IMAGINE THAT
Warm family fun with heart, laughs, and a father-daughter choice.
Should You Watch It?
Imagine That is a warm, family-friendly comedy with plenty of laughs and a strong emotional center. Eddie Murphy is terrific, and the story gives a distracted father a meaningful chance to reconnect with his daughter.
The film’s central choice is simple and worthwhile: Evan must decide whether his promotion matters more than Olivia’s choir performance. The magical premise may give some Christian families pause, but the imaginary friends are visible and audible only to Olivia, and the movie leaves open whether they are real or merely strange coincidences. The negative content is limited to light foul language and mild comic violence.
If your family is comfortable with the magical elements, Imagine That is worth the trip for older children and adults.
The Story
NO SPOILERS — WE KEEP THE SURPRISESEvan is a divorced financial executive competing for a promotion while caring for his daughter, Olivia. He is too busy to listen to her until he discovers that her imaginary princess friends may predict the stock market and the fate of financial companies.
As Evan tries to use Olivia’s strange gift at work, he also learns to enter her world of imagination by singing, dancing, being silly, and paying attention. Soon, his professional ambitions collide with Olivia’s school choir performance.
Is It Any Good?
Three stars means this is a good, enjoyable family comedy with some flaws. The movie is big on heart and long on laughs. Eddie Murphy gives a terrific performance, while Thomas Haden Church is hysterical as Evan’s rival.
The film flows well overall, although one plot point is unclear: Evan desperately tries to get the blanket from Olivia, causing his ex-wife to become very angry with him. Even so, the movie’s warmth, humor, and father-daughter relationship carry it.
The Worldview
The film’s strongest moral idea is that a father must value his daughter more than his work. Evan begins as a busy, distracted father, but imagination play helps Olivia open up to him. Their relationship grows stronger, and the story presents that love as more important than professional success.
The movie also includes light praying to God and “the Lord.” Its magical element may trouble some Christian viewers: Olivia’s imaginary friends appear to predict financial events, though no one but Olivia sees or hears them. The film leaves viewers wondering whether they were real princesses or only strange coincidences. It also features a rival who pretends to be Native American and claims that dreams and spirits tell him what clients should do financially; the review describes this as apparently being a phony marketing ploy.
The story’s central longing is for a father and daughter to recover closeness after divorce. Scripture calls fathers to care for their children with patient, purposeful love: “bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord” (Ephesians 6:4).
The Content Guide
The specifics — spoilers included by nature — so you can judge for your own family.
Content Summary
Strong moral worldview wherein a dad decides to value his daughter more than work, with light praying to God and “the Lord,” spoiled by a magical element of daughter’s imaginary friends predicting the future and villain pretends to be a Native American who talks to spirits but it appears to be a phony marketing ploy; two obscenities and six light profanities; light comic violence such as man falls down comically; no sexual content; no nudity; no alcohol use; no smoking; and, lying.
Talk About It
Questions for the drive home, the dinner table, or the youth group.
Evan has to choose between his promotion and Olivia’s choir performance. What does the film show about the difference between being responsible for work and being present for your family?
Ephesians 6:4 · Colossians 3:21Olivia becomes more secure as her relationship with her father grows. How can patient attention help someone feel safe and loved?
1 Corinthians 13:4–7 · Romans 12:10Evan learns to sing, dance, and be silly so he can enter Olivia’s world. When has humility helped you connect with someone else?
Philippians 2:3–4 · Romans 12:16The film leaves open whether Olivia’s imaginary friends are real or the result of coincidence. How should Christians respond when a story uses magic or spiritual language?
1 Thessalonians 5:21–22 · Philippians 4:8The Final Word
Imagine That is a funny, heartwarming family movie about a father learning to value his daughter more than work. Its light language and magical elements deserve a family conversation, but the movie offers little negative content and plenty of heart. For older children and adults, it is WORTH THE TRIP.
