Die Coneheads

Beldar and Prymat Conehead (Dan Aykroyd and Jane Curtain) land in Michigan after crashing in a river. They suddenly are trapped there and try to manage to live through it. What I liked is that they look funny and have funny ways of thinking what things are. Although, you might already realize they come from outer space and they don't look like humans look. The big thing I really didn't like is that some of the jokes are for those who have watched the skits for Coneheads on Saturday Night Live. The Coneheads have a baby later on named Connie (Michelle Burke) who has a boyfriend named Ronnie (Chris Farley).

The fact that this is a good film AND it was done by ex-SNL actors help this movie to really stand out for me. Dan Aykroyd is terrific as Beldar and it shows that he CAN do a decent film (and he's done some stinkers--Neighbors, 1941, Nothing But Trouble, Dr. Detroit).

As I said above, I haven't been that impressed by many of the films by ex-SNL cast members--especially when they are movie-length versions of SNL skits. However, this movie expands on the characters and has great heart. In other words, despite the humor, the lead characters come off as sympathetic and decent. If the characters had been just like they were in the skits, the movie would have fallen flat on its face. Instead, we are treated to many instances when the Coneheads try so hard to fit in and be the average American family. It's also quite amusing that almost no one seems to notice that they AREN'T! There are many SNL-related cameos and supporting players throughout the movie and they are pretty well integrated (i.e., they usually don't seem like tacked on cameos but fit within the plot). Also, although I generally hate David Spade, his annoying personality fits in perfectly with the character he plays.

This is a good film for the whole family. It's cute, funny and actually has amazingly good family values!

Beldar (Aykroyd) & Prymaat (Curtin) Conehead are two aliens who come from the planet Remulak their ship has crash landed on earth and have no way to return home. Forced to enjoy human society they try to get used to their new surroundings but are soon on the run from immigration officers Seedling (Mckean) & Turnbull (Spade), months later Prymaat gives birth to a beautiful baby girl whom they name Connie . 18 years later Connie (Burke) is pretty young woman who is always at ends with her parental units she falls head over heels in love with Ronnie (Farley) a local mechanic and neighborhood boy who admits to never have dated a girl taller than him before. Coneheads is a great family comedy with tons of laughs from start to finish , Chris Farley 29, & Michelle Burke 23, play the star crossed teenage couple with humor and warmth 8/10 Stars

The Coneheads did not open to overly positive ratings, and it's not surprising it didn't. The plot is contrived...in fact there barely even is a plot. The whole point of the movie seems to be to make an old sketch funny and hip again, and bring together 18 years of Saturday Night Live members under one roof, and actually it succeeds at both. Beldar and Pyrmatt Conehead were funnier here than they ever were on the SNL sketches, and cast members from all the years appear including all the surviving original cast members (minus Chevy Chase).

Beldar (Dan Aykroyd) and Pyrmatt (Jane Curtain) are coneheaded aliens accidentally stranded on Earth. This movie goes through their everyday lives, the birth of their daughter, Connie (Not played by Larraine Newman this time), and their trying to avoid being deported by the INS. Though this film is plot less, that's not actually a bad thing. Because of it's plot less-ness, every ex-SNL member that could be found seemed to have a role in this playing random characters. The jokes are coming at a rapid pace, so even if some don't work, a minute later another one will come to make up for it. Aykroyd and Curtain were actually great together and had quite a bit of chemistry.

This is a fun movie, and for any Saturday Night Live fan, this will be great. For anyone else, this may be a mixed bag.

My rating: *** out of ****. 88 mins. PG for language, nudity and sexual humor.

I could say, you had to be there. Or you just aren't old enough to understand. The bottom line? Sometimes it is nice to just sit back, suspend your disbelief and enjoy without having to analyze why it works or doesn't work. This falls back to a time when crude and rude was still in its infancy. Light for the day, it is still lots of fun. The punch lines are subtle and innuendo a bit advance for the punch and Judy crowd that is looking for the "Down with society" commentary that seems to fill the comedy of today. The Coneheads are classic Old School SNL. I like a story where the good guy wins, albeit the good guys in this case are Aliens. If you like Bob Hope, Jerry Lewis, or Danny Kay. Then you will probably like this movie. If you are the Dumb and Dumber crowd this will probably be a disappointment. So, suspend your disbeliefe and just enjoy it for what it is. A funny movie with a lot of "good" laughs.