 |  | Not As Bad as Everyone Thinks |  |
I was a big fan of Shandling in the 1980's and especially of "It's Garry Shandling's Show" on Showtime. I have not really kept up with his career, but when I saw "Planet" playing on Cinemax, I had to give it a try. It was nice to see him on screen again.
Though I'm not a fan of romantic comedies by any means, I enjoyed this film. Garry is his usual self and Annette Benning - who I had no opinion whatsoever before - did a fine job. It's a cute film and what I would term a "sophisticated comedy." All actors are good, with the exception of John Goodman.
Even though I forwarded through the sappy parts, I do recommend this film.
September 19, 2008| | | Cute and not even mildly offensive | |
Gary had a late nite show on in the past which I found funny. But I like off kilter, but I didn't get Andy Kaufman, go figure. Gary does the same droney voice schitck in this movie too, but it works. I guess the producers caught Annette Benning between pregnancies and figured her "star power" would draw the crowds. Gary reminds me of that guy that does the "clear eye" commercials, that same droney voice. I guess they both attended the same "droney voice class" at comedy school. Enjoy!
February 3, 2007 | | Oh my goodness what a shocker!! | |
I cannot for the life of me understand why people are giving this film more than 1 star. It is truly one of the worst films I have ever seen! Why a stellar cast such as this would come on board this project is beyond me, and how such a great director (or so I thought) managed to make such a bad film is only explained by the woeful script. It's a stinker. Really. PS - and what's with Garry Shandling? Who thought it was a good idea to cast him in a leading role?
May 19, 2006| | | Remake not as good as original | |
This is a remake of the 1962 movie, Visitor From A Small Planet, starring Jerry Lewis which won Best Film at the Cannes Film Festival. I thought Lewis did a better job as the space alien who is beamed on board a commercial airliner.
January 12, 2006 | | Unique, good-natured and rewatchable | |
You would think given the subject matter that this would movie might come across like some 'Porky's'/'Airplane' movie but instead it's almost like a family comedy with a nicely understated performance by 'Garry Shandling' who I'd never seen in any other movies. A great cast helps with what could have been a awkward looking movie, but with 'John Goodman', 'Ben Kingsley' & 'Annette Benning' all giving perfect-pitch back-up roles you can relax in the knowledge of grade A cast. There are a few slow parts to the movie however. I did find the parts with Greg Kinnear a little long-winded (hence the 4 not 5 score) but overall it zips along at a good pace & it also has a lot of heart, getting almost too saccharine at the end but as in all comedies you know that what goes around comes around and that our hero will eventually get the girl. 'Ben Kingsley' is very funny as the bad guy & 'John Goodman' is on top form as the obsessed inspector. 'Annette Benning' is reliably angelic as the put-upon girlfriend who is strangely understanding of Gary's character's vibrating unmentionable's. I have never watched the 'Gary Shandling' show but was happily surprised by his performance here. The fact that he's obviously not a professional actor actually helps in his performance here & adds a certain authenticity and charm to his alien character. He just doesn't know how to act in this human world & his character actually comes over as quite appealing. This movie is one of those modern movies that has a high re-watch ability factor & reminds me a lot of 'Galaxy-Quest' another over-looked film which is constantly aired & has become like 'Splash' & 'Edward Scissor hands' were in the 80's & 90's on TV. Reliable, good-natured escapist comedy-candy which doesn't leave a sour taste in the mouth.
December 5, 2005More reviews at Amazon.com ...
Daily Birthdays
(37 reviews)