My Stepmother Is an Alien

Last updated

My Stepmother Is an Alien
My stepmother is an alien.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed by Richard Benjamin
Written by
Based onOriginal screenplay
by Jericho Stone
Produced by
Starring
Cinematography Richard H. Kline
Edited by Jacqueline Cambas
Music by Alan Silvestri
Production
company
Distributed by Columbia Pictures
Release date
  • December 9, 1988 (1988-12-09) [2]
Running time
108 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$19 million [3]
Box office$13.8 million [4]

My Stepmother Is an Alien is a 1988 American science fiction comedy film directed by Richard Benjamin. It stars Dan Aykroyd, Kim Basinger, Jon Lovitz, and Alyson Hannigan. The film follows the story of Celeste, an extraterrestrial woman who is sent on a secret mission to Earth, after her home planet's gravity is mistakenly disrupted by Steven Mills, a widowed scientist raising his daughter Jessie as a single father. The film was the film debut of Juliette Lewis.

Contents

The screenplay was written by Herschel Weingrod, Timothy Harris, and Jonathan Reynolds, based on an earlier script by Jericho Stone. Stone had originally pitched the film to Paramount Pictures as a drama that would serve as an allegory for child abuse. When Paramount optioned the story, they suggested that it would be more believable as a comedy. [5] [2] The film was unproduced for four years until Weintraub Entertainment Group put it into production in 1988.

My Stepmother Is an Alien was a box-office bomb, grossing only $13.8 million against a $19 million budget. The film also received negative reviews from critics, with most of the responses panning the film's humor and screenplay. Basinger and costar Lovitz received generally favorable reviews for their comedic performances, but in a New York Times review, Aykroyd was singled out for criticism for his performance as a romantic lead.

Plot

Steven Mills is a widowed scientist working on different ways to send radio waves into deep space. After he sends a radio wave out of the galaxy, it hits a planet (Cosine N to the 8th), causing a disruption of gravity on the planet. Celeste is sent to investigate who could have done it and how it was done, believing it was an attack. She is aided by a device called Bag: an alien tentacle with a single eye and a mind of its own disguised as a designer purse. Bag is able to create any object, such as diamonds and designer dresses, almost instantaneously. Celeste crashes a party hosted by Steven's brother, Ron, and immediately draws attention to herself by making outdated references to TV shows and political slogans under the mistaken belief that they are current (information that had actually taken 92 years to get from Earth to her home world).

Celeste's inexperience almost results in her exposing herself as alien as she struggles with simple tasks such as cooking and trying to kiss for the first time. She goes home with Steven and spends the night (after Bag teaches her what sex is, which she greatly enjoys to the extent that fireworks appear above her during the experience). Jessie, Steven's 13-year-old daughter, is at first happy that her father has found someone (her mother having died five years previously) but becomes suspicious when she observes Celeste eating the acid out of batteries and pulling eggs out of boiling hot water with her bare hands. She unsuccessfully tries to convince her smitten father that something is unusual about Celeste. When Celeste tells him that she must leave in 24 hours, he impulsively proposes and she accepts. Ron also has his doubts about Celeste and tries to dissuade Steven from marrying her on the idea she is an illegal immigrant or planning economic espionage, but then admits he is just jealous his brother has found his dream girl, whereas he will never find a girl like Princess Stéphanie of Monaco.

Celeste begins enjoying life as a human as she encounters new experiences such as sneezing and love. When Jessie finally confronts her about being an extraterrestrial, Celeste admits her home world has no emotion and that she plans to depart once she gets Steven to recreate the radio signal and send it (which she says will reverse the gravity problems on her world). That said, she begins to question her decisions when Jessie says it will devastate her father for whom Celeste has now developed feelings. After Jessie argues with Steven, she runs away and is nearly hit by a car but is saved by Celeste, who reveals her powers in the process. Steven accepts that Celeste is indeed an alien and that she has fallen in love with him and sees Jessie as her daughter. He further ingratiates her to human society by showing her how to eat real food.

