Teri Garr, Jon Lovitz, Jeffrey Jones
Inane, dull, insipidly written and irretrievably juvenile enough to qualify as a middle-aged Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure, this comedy is noteworthy only as an informal meeting of the Most Misused Actor Club.
Directed with no hint of inspiration by Greg (License to Drive) Beeman, the film has Garr, the thinking man's Goldie Hawn, and Jones, the American John Cleese, as a suburban Los Angeles couple who are abducted to a planet ruled by Lovitz, the masterfully sarcastic Saturday Night Live alum.
As Lovitz lusts after her, Garr maintains her sunny appeal, never seeming ditzy even when she's chatting with the planet's talking animals. Jones keeps his dignity despite having to utter a "take me to your leader" line. In bit parts, Wallace Shawn, who fits right into the undercasting theme, and Eric Idle, another charter member of the club, also muster a chuckle or two.
There are a few offhand swipes at middle-class life (such as Garr's compulsive snapshot taking), but there's no serious attempt at pointed comedy. If this movie succeeds in inspiring a few people to take another look at Mel Brooks's Spaceballs, it will have accomplished something. On its own, it's not too much more interesting than a blank screen. (PG-13)
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