacharek

One of those comedies that "thinking" people tend to stay away from, but if you look beyond its admittedly aggressive marketing campaign, you can see that it was made with care and intelligence as well as a sense of fun. The pleasures it offers may be modest, but they're not negligible.

Philadelphia Inquirer Carrie Rickey

Most parents will find the movie has the familiar feeling of one of those kid birthday parties where the little ones are on chocolate highs and the adults run out of scheduled activities after 20 minutes.

Charlotte Observer Lawrence Toppman

Predictable but agreeable time-waster.

Village Voice Ed Park

Lighthearted if shy of a lark.

Chicago Tribune Michael Wilmington

A likable little movie without much to offer but cute tots, recycled gags and a talented cast amiably wasting their time and ours.

Christian Science Monitor David Sterritt

Murphy gives one of his more-restrained performances, which suits the mood of carefully contained mayhem established by Steve Carr, the director.

New York Post Megan Lehmann

Only really little tykes will find the surplus of pratfalls and poo and fart jokes a hoot.

Premiere Susannah Gora

Moves easily between manic humor and soft, touching moments that get to the heart of what it means to be a parent.

Wall Street Journal Joe Morgenstern

His (Eddie Murphy's) performance in Daddy Day Care isn't bad. He's restrained, and even tender in some of the scenes he plays with the kids. But restraint is the last thing we want from a comic of his caliber. It's no fun at all.

Chicago Reader J.R. Jones

Most of the humor is of the kick-daddy-in-the-shins variety, though Anjelica Huston has a few choice moments as "Ms. Harridan."

The Globe and Mail (Toronto) Jason Anderson

Full of poop and pratfalls, Daddy Day Care's abrasive marketing campaign promises a fresh slice of hell. So for it not to cause physical pain to any viewer over the age of five is a considerable achievement.

LA Weekly Jon Strickland

Feels like a movie cribbed together from outtakes of other hapless Hollywood comedies -- rejected scenes where the line readings fell flat, the chemistry expired or the adult actors couldn't wipe the "get this brat away from me" scowl from their faces.

Variety Todd McCarthy

Scarcely more amusing than spending 90 minutes in a pre-K classroom.

Miami Herald Christine Dolan

Mediocre.

New York Daily News Elizabeth Weitzman

Though topnotch actors often can elevate mediocre material, they need a topnotch director to help them do it. Steve Carr ("Dr. Dolittle 2") is not that director.

ReelViews James Berardinelli

This is one of those nearly unwatchable movies that becomes an endurance contest for any thinking adult.

TV Guide Maitland McDonagh

The film seems longer than its 93-minute running time, but kids will probably enjoy its potty humor, many scenes of 4-year-olds getting the better of harried adults and the inevitable moment when a cute little girl kicks the fat guy in the nads.

Austin Chronicle Marjorie Baumgarten

Across-the-board, the kids are extremely adorable to watch (not an easy thing to pull off) and will appeal to the other kids in the audience who might identify with them and see the story from the kids’ point of view. But looking at this film from any other perspective, will give you brain rot.

USA Today Claudia Puig

You know something is wrong when a preschooler's unwitting ad-libs are funnier than anything seasoned comedy writers can come up with. Kids say the darnedest things. Too bad the grown-ups don't.

Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert

Aggressively simple-minded, it's fueled by the delusion that it has a brilliant premise: Eddie Murphy plus cute kids equals success. But a premise should be the starting point for a screenplay, not its finish line.

Rolling Stone Peter Travers

Murphy looks comatose delivering the played-out poopy jokes.

Entertainment Weekly Lisa Schwarzbaum

A parent-and-kid-oriented comedy about the adventures of men doing the hard work of mommies, which couldn't be more timely -- or less delightful.

The New York Times A.O. Scott

You can't get more high-concept, or less plotted, than this, and Daddy Day Care is proof.

Los Angeles Times Manohla Dargis

I laughed a couple of times, but mostly I was bored out of my mind and not a little depressed.