Steven figures out how to recreate the radio wave and saves Celeste's planet. Bag, however, had been sent to Earth to destroy it and eliminate the danger to Celeste's world entirely. After throwing Bag into the power field of the wave transmitter (destroying Bag), the leaders of Celeste's home world report in and tell her to finish Bag's job. Steven and Celeste manage to convince them it was an accident, not an act of aggression, and that Earth has many benefits that require further studying. They accept the explanation and demand that Celeste return to explain human culture to them. Not wanting to leave, Celeste negotiates having a native of Earth become an ambassador to their world as a token of goodwill. Ron is selected and accepts; he departs for Celeste's world in a spaceship served by several flight attendants, all of whom look like Princess Stéphanie (who are enchanted by Ron's classic car, which he takes with him).

Cast

Production

Development and writing

Screenwriter Jericho Stone developed the story under the working title They’re Coming as a drama, an allegory about child abuse. He pitched this version of the story to Paramount Pictures in 1981. Paramount agreed to option the story and paid him to write the screenplay, but felt it would be more believable as a comedy. [5] [2] On June 20, 1984, Variety reported that Catalina Production Group was planning to start principal photography on They're Coming in late 1984 for Paramount, naming the screenwriters as Stone and Richard Benner; actresses considered for the lead by Paramount included Bette Midler, Shelley Long, Julie Andrews and Raquel Welch. [2] Subsequently, the production moved to 20th Century Fox, which hired Herschel Weingrod and Timothy Harris to rewrite the screenplay. Fox considered Cybill Shepherd and Joan Rivers for the role, but ultimately never produced the film, and it went into turnaround to Weintraub Entertainment Group, where the title was changed to Two Kids. [2]

Director Richard Benjamin read an unfinished version of the screenplay in the early 1980s, but did not become interested in the project until reading a completed draft he received via Weintraub in 1987, and agreed to direct. [2] From Benjamin's recollection, Stone's original screenplay resembled a horror film. [6] By 1988, the screenplay had received further rewriting by Jonathan Reynolds. Stone was ultimately credited only for the story, under his first name, Jericho. [2] The film went into principal photography on February 29, 1988, and wrapped in May of that year; the total cost of production and marketing was reported as $26 million, with $19 million representing the production costs. [3] [2] Some scenes were filmed at Van Nuys High School and Anaheim Stadium. [7]

Don Correia served as the choreographer for My Stepmother Is an Alien. Micaela Esdra dubbed for Kim Basinger in Italian while Choi Seong-woo dubbed for Basinger for South Korean audiences.

Music

The soundtrack album was released by Polydor Records.

  1. Room to Move - Animotion (4:12)
  2. Not Just Another Girl - Ivan Neville (4:05)
  3. Be the One - Jackie Jackson (4:15)
  4. I Like the World - Cameo (6:11)
  5. One Good Lover - Siren (3:51)
  6. Hot Wives - Dan Aykroyd (2:53)
  7. Pump Up the Volume - M.A.R.R.S. (4:06)
  8. Enjoy - Alan Silvestri (2:54)
  9. The Klystron - Alan Silvestri (5:33)
  10. The Celeste - Alan Silvestri (4:56)
  11. Kiss - Art of Noise feat. Tom Jones (3:30)

Dan Aykroyd and Kim Basinger performed impressions of Jimmy Durante from The Man Who Came to Dinner singing "Did You Ever Have the Feeling" in My Stepmother Is an Alien. [2]

Release

A July press release for the film stated that My Stepmother Is An Alien would be released on November 23, 1988, but it was later pushed to December 9. [2] The film premiered on December 3, 1988, in Washington, D.C., an event attended by stars Aykroyd and Basinger, as well as President George H. W. Bush, [8] future First Lady Barbara Bush and Vice President-elect Dan Quayle. [2] Upon general release, Mayor of Los Angeles Tom Bradley declared December 9 "Stepmother Day", to honor the "importance, dedication, and contribution of stepmothers everywhere", and an appreciation of the film shooting in Los Angeles. [2]

Reception

Box office

The film opened at number seven, grossing $2,066,980 in the opening weekend. It went on to gross $13,854,000 in the United States, [4] becoming a box-office failure. [3]

Critical response

Kim Basinger (2105860771) crop.JPG
JonLovitz08.jpg
Although My Stepmother Is an Alien received negative reviews, Kim Basinger (left) and Jon Lovitz (right) were praised for their performances in the film.

