Movie Review: ‘The Breadwinner’

NEW YORK (OSV News) – Nate Bargatze, best known for his stand-up work, co-wrote and stars in the domestic comedy “The Breadwinner” (Sony). Although mostly wholesome, the film is also, unfortunately, sorely lacking in laughs.

Bargatze plays Nashville, Tennessee, car salesman Nate Wilcox. While he constantly outperforms his co-workers on the showroom floor, Nate is content to leave his family’s home life to the supervision of his highly organized wife, Katie (Mandy Moore).

Katie is so focused on efficiency, in fact, that she has invented a device to remind kids of their various chores and tasks for the day. In order to give Katie a shot at developing and marketing her invention, Nate agrees — rashly, as it turns out — to become, temporarily, a stay-at-home dad.

Predictably, a series of misadventures follows. Nate soon realizes that keeping the household in order and caring for their three daughters — Gracie (Stella Grace Fitzgerald), Hadley (Birdie Borria) and Sam (Charlotte Ann Tucker) — is far harder than Katie makes it look and that it may, ultimately, prove too much for him.

As penned in collaboration with Dan Lagana, director Eric Appel’s film showcases the strong bonds among the members of Nate’s clan and almost never strays out of tasteful bounds, making it suitable for all but the smallest. The humor on offer, however, consistently falls flat.

The film contains a few mild oaths and at least one vaguely sexual joke. The OSV News classification is A-II — adults and adolescents. The Motion Picture Association rating is PG — parental guidance suggested. Some material may not be suitable for children.

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