Unexpectedly Humourless. Playdate (2025) || Movie Review

I've been enjoying the ongoing Reacher TV series and it's currently in its third season. I admire the lead actor, Alan Ritchson, hence why I came across this action comedy and decided to give it a watch.

I’ve watched my fair share of action comedies and love them because they are opposites but somehow complement each other. Action is intense, action-packed, and adrenaline pumping. It's all fights, car chases, guns blazing. Comedy, on the other hand, is fun and relieving. When it is mixed into action scenes, it balances the chaos and makes the movie enjoyable.

However, seeing Alan Ritchson doing his thing in Playdate (2025) has me doing a double take and checking if I'm being punked or the film producers are messing with me. First, I'll give you a synopsis and go into why this actor shouldn't have participated in this movie.

This movie is about two awkward, skeptical dads and their sons. Brian (Kevin James) recently lost his job while trying to bond with his stepson, Lucas. He takes over child duties from his wife and promises to ‘coach’ Lucas who was being bullied by his school mates. Then Father and stepson meet Jeff (Alan Ritchson) who is struggling to get through to the stoic boy, CJ, in his care.

It turns out some mercenaries are after Jeff and CJ, putting Brian and Lucas in the middle of an unwanted and dangerous situation. Over the course of the fights and car chases, they grow closer while Jeff and Brian confide in each other about whether they are failing in their duties as fathers. Jeff tries to protect CJ and Brian is left wondering why the mercenaries are after them. Who is CJ and why do the mercenaries want him?

My Review And Rating

In my opinion, Playdate is a goofy and ridiculously silly action comedy. The filmmakers try to inject some humour into an intense situation involving fatherhood, clones and genetics but end up making the actors look silly. The lead actors, Alan Ritchson and Kevin James, are well known in the film industry and have played respectable roles. It’s weird to watch them act silly and try to be funny, all to entertain the audience. I feel insulted and kind of embarrassed for them.

It's my take that not much thought was put into making this movie and how the acting would affect the audience. The plot and storytelling are interesting, and keep you intrigued about how everything will turn out. But the acting? I'll say it's four out of ten.

Alan Ritchson is not built for goofy comedy movies like this. Also, Kevin James has acted in few action comedies but not ones where he would be required to act silly like this movie. At some point, it became obvious he was bored but pushed through the scenes. I believe that's the reason these two lead actors appeared out of place in Playdate. It's like forcing square pegs into round holes. This was not simply not the film for them!

This movie touched on themes like fatherhood—the impression that men have no idea how to care for children—and genetic engineering involving cloning, and whether or not the cloned subject are sentient. I enjoyed how these themes played out, especially the scene where Alan Ritchson tries to convince a clone of his younger self that he loved him. It was real and emotional, sending the message that every child, regardless of age, would always want a cordial relationship with their father.

The parts I didn't like was where Lucas was being bullied in school to toughen him up. Kids can be allowed to be themselves in a learning environment without the assault or insult from their fellow students. I also wasn't comfortable with the profanity and violence displayed in a movie featuring preteens.

The matter of cloning without Jeff's consent is just downright disrespectful and criminal, and I'm glad Colonel Kurtz got his just dessert at the end.

Rating this movie, I will give it 3 out of 10 stars. Playdate (2025) should have been exciting but turned out boring and humourless. Not even Alan Ritchson's acting and charisma could make this poorly done movie better. I wish he didn't act in this movie but still, I love him in the ongoing series and other movies. Did you enjoy this movie or found it boring as well?