I watched The Pacifier for the first time since seeing it in the theatre back in 2005 last weekend and it is one of those movies that was way worse than I remember it being! I was cruising Disney Plus looking for something to watch, I wanted something light, and fun and then The Pacifier popped up and I remember thinking it was fun.
How to Download The Pacifier
The Pacifier was released on March 4, 2005. You can download or stream the film from a digital platform. Click on the Download button at the end of this review and make your choice.
The Movie Review
Vin Diesel’s Foray into Family Comedy
At the time this came out, Vin Diesel was a legit top-tier action star with the likes of Riddick, The Fast and the Furious and XXX to his name. I thought it would be fun to see Vin Diesel in a family comedy. After all, Arnold had done it with great success and I was sure that Vin Diesel could pull it off.
Plot Overview and Character Dynamics
I would not say that The Pacifier is bad, but it certainly is not great. Vin Diesel plays the role of Shane Wolfe. Shane is a Navy Seal and on a mission, a man called Howard Plummer who was working on something top secret is killed and he is injured. This is basically the setup for the whole movie.
What Howard was working on was very important so his wife, Julie, has to head to Europe to get something out of a safe deposit box. One Navy Seal is going to go to Europe with Julie to protect her. That means Shane has to stay with the Plummer kids, which consist of five of them, and look after them to make sure they are safe. He is also tasked with finding something called GHOST which is a top-secret project Howard was working on.
The Comedy and Predictability of The Pacifier
The Pacifier is about as predictable as you can get. Cue lots of scenes where Vin Diesel tries to whip the kids into shape, only to learn a thing or two from them. From teaching the little girl to fight so she can protect herself and her fellow Girl Scouts to helping change the baby and care for the family duck.
Memorable Moments and Missed Opportunities
There are a few funny slapstick moments here and there, but it is going to make you smile or at the very most chuckle. The stuff with Shane and the eldest child, teenager Zoe (played by Brittany Snow) is the best here as the two bond over their fathers. I never really bought any of the other stuff from the wrestling at school to him becoming this ultimate badass nanny.
Again, it is not a bad movie by any means, but you just feel like you have seen this before and you know what is going to come next. Even the big “twist” that comes towards the end and Shane has to use his skills and get help from the Plummer family is something you see coming a mile away.
Final Thoughts on The Pacifier
The only scene that made me laugh was when Shane gets his ear bit by the family goose, duck, or whatever the hell that thing was and that scene was in the trailer! I do not think that this is garbage, but I could happily go the rest of my life without ever watching it again. Even as a family movie to watch with the kids, I would rather watch something like Kindergarten Cop or even something like Race to Witch Mountain if I wanted a family action movie.