The film was met with negative reviews. [2] Roger Ebert wrote, "Basinger gets most of the good comic moments in the movie and does with them what she can, but Benjamin and his writers seem to have run short of invention. Most of the plot developments are foregone conclusions, and most of the big set pieces (like a wedding) are handled routinely, without inspiration." [9] Janet Maslin, reviewing the film for The New York Times , panned the film's screenplay and humor, as well as the performance of Dan Aykroyd, who she felt was not only miscast as the film's romantic lead, but also unfunny. However, Maslin praised the performances of Kim Basinger and Jon Lovitz, whose character she categorized as a "scene-stealing sleazeball". [10]

In a generally favorable review, Kevin Thomas of the Los Angeles Times criticized the film's sex humor, calling it "needlessly crass", but overall praised the film, writing, "My Stepmother Is an Alien is solid, wide-appeal holiday fare. It makes the best use of Aykroyd's warmth and proven talents in quite some time, and it does even more for Basinger, showing that she can be as funny and smart as she is sexy." [11] The Radio Times gave the film three out of five stars, writing, "Fine moments of inspired lunacy jostle with predictably slight comic relief, but Basinger's eager-to-please freshness and verve make this intergalactic muddle impossible to dislike." [12]

Variety called the film a "failed attempt to mix many of the film genres associated with the 'alien' idea into a sprightly romp." [13] TV Guide gave the film one star, calling it "A standard formula comedy [which] tries to emulate popular alien-on-Earth films like Starman . Had it actually been told from the perspective of the scientist's daughter, as the title suggests, it might have been more appealing, but instead a predictable, amateurish script shifts the focus elsewhere." [14] Writing in People , Peter Travers said that director Richard Benjamin "tries to disguise the threadbare plot with explosions and special-effects hardware", and called the film "a clanking bore, except for Basinger—a potential star still waiting for the vehicle that will let her shine. Her comic talent glimmers in a scene where she learns what a kiss is." [15] Time Out wrote, "The film offers several entertaining sequences, [but My Stepmother Is an Alien] is marred by cruel and juvenile gags." [16]

On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a score of 20% based on reviews from 25 critics, with an average rating of 4/10. The consensus states: "Kim Basinger is otherworldly funny in this harebrained sci-fi rom com, but she still can't save My Stepmother Is an Alien from alienating intelligent earthlings." [17] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 47 out of 100 based on 14 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". [18] Audiences surveyed by CinemaScore gave the film a grade "B−" on scale of A to F. [19]

Namesake

A South Korean branch of Baskin-Robbins released an ice cream flavor called "Mom is an alien" named after the movie. [20] [21]

See also

Related Research Articles

<i>Waynes World 2</i> 1993 film by Stephen Surjik

Wayne's World 2 is a 1993 American comedy film directed by Stephen Surjik and starring Mike Myers and Dana Carvey as hosts of a public-access television cable television show in Aurora, Illinois. The film is the sequel to Wayne's World (1992), which was itself adapted from a sketch on NBC's Saturday Night Live.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kim Basinger</span> American actress (born 1953)

Kimila Ann Basinger is an American actress. She has garnered acclaim for her work in film, for which she has received various accolades including an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award, and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Initially a TV starlet, she shot to fame as a Bond girl in 1983 and enjoyed a long heyday over the next two decades. In 2011 Los Angeles Times Magazine ranked her third on the "50 Most Beautiful Women In Film".

<i>War of the Worlds</i> (2005 film) 2005 American film by Steven Spielberg

War of the Worlds is a 2005 American science fiction action-thriller film directed by Steven Spielberg and written by Josh Friedman and David Koepp, loosely based on H. G. Wells' 1898 novel, The War of the Worlds. Tom Cruise stars in the main role alongside Dakota Fanning, Miranda Otto, and Tim Robbins, with narration by Morgan Freeman. It follows an American dock worker who must look after his children, from whom he lives separately, as he struggles to protect them and reunite them with their mother when extraterrestrials invade Earth and devastate cities with giant war machines.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ann Prentiss</span> American actress (1939–2010)

Ann Prentiss was an American actress.

<i>Cool World</i> 1992 American film by Ralph Bakshi

Cool World is a 1992 American live-action/adult animated fantasy film directed by Ralph Bakshi and written by Michael Grais and Mark Victor. Starring Kim Basinger, Gabriel Byrne and Brad Pitt, it tells the story of a cartoonist who finds himself in the cartoon-like universe he thinks he created, but has existed long before. In this world, he is seduced by one of the characters, a femme fatale who wants to become human.

