What Planet Are You From?

As an avid action, horror, comedy, and anything non-rom-com fan, I hate the typical Hollywood bull of same old same romantic comedies they are constantly spitting out expecting audiences to appreciate!

But on its release, I was lucky enough to fall upon this little gem of a film from the hilarious Gary Shandling - What Planet are You From?

From the get-go this film is hilarious, with Gary's dead-pan humour and ridiculous faces. Annette Benning is fantastic as is most of the other cast who fit their roles perfectly and look like they are having a blast doing so!

Carrying enough romance without being sickening, the film is almost perfect with constant laugh out loud moments and an over-all feel good achievement by the end of it.

Was great to see it again after so many years and found it even funnier this time around!

I have long been a fan of Gary Shandling ever since his show on Fox. He has a perfect way a delivering the dead pan punch line. Gary is perfectly cast as the emotionless alien who comes to impregnate a woman in order to take over our world. What Planet Are You From has its flaws and arguments could be made for not liking this film. At times it is uneven and not sure what direction it wants to take. Sub plots are left unexplained or ended in a somewhat confusing fashion. All of these distractions are a side note to hilarious writing and stellar acting from a great cast including John Goodman, Greg Kinnear, Linda Fiorentino, and Annette Benning. The jokes are all dead on and Shandling's performance, especially as he develops into the more atypical male stereotype, is brilliant.

Garry Shandling is an unattractive man who looks as if he is suffering from a perpetual state of constipation, and, can you believe it?, he still manages to be enjoyable (and even loveable, of all things) in his latest movie, What Planet Are You From? Despite a clunky title and an unlikely leading man (even Shandling himself seems stunned by the reality of it), this movie manages to just barely pull off a decent performance.

The premise seems much more suited to an hour and a half of repetitive penis jokes (and, in some ways, it gets close to that): Shandling plays Harold Anderson, an alien from a planet inhabited by impotent, super-intelligent men bent on universal domination. Led by a stiff-lipped Ben Kingsley (whose neck seems to have disappeared) this race of uber-men has lost all semblances of emotion, let alone sexuality. In their quest for universal rulership, they have chosen Earth as their next target. Their goal? To impregnate a human woman and begin populating the world with "their kind."

Of the millions of available aliens, Shandling is chosen as their ambassador, and after being fitted with an artificial and somewhat dysfunctional penis (it hums when erect), he travels to Earth in a glowing white ball and immediately begins incorporating the lessons he learned about the delicate art of female seduction. For instance, he has an endless bevy of "nice footwear" and "nice perfume" remarks, including some slang: "Kitty likes to scratch!"

Sounds like a one-hour one-liner, huh?

Fortunately, it's not. It's safe to say the movie would have fallen flat on its alien face if it weren't for the stellar performance of Annette Benning as the one woman who finally falls for the bumbling alien's "charms." She manages to take this ludicrous premise and bring a touching dose of reality to it, giving a normally crass idea a glimmer of merit. She is what diversifies Shandling's occasionally monotonous character, and it is through her eyes that the film sheds its hokiness and becomes a real movie.

Co-stars John Goodman and Greg Kinnear, to their credit, do a great job as well, both of them displaying an untypical amount of restraint. As far-fetched as it seems, it is the undertones and quiet moments in this film that render it watchable. Likewise, those moments are what keep the joke from getting old. Director Mike Nichols (who gave us such gems as Catch-22 and The Graduate) has combined the quiet soul of his Regarding Henry with the flamboyant ditziness of his The Birdcage to come up with something truly remarkable: a Garry Shandling movie that works.

It certainly has its flaws, like most flicks, and many times the plot seems to stop and start just like Harold's malfunctioning member. However, although the jokes reach levels the man from Nantucket would be proud of, they mostly act as reminders that, no matter how much we poke fun at sex and marriage, most of the jokes are true. What Planet Are You From? has its out-there moments, but it still hits close to home.

This movie didn't do very well at the box office and I don't know why it has to be one of the funniest movies I have ever seen. Gary Shandling has never been better as an alien sent to Earth to have sex with a female and bring the child back to his home planet. But while on Earth Shandling runs into all sorts of problems. One of the more funny happenings in the film is that whenever stimulated his penis generates a humming noise. John Goodman is also hilarious as the man trying to find the alien. It is very entertaining to watch Sandling who comes to Earth as a horney alien turn into a slob of a man after he is married to Anette Benning, maybe this movie could be much more accurate than we give it credit. So although it is no Snatch or Made if you are looking for something less gross out than American Pie but still craving those masculine sex jokes this movie is sure not to dissapoint.

The new film from director Mike Nichols who did such classics as THE GRADUATE, and WORKING GIRL. Now his newest film is a sort of a different pace for him, it's still a comedy but it has science fiction mixed in with it. Nichols newest film is is WHAT PLANET ARE YOU FROM? This is a intresting sort of film since it mixes AMERICAN PIE with MEN IN BLACK. PLANET is about a alien from a planet far away, where there are only men. The leader, (Ben Kingsley)decides that it's time to start breeding and to begin taking over Earth. A alien is chosen, and it's Harold (Garry Shandling), who goes to Earth to help the future of his planet. Harold arrives in Phoenix to find his lucky future mate. He meets a slimy and cold co-worker (Greg Kinnear)who gives Harold tips on how to meet, "one night stand" women. When they go to a alcholic annonymous meeting, Harold meets a woman who he feels fits his profile (Annette Bening). But Harold then discovers what it's really like to live on Earth, and what Earth women are really like. Meanwhile, a Federal Avation Agent (John Goodman) is tracking down the mysterous "jolts" with the airplanes that Harold caused. I did enjoy this film for so many reasons. 1.) It was filmed in Phoenix, (where I live) and it was fun spotting the locations on where they shot the film. 2.) The acting by everyone is good. Garry Shandling does a great job playing the lead. At times he is really give a convincing performance by acting weird, like a alien would. Anette Bening (playing a real estate agent again) is also great, giving a good performance. And I also enjoyed John Goodman as the agent determine to pursade the unwelcome guest. 3.) The cinematography by Michael Ballius and production design by Bo Welch was great, since they also both worked on MEN IN BLACK. 4.) The jokes are very dry in this film, yet they do work and succeed. At times they can be cruel, but they are funny. and 5.) Believe it or not, the film does have a heart in it, which does make it meanningful. For a "screwball" style comedy with very good sets and special effects, PLANET succeeds. However, at time the story does get disjointed and some actors appear and disappear, when you would like to see more of them. But overall, it is entertaining and funny. I don't think teens would enjoy it, but the older adults will giggle as they see the poor reproductive

organ that Shandling's character has. This is a funny film, and I do suggest to catch it when one gets the chance. It's not a classic, but it is very enjoyable. **** (out of five)