Written by Steven Allison
At first glance, Instant Family sure looks like one of those cookie-cutter dramedies. You know the ones, weaving hilariously through a gaggle of ups and downs, finally reaching a syrupy climax infused with a heartfelt message. Blah, blah. But, before the first act is put to bed here, it’s clear someone in the crew has fostering experience under their belt. Either that or a killer research team was on hand. It turns out this story is semi-autobiographical, partly based on writer-director Sean Anders’ spell as a foster parent. While Instant Family has many of the usual comedy trappings, its real-life foundation gives the film a compelling edge over its mushy, slapsticky genre buddies.
We follow house flippers Pete (Mark Wahlberg) and Ellie (Rose Byrne), a young couple perfectly content with their kid-free life of tidiness. Their hearts are stolen by the adorable, toothy smiles on an adoption website, and they soon foster moody Latin-American teen Lizzy (Isabela Moner). A mammoth task itself, she comes as a package with her brother Juan (Gustavo Quiroz), a skittish bag of nerves, and sister Lita (Julianna Gamiz), a cutie with a terrifying streak. Pete and Ellie attend a foster parent support group regularly, run by odd-couple case-workers, kindly but gobby Karen (Octavia Spencer) and committedly deadpan – think the Jane Lynch school of comedy – Sharon (Tig Notaro). The meetings feature a cross-section of would-be parents: the religious ones, the gay ones, and even one desperate to emulate The Blind Side. The last, an earnest woman called October (Iliza Shlesinger), is the butt of many a joke in what she calls the “opposite of a support group.”
The result is a big-hearted, charming comedy you’re bound to enjoy. Instant Family offers a droll little vignette of the trials and tribulations of first-time fostering, stuffed full of subtleties and subverting expectations here and there.
That said, a couple of problems mar things here. Much of the formulaic story doesn’t sit so comfortably at points, occasionally feeling like it should have been dressed as a straight drama about the foster system. It’s also really jarring when the film’s sweet and humorous elements meet their more serious counterparts, Anders and co-writer John Morris failing to oil the tracks connecting the two.
The cast is what really makes Instant Family. Wahlberg and Byrne are a winning formula at the helm – him putting on his reliable nice guy routine, her the incredible comedic powerhouse she’s sneakily become right under our noses. Byrne delivers the best lines in the film, her references to Lizzy’s friends as “pussyriot” and male genitalia as “beeswax” two of the best. And then there’s Moner, giving a balanced performance as a damaged teen torn between her old and new lives. We see a lot of Lizzy carrying the ubiquitous Fjaken bag. Product placement much? Anyhow, Moner is undoubtedly one to watch in the coming years.
You can guess how everything wraps up. And no, they aren’t all gunned down in a drive-by shooting. While clichéd and exactly what you want, the lesson at the end is sincere and gratifying. Essentially, it doesn’t matter where love comes from, just that it comes from somewhere. More importantly, things that matter are hard! Although Instant Family doesn’t quite portray the intricacies of fostering and adoption, it’s is a well-intentioned film that’s worth your time.
