Home (2015)

Synopsis: Aliens take over Earth and round up all the humans into internment camps. But the Jim Parsons Character™ and Rihanna (for some reason) attempt to unite the races.

Would you be able to sit through it?: It’s not easy. There isn’t a ton of stuff for adults here so you may be squirming in your seat. If you’re a fan of The Big Bang Theory you may like Jim Parsons Character™ and the absence of humor.

Any scary/violent parts?: The bad guy alien is a little scary-looking, and has skulls on spikes on his armor, but the whole time I was thinking, “Are those Boov skulls? It doesn’t seem like they even have skulls.”

Anything that will screw up your kid’s head?: Tip seems to be having a lot of fun by herself while her mom is at the internment camp, so your child may want to arrange something similar for you.

Is at least one of the protagonist’s parents dead?: Yes, Tip’s dad is nowhere to be seen. It’s possible he jumped off a bridge after his wife insisted they name their daughter Gratuity.

I don’t get it…: If the Boov are running from the Gorg because the Boov captain stole the artifact from the Gorg at their peace talks, then what were they fighting about before? And why wasn’t that precious artifact protected a little better?

Any lessons to be learned?: Be yourself, don’t be afraid to take chances, eat plastic.

Recommended age: 3. There are a few laser blasts and explosions, but basically this movie’s as harmless as it gets.

Rent it, buy it or avoid it?: Rent. I wish I would have written down my thoughts on this movie right after I saw it because it’s about two weeks later and I barely remember anything about it. It’s like cotton candy in the shape of a bunny: cute and fluffy but as soon as you’re finished with it it’s gone and you’re not going to tell your grandchildren about it. Kids should dig it while it’s on but it’s not like they’ll be clamoring for Home merchandise at Toys R Us. The soundtrack is another weird point. It’s all pretty lousy Rihanna songs that don’t fit what’s going on in the scenes they’re in. The most glaring example of this is when Oh and Tip dance in the car, which was featured prominently in the trailers. In the trailers, they’re dancing to Sean Paul’s “Get Busy,” which is one of the catchiest dance songs ever and makes perfect sense as a song that Oh uncontrollably dances to, but in the movie it’s replaced by a fairly mellow Rihanna song that isn’t a “dance” song at all. Let us compare the two and you tell me which one makes more sense:

But bottom line, it’s a very cute movie that at least can be watched by your child and they won’t obsess over it for months and ruin your life.

Score: 5.5 percent Gratuity (out of 10)

My Daughter’s Review: Seemed to enjoy it a good deal. Loved the cat, loved the interrupting cow joke, which she tells incessantly.