Imagine That

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2:25

Imagine That

PG

Released Jun 12, 2009

1h 47m

Kids & Family

Comedy

Fantasy

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

41%

Tomatometer

117 Reviews

40%

Popcornmeter

250,000+ Ratings

Like many busy professionals, Evan Danielson (Eddie Murphy) is so focused on his career that quality time with his young daughter, Olivia (Yara Shahidi), has fallen by the wayside. When an important promotion is suddenly within reach, stressed-out Evan starts to fall apart while trying to fend off his company rival (Thomas Haden Church). But when little Olivia introduces him to the inhabitants of her imaginary land, Evan rediscovers his inner child and finds the answers to all his problems.

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Critics Consensus

Despite a promising turn by newcomer Yara Shahidi, Imagine That is another pedestrian family comedy that squanders Eddie Murphy's comedic talents.

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Jake Wilson

The Age (Australia)

Murphy struggles to find work in other genres, but given the way he indulges himself with funny faces and voices, it's equally possible that he genuinely likes acting alongside children.

Rated: 2/5

Sep 17, 2009

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London Evening Standard

It's anodyne stuff and not funny enough.

Aug 17, 2009

Full Review

Chris Hewitt (UK)

Empire Magazine

Imagine That is a sweet surprise of a film that goes some way to restoring Murphy's reputation.

Rated: 3/5

Aug 14, 2009

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Mike Massie

Gone With The Twins

A family-friendly movie that presents equal doses of immaturity and seriousness, making the event more evenly entertaining than one might expect.

Rated: 6/10

Nov 28, 2020

Full Review

Richard Propes

TheIndependentCritic.com

While Shahidi shines, the rest of the cast of Imagine That falls woefully short.

Rated: 2.0/4.0

Sep 11, 2020

Full Review

Brandy McDonnell

The Oklahoman

A disappointment is that the film eventually veers into predictable territory...but along the way, Murphy and the sparkling Shahidi develop wonderful chemistry, Church gamely steals the show, and the film's star sings, dances and even freaks out.

Rated: 2.5/4

Aug 8, 2018

Full Review

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Stephen C

A failed family comedy movie in 1 hour and 47 minutes!!!!!!! Eddie Murphy would be shocked!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars

05/28/25

Full Review

EllaJo r

He's the best, I'm glad he's starting to make more movies

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/22/24

Full Review

Suprateek A

I was having a tough day and I needed something to cheer me up so I went with Eddie Murphy. This film was really heartwarming and I had a lot of fun while watching it! I love Eddie Murphy and I loved him in this film! His chemistry with his daughter in the film is just really amazing and I would call it the best part of the film. I honestly didn't expect to laugh this much while watching this movie, I just laugh at anything and Murphy's humor is just on point and I had a lot of fun. This was a really great heart warming movie and it did it's job well in my opinion. As much as I enjoyed the film it felt like it was still lacking something which I am unable to figure out and Thomas Hayden's character was pretty underwhelming and could've been written in a better way. I went through the reviews of the film and I was kind of shocked because I didn't expect that negativity and to be honest it isn't that bad and I don't think this film deserves that amount of hatred. I won't say that you have to put your brain aside to enjoy it because that would be an insult to it's writing , but you can watch it to just have fun and relax. Overall I would say it's a fun film and I thoroughly enjoyed it irrespective of what people had to say about it.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

09/01/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Maybe I just don't have any imagination but this was horrible. I kept thinking to myself that this was going to go somewhere that maybe they would actually visualize the imagination on the screen but it never happens. It seems like a very overtold story it happens in a lot of family movies about a parent trying to reconnect with a child. It had some moments that were okay but it irritated me enough to want to log into rotten tomatoes and write a review and I don't come here often

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

01/16/23

Full Review

Audience Member

This is the worst Eddie Murphy movie I've ever seen. So boring (I lost count of how many times I fell asleep trying to watch it) and just plain stupid (Imaginary friends know his job better than he does? Um, okay....) . I can think of a million ways that it could have been better-starting with a better leading man, a better plot, some humor, etc, etc....

Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars

02/01/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Terrible Eddie Murphy kids movie.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

02/19/23

Full Review

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Karey Kirkpatrick

Director

Eddie Murphy

Evan Danielson

Thomas Haden Church

Johnny Whitefeather

Yara Shahidi

Olivia Danielson

Nicole Ari Parker

Trish

Ronny Cox

Tom Stevens

Imagine That: Official Clip - Finding the Goo-Gah

2:12

Imagine That: Official Clip - You've Got the Eyes of a Salamander

1:58

Imagine That: Official Clip - Really Burnt Pancakes

2:14

Imagine That: Official Clip - I Need You to Caw With Me

2:11

Imagine That: Official Clip - The Man Whisperer

1:13

Imagine That: Official Clip - Imaginary Playtime

2:11

Imagine That: Official Clip - The Dream Sparrow

2:06

Imagine That: Official Clip - Can't You Hear the Music?

2:12

Imagine That: Official Clip - Rip it Off, Like a Band-Aid

2:03

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Imagine That: Trailer 1

2:25

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Synopsis

Like many busy professionals, Evan Danielson (Eddie Murphy) is so focused on his career that quality time with his young daughter, Olivia (Yara Shahidi), has fallen by the wayside. When an important promotion is suddenly within reach, stressed-out Evan starts to fall apart while trying to fend off his company rival (Thomas Haden Church). But when little Olivia introduces him to the inhabitants of her imaginary land, Evan rediscovers his inner child and finds the answers to all his problems.

Director: Karey Kirkpatrick
Producer: Lorenzo di Bonaventura, Ed Solomon
Screenwriter: Ed Solomon, Chris Matheson
Distributor: Paramount Pictures
Production Co: Di Bonaventura Pictures
Rating: PG (Some Mild Language|Brief Questionable Behavior)
Genre: Kids & Family, Comedy, Fantasy
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Jun 12, 2009, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Jun 15, 2011
Box Office (Gross USA): $16.1M
Runtime: 1h 47m

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