<i>My Girl</i> (film) 1991 film by Howard Zieff

My Girl is a 1991 American coming-of-age romantic comedy-drama film directed by Howard Zieff, written by Laurice Elehwany, and starring Dan Aykroyd, Jamie Lee Curtis, Macaulay Culkin, and Anna Chlumsky in her first role in a major motion picture. The film tells the story of an 11-year-old girl living in Madison, Pennsylvania, during the summer of 1972. The film's title refers to the classic 1964 song of the same name by The Temptations, which is also featured in the film's end credits. A book based on the film was written by Patricia Hermes. The film grossed $121 million on a budget of $17 million. A sequel, My Girl 2, was released in 1994.

<i>My Girl 2</i> 1994 film by Howard Zieff

My Girl 2 is a 1994 American comedy-drama film. A sequel to the 1991 film My Girl, it was directed by Howard Zieff from a screenplay written by Janet Kovalcik, and starring Dan Aykroyd, Jamie Lee Curtis, Anna Chlumsky and Austin O'Brien. Cast members Aykroyd, Curtis, Chlumsky and Richard Masur reprised their roles in the film which follows a now-teenaged Vada Sultenfuss, who travels from her home in suburban Pennsylvania to Los Angeles to find more information about her deceased mother.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Richard Benjamin</span> American actor and film director

Richard Samuel Benjamin is an American actor and film director. He has starred in a number of well-known films, including Goodbye,Columbus(1969) Catch22(1970) Portnoy's ComplaintWestworld(1973) The Last of Sheila (1973) Saturday the 14th (1981) Benjamin was nominated for an Emmy Award for Best Actor in a Comedy Series for his performances in He & She (1968), opposite his wife Paula Prentiss.

<i>Crossroads</i> (2002 film) Film by Tamra Davis starring Britney Spears

Crossroads is a 2002 American teen road comedy-drama film directed by Tamra Davis, from a screenplay by Shonda Rhimes. The film stars Britney Spears, Anson Mount, Zoe Saldana, Taryn Manning, Kim Cattrall, and Dan Aykroyd.

<i>Coneheads</i> (film) 1993 film by Steve Barron

Coneheads is a 1993 American science-fiction comedy film from Paramount Pictures, produced by Lorne Michaels, directed by Steve Barron, and starring Dan Aykroyd, Jane Curtin and Michelle Burke. The film is based on the NBC Saturday Night Live comedy sketches about aliens stranded on Earth, who have Anglicized their Remulakian surname to "Conehead". Michelle Burke took over the role played by Laraine Newman on SNL. The film also features roles and cameos by actors and comedians from SNL and other television series of the time.

<i>The Getaway</i> (1994 film) American action thriller

The Getaway is a 1994 American action thriller film directed by Roger Donaldson. The screenplay was written by Walter Hill and Amy Holden Jones, based on Jim Thompson's 1958 novel of the same name. The film stars Alec Baldwin, Kim Basinger, Michael Madsen, James Woods and Jennifer Tilly. The film flopped at box office, but it enjoyed lucrative success in the home video market.

<i>The Great Outdoors</i> (film) 1988 film by Howard Deutch

The Great Outdoors is a 1988 American comedy film directed by Howard Deutch, written and produced by John Hughes, and starring Dan Aykroyd and John Candy with supporting roles done by Stephanie Faracy, Annette Bening, Chris Young, Lucy Deakins, and Robert Prosky. The film is about two families spending a vacation at a fictional resort town in northern Wisconsin. Before The Great Outdoors appeared in theaters, Aykroyd, Candy, and Young portrayed their roles during the end credits of She's Having a Baby where they are among the people that pitch the idea names for the baby son of Jake and Kristy.

Kimberly Foster is an American former actress, best known for her role as Michelle Stevens in the CBS prime time soap opera Dallas from 1989 to 1991.

<i>Nothing but Trouble</i> (1991 film) 1991 film by Dan Aykroyd

Nothing but Trouble is a 1991 American comedy horror film written and directed by Dan Aykroyd in his directorial debut, based on a story by his brother Peter, and starring Chevy Chase, Dan Aykroyd, John Candy, and Demi Moore. It tells the story of two yuppies and the clients of one of them who are taken to court for running a stop sign in the bizarre, financially bankrupt small town of Valkenvania, which is dominated by a 106-year-old judge. Tupac Shakur made his acting debut as a member of the rap group Digital Underground.

