His movies are something akin to a meal at Applebee’s.
Like the family-oriented restaurant chain, Wahlberg serves up comfort food…in cinematic form. Will it be the greatest cuisine you’ve ever tasted? Of course not.
But it doesn’t have to be. Sometimes the Riblets Platter with a side of fries is all you really need.
It is in this spirit that I dive into my review of Wahlberg’s latest offering, “The Family Plan.” The Apple TV+ original features a tried-and-true setup that has been used multiple times in modern cinema.
Wahlberg plays Dan Morgan, a successful car salesman in Buffalo, New York, who just so happens to be a former assassin.
He lives an idyllic suburban life with his wife Jessica (Michelle Monaghan), son Kyle (Van Crosby), daughter Nina (Zoe Colletti), and bonus baby Max (twins Iliana and Vienna Norris).
Morgan’s world is turned upside down while he is shopping at a grocery store with Max. As Dan is perusing the aisles, a mystery man attacks.
The result is a humorous fight scene with various food items and shelves tossed asunder. (Our protagonist — with his son strapped to his chest in a baby sling — does everything in his power to subdue the attacker and keep his baby safe.)
He senses his old life is coming back to haunt him — a past he has managed to keep secret from his loved ones.
With his family in imminent danger, Dan grabs his daughter from high school, his eldest son from a friend’s house, and his wife from work, telling the brood he’s taking them on a surprise vacation to Las Vegas.
Confused as they are, his wife responds favorably, having yearned for a life that is a bit more spontaneous and “bigger” (something she confides to a stranger at her fitness club).
The Morgans hit the road in their Honda Odyssey on a cross country trip that features plenty of hijinks, high-tempo action scenes, and huggable bonding moments as Dan tries to outrun (and outgun) their pursuers and also outrun his past.
There isn’t much in the way of subtlety or nuance in “The Family Plan.”
The movie is essentially a mashup of 1994’s “True Lies” and 1983’s “National Lampoon’s Vacation.” (Both movies are personal favorites of mine.)
It is neither “high art” nor anything that will be mistaken for “best in genre,” but for what it is, it works.
Netflix has made a living churning out this type of movie — throwbacks to the days of brick-and-mortar video stores, when a family was just looking for something fun to watch on a Friday night.
On that point, “The Family Plan” is the most viewed movie in Apple TV+ history according to Deadline.
There are some genre tropes that fall flat, but the performers seem enthusiastic and do a yeoman’s job with the material. I particularly liked Michelle Monaghan as Jessica.
For a celebrity who burst on the scene as hip hop persona “Marky Mark,” Wahlberg sure has come a long way.
(Don’t worry Marky Mark fans, there is a fun road trip moment where Wahlberg uses his pipes as he and Monaghan sing along to “Ice Ice Baby” by Vanilla Ice).
As I mentioned at the outset, he is one of Hollywood’s most dependable stars.
Wahlberg has found a nice groove with family-oriented comedies like the “Daddy’s Home” franchise and “based on true events” movies like “Lone Survivor.”
And that’s the actor’s secret sauce.
Going back to that Applebee’s analogy, Wahlberg seems comfortable serving Middle America fare that is casual, classic, and dependable.
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