Had 'Jules' been a movie about an ageing man showing early signs of dementia, it would have been a wonderful film and good as a character study. If you're expecting an interesting alien/fantasy/sci-fi movie, you will be disappointed.
I wasn't disappointed because it lacked the usual traits of an alien movie. I was disappointed because I quite frankly found it rather bland. This was the most passive alien EVER. He literally did nothing, except sit watching television, and eating apples. And in his spare time he tried to fix his spaceship...
Ok, so the movie revolves around Milton (Ben Kingsley), a 79-year old man living on his own in a comfortable house in a nice neighbourhood. He is showing very early signs of dementia, and his daughter is concerned about him. This father/daughter relationship reminded me of 'The Father', a movie I loved very much. 'Jules' felt like a comedy version of 'The Father', with an alien. If the alien was a figment of Milton's imagination because of the illness, I would have enjoyed the film more, and it would then have made perfect sense why the alien was so passive.
Anyway, so one night a spaceship crash lands in Milton's back yard, and an alien emerges, looking frail and in need of help. So Milton invites him into his home and the alien stays with him for a few days while he tries to fix his ship. Milton was more concerned about his flowers being destroyed by the space ship than the fact there was an alien in his home. He was very naïve about the whole episode and when his friend Sandy (Harriet Harris) came to visit, he casually told her about the alien. The two then decide to keep the alien - who she then names Jules - a secret, but soon another friend Joyce (Jane Curtin) sees the alien and now the three of them decide to keep his existence a secret. How none of the neigbours saw the spaceship is beyond me!
But this is where the story got even worse. In order to fix his ship, Jules requires seven dead cats (!!!). Why? How does this make any sense? Is this all the writers could come up with - seven dead cats!! Oh, and Milton, Sandy and Joyce then drive around the neighbourhood looking for dead cats and in no time they find six. I could drive around my city for months and not find a single dead cat; so what kind of a neighbourhood do these people live in???!
Ok, so I've had my rant. There's still a lot to enjoy about the film. The story about Milton himself was interesting and also a bit emotional. The film is not trying to be like any other alien movie out there and it is about the characters. And sometimes, when you're telling the truth, no-one believes you.
As a comedy drama, this was an ok watch. But in general, I found 'Jules' a bit too boring and slow for my liking.
I wasn't disappointed because it lacked the usual traits of an alien movie. I was disappointed because I quite frankly found it rather bland. This was the most passive alien EVER. He literally did nothing, except sit watching television, and eating apples. And in his spare time he tried to fix his spaceship...
Ok, so the movie revolves around Milton (Ben Kingsley), a 79-year old man living on his own in a comfortable house in a nice neighbourhood. He is showing very early signs of dementia, and his daughter is concerned about him. This father/daughter relationship reminded me of 'The Father', a movie I loved very much. 'Jules' felt like a comedy version of 'The Father', with an alien. If the alien was a figment of Milton's imagination because of the illness, I would have enjoyed the film more, and it would then have made perfect sense why the alien was so passive.
Anyway, so one night a spaceship crash lands in Milton's back yard, and an alien emerges, looking frail and in need of help. So Milton invites him into his home and the alien stays with him for a few days while he tries to fix his ship. Milton was more concerned about his flowers being destroyed by the space ship than the fact there was an alien in his home. He was very naïve about the whole episode and when his friend Sandy (Harriet Harris) came to visit, he casually told her about the alien. The two then decide to keep the alien - who she then names Jules - a secret, but soon another friend Joyce (Jane Curtin) sees the alien and now the three of them decide to keep his existence a secret. How none of the neigbours saw the spaceship is beyond me!
But this is where the story got even worse. In order to fix his ship, Jules requires seven dead cats (!!!). Why? How does this make any sense? Is this all the writers could come up with - seven dead cats!! Oh, and Milton, Sandy and Joyce then drive around the neighbourhood looking for dead cats and in no time they find six. I could drive around my city for months and not find a single dead cat; so what kind of a neighbourhood do these people live in???!
Ok, so I've had my rant. There's still a lot to enjoy about the film. The story about Milton himself was interesting and also a bit emotional. The film is not trying to be like any other alien movie out there and it is about the characters. And sometimes, when you're telling the truth, no-one believes you.
As a comedy drama, this was an ok watch. But in general, I found 'Jules' a bit too boring and slow for my liking.