Ronald Parker is an American television screenwriter and film producer. He is the co-author of the made-for-TV productions Joan of Arc, Nuremberg, and Hatfields & McCoys.

<i>The Marrying Man</i> 1991 film by Jerry Rees

The Marrying Man is a 1991 American romantic comedy film, directed by Jerry Rees, written by Neil Simon, and starring Alec Baldwin and Kim Basinger.

Weintraub Entertainment Group (WEG) was a film production company considered to be a mini-major studio founded by Jerry Weintraub.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kim Basinger filmography</span>

Kim Basinger is an American actress who made her television debut as Sheila in "Night Train to Dallas", an episode of the action/adventure drama series Gemini Man that aired on NBC in 1976. She starred in two canceled series as well as several made-for-TV films, including a remake of From Here to Eternity (1979). Her feature film debut was in 1981 drama Hard Country. Basinger came to prominence playing Bond girl Domino Petachi in the 1983 film Never Say Never Again, opposite Sean Connery, and went on to receive a Golden Globe nomination for her role as Memo Paris in The Natural (1984). She also starred as Elizabeth in the controversial erotic romantic drama 9½ Weeks (1986) with Mickey Rourke, as the title character in Nadine with Jeff Bridges (1987) and as Vicki Vale in Tim Burton's blockbuster Batman (1989), which remains the highest-grossing film of her career.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Micaela Esdra</span> Italian actress and voice actress

Micaela Esdra is an Italian actress and voice actress.

Shelley Michelle is an American fitness model, actress and has been called "the most famous body double in Hollywood".

References

  1. ↑ "Ronald K. Parker '67". Archived from the original on February 28, 2019. Retrieved February 27, 2019.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 My Stepmother Is an Alien at the AFI Catalog of Feature Films
  3. 1 2 3 "Weintraub's Worries : Box-Office Flops Add to Woes of Flashy 'Mini-Major'". Los Angeles Times . January 11, 1989.
  4. 1 2 "My Stepmother is an Alien (1988)". Box Office Mojo .
  5. 1 2 "A Writer's Close Encounter". Los Angeles Times . February 2, 1989. Retrieved June 7, 2012.
  6. ↑ Benjamin 2021, 1:14.
  7. ↑ Demster, Chad. "Filming Locations of Chicago and Los Angeles". Its Filmed There.
  8. ↑ Basinger, Kim [@kim.basinger] (December 6, 2018). "Dan Aykroyd and I had flown to Washington DC…where we had been invited by the Bushes to enjoy a screening of our movie "My Stepmother Is An Alien"" – via Instagram.
  9. ↑ Ebert, Roger (December 9, 1988). "My Stepmother Is an Alien". Chicago Sun-Times . Retrieved June 16, 2024– via RogerEbert.com.
  10. ↑ Maslin, Janet (December 9, 1988). "Review/Film; An Alien Who's Cute And Curvy". The New York Times . Retrieved June 7, 2012.
  11. ↑ Thomas, Kevin (December 8, 1988). "MOVIE REVIEW : Wacky 'Alien' Is Tender and Down to Earth". Los Angeles Times . Retrieved June 7, 2012.
  12. ↑ Jones, Alan. "My Stepmother Is an Alien – review | cast and crew, movie star rating and where to watch film on TV and online". Radio Times. Archived from the original on August 28, 2012.
  13. ↑ "My Stepmother Is an Alien". Variety. January 1, 1988.
  14. ↑ "My Stepmother Is An Alien". TV Guide.
  15. ↑ Travers, Peter (December 12, 1988). "Picks and Pans Review: My Stepmother Is An Alien". People. Archived from the original on July 3, 2018.
  16. ↑ "My Stepmother Is an Alien1988, directed by Richard Benjamin | Film review". Time Out London. September 10, 2012.
  17. ↑ "My Stepmother Is an Alien". Rotten Tomatoes . Retrieved June 16, 2024.
  18. ↑ "My Stepmother Is An Alien Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive . Retrieved September 8, 2022.
  19. ↑ "Movie Title Search: ALIEN". CinemaScore . Archived from the original on August 9, 2019.
  20. ↑ Kimhyunkyung (2004). 어느 별에서 왔니. M&K. ISBN   8992947747.
  21. ↑ "민트 아이스크림과 초코 프레첼볼의 완벽한 조화… 20일만에 200만개 판매". Chosunilbo. April 23, 2021.

Sources

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.