Lead Cast: Eddie Murphy, Elizabeth Banks, Gabrielle Union, Ed Helms, Austin Lynd Myers, Scott Caan, Director: Brian Robbins; Screenplay: Bill Corbett, Rob Greenberg; Cinematography: J. Clark Mathis; Editing: Ned Bastille; Producer: Jon Berg, David T. Friendly, Todd Komarnicki; Music: John Debney; Location: New York; Genre: Family - Comedy; Distributor: 20th Century Fox; Running Time: 90 minutes.
Technical Assessment: 2.5
Moral Assessment: 3
Cinema Rating: V-13
Dave Ming Chang (Eddie Murphy) is a human-shaped alien spaceship from the planet Nil which crashes in Manhattan three months after the “orb” falls on earth. Apparently, the Nils, a Lilliputian race, has sent a team to the planet to retrieve and activate the orb to suck the ocean’s energy and save their dwindling power supply. The commanding team operates Dave from the inside with the captain (Eddie Murphy) functioning as the brains and voice of the space ship. However, the team, including power-thirsty No. 2 (Ed Helms), sweet natured cultural officer No. 3 (Gabrielle Union) and the rest of the crew know nothing about the planet and its inhabitants and try their best to make their human-like space craft fit in. The captain decides to befriend a young boy Josh (Austin Lind Myers) and hang time with him and his newly widowed mom, Gina (Elizabeth Banks). Slowly, the team learns certain human qualities which begin to change their views on life and relationships. However, No. 2 is disgusted that they are getting sidetracked from their mission and organizes a coup. Meanwhile, New York police officers Dooley (Scott Caan) and Knox (Mike O’Malley) are sent out to investigate Dave’s the crash site by the Statue of Liberty. Dooley suspects aliens have landed on earth and start a witch hunt for Dave.
The movie has a potentially good plot but the humor is flat and dull. Most of the comedy comes from Dave trying to blend with the earthling; unfortunately, Murphy is either out of timing or overacting, which either way makes him only look ridiculous. The rest of the actors provide exaggerated performance and histrionics that reduce them to caricatures. The CGIs are disappointing and slightly better than those used in a 70s TV sci-fi show. The screenplay lacks strength and charm expected of a Murphy comedy. Over-all, the production is passable but as die-hard Murphy fans in the theater prove, the movie can be funny despite a mediocre script and poor directing.
While Meet Dave takes digs at earthlings’ lack of discipline (ignoring traffic signals, for instance), it imparts one valuable lesson: being less than average physically does not determine one’s worth as a person. Great things can be done even by the least popular, most deprived, or most disadvantaged as long as one’s integrity is intact. One’s worth is not measured by the size of his physical or material assets but by the greatness of his heart. Dave reminds Josh that his being small and his being different does not make him less of a person because he has saved two worlds out of the generosity of his spirit.
The movie is almost wholesome and decent save for some mild and minor profanities and coarse humor and scenes. Parents should be cautioned to accompany and guide their very young children when watching the movie.
