Doin' Time on Planet Earth

From the normal teen who thinks he's abnormal to the point that his exploration of his "strangeness" makes him strange, to the truly strange couple who are convinced he is their leader from another world.

Its a sci-fi, comedy and, though the humor is subtle, it is very enjoyable.

Adam West was in top form as the real leader of the "alien" earthlings, and the nightclub singer was hilarious as he belted out the most ridiculous songs as if they were top ten hits. I think the subtlety of the humor might actually be what attracts me most to it.

Definitely worth watching again and again.

Believe it or not, the script was far better than the finished product. Charlie (Matthau), a nice guy, missed the essence of the story in favor of submitting to some teen formula. I don't know where it went wrong, but it did.

I can say this, though, the people were nicer than on any other production set I have worked. I hope they are all doing well.

I have to disagree with the previous review of this movie; I thought it was okay. I saw it once or twice on cable a few years ago and was amused. The lounge singer, for example, I found to be funny (The "Stop in the name of love" scene was a riot) and the other characters in the movie were equally out there. This is one of those movies you can't take too seriously. I'm not saying it's a great movie, but you have to look at as an off the wall comedy.

It's fairly obvious that this was the director's first film, as it is a bit disorganized and not quite as smoothly put together as it could have been. But it is equally obvious that the director had good intentions, and helped by an imaginative premise (weird, misunderstood kid believes he's an alien), he did make a likably eccentric film after all. At least it's better that the usual Golan-Globus stuff. (**1/2)

Young Nicholas Strouse due to a combination of interesting circumstances learns he might be the leader of an alien race who while they might not have powers and abilities far beyond those of mortal men certainly he and those like him feel they're just Doin' Time on Planet Earth. Is he the one to lead these misfits home?

Well not if it's going to interfere with his big brother Timothy Patrick Murphy's wedding this Saturday to Isabelle Walker, the daughter of Hugh O'Brian who once ran for president. But after Strouse starts getting e-mails from a pair of serious UFO fanatics like Adam West and Candace Azzara, he starts to think there might be something to him really being an alien.

Doin' Time on Planet Earth is a bit above the usual teenage coming of age party film and part of the reason is the incredibly hammy and overacted performance of Adam West who is just having one grand old time leading a band of misfits. The film is worth a look just to see him alone, burlesquing his Batman persona.

Martha Scott is in this, looking a bit lost as to how she got roped into this film. Matt Adler is fine as the perpetually hormonal best friend of Strouse and Andrea Thompson is miles from no-nonsense Detective Jill Kirkendall from NYPD Blue as the lounge entertainer and stripper who fulfills all of what Strouse really needs.

It is sad though that this was the farewell film of Timothy Patrick Murphy, best known for being Mickey Trotter on Dallas, who died way too young of AIDS. That young man had it all, looks, charisma, and a goodly share of thespian ability. He was a particular favorite of mine from the Eighties.

Doin' Time On Planet Earth is far from the worst film of this kind I've ever seen and you might get a few genuine laughs from it.