Dan hates having his photo taken. There’s a good reason for that though, he has spent the last few decades living undercover in Buffalo with his wife Jessica and their three kids, hiding from his previous life as a contract killer. That’s the intriguing kernel of an idea behind The Family Plan. However, the script by Davis Coggeshall sets itself on autopilot and never looks back going from one cliché to another dragging itself through one scene after another.
This is disappointing because The Family Plan could have been a killer comedy. Its cast is game, doing impressive work to try and deliver something beyond the one-dimensional characters they’ve been saddled with. It’s especially charismatic when dealing with Wahlberg delivering one of his best performances in years and Monaghan stands out despite playing a character. Who is always predictable throughout the film. However, The Family Plan is unnecessarily long which results in turning what would’ve otherwise been a punchy flick into a bloated mess with more plot holes than laughs. You cannot squeeze a full-length feature out of this story. It’s only enough to fill 80 minutes; it feels like stretching it to two hours deserves a gold medal.
After unconvincingly setting up the family dynamic. How does a top-tier hitman not know that his son secretly streams under a different name? — the script goes on cruise control. Every beat is familiar, some done better elsewhere.
Nonetheless, this film contains some decent set pieces. In a grocery store, Dan has to fight off an attacker while carrying his baby in front of him using a sling. This is interesting because you don’t usually see dangerous assassins looking after babies like that! Although this sequence mostly works, there are some parts where crude special effects somewhat detract from its effectiveness.
Also, during one particularly well-executed chase scene. In this scene, he must maintain absolute silence while maneuvering to avoid the bullets fired by the villains. All the while ensuring that his family, who are sleeping in the same car with him, remain undisturbed as he drives. It is funny, original, and hints at what The Family Plan could have been like. Sadly though, the rest of it feels empty and derivative.
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