Harold Anderson (His Earth name) is an alien from a planet of men without genitalia (the movie said it, not me). This all male race of beings is trying to take over the universe one planet at a time...starting with Earth. Instead of sending giant alien warships to destroy the human population the "maleiens" decide to take over the planet from the inside by impregnating earth women. Harold Anderson is the first alien to give the master plan a try. His training didn't prepare him for this.

Plot: The plot of this film sounds like it came straight from a b-movie or a porno. Garry Shandling (The Larry Sanders Show) and Michael Leeson had the difficult job of taking a seemingly weak storyline and turning into a creative comedic picture. Good for them, they actually did it. The script to this film is teeming with originality (a rarity in Hollywood) and comedy. Instead of ending up with a big steaming pile of crap, the movie turned into a big steaming pile of hilarity (Ed: Hilarity is not a word). *****(out of five)

Acting: Garry Shandling is the master of low-key comedy and this film is no exception to that rule. This is Annette Bening's first comedy since 1996's Mars Attacks! and, surprisingly, her character from Mars Attacks has some Similarities to her character, Susan, from this film. Both character's are recovering alcoholics and both character's are caricatures of women from a male perspective. It's nice to see Annette Bening continue to prove she can play any role. John Goodman, Greg Kinnear, Ben Kingsley, and Linda Fiorentino round out the all-star supporting cast. Of special note, Ben Kingsley, best known for his award-winning portrayal of Mahatma Gandhi in the 1982 film Gandhi, is the special comedic gem in this film. ****(out of five)

Directing: Mike Nichols (Primary Colors, The Birdcage, Wolf, Catch-22, The Graduate) directs this comedy in a serious dramatic way that gives the film a contrast that makes the comedy even more vibrant. The best directed scenes in the movie are those that take place on the "maleien" world. Each camera shot in those sequences gives the audience the vastness that is the "maleien" civilization. BUT, the rest of the film's directing is rather uninspiring. ***1/2(out of five)

Music: Carter Burwell, the Coen brother's personal composer, is no stranger to the comedy genre. It wasn't until I was researching this film that I found out this was a Carter Burwell score. It sounds nothing like his previous films, he truly is a man of innovation. The movie's sound is best described as a combination of science fiction, drama, and comedy. Although that might be hard to imagine anyone who has seen the film will completely agree. The film even has an identifiable theme...now if only it was memorable it would be perfect. ****(out of five)

Special Effects: Special effects in a comedy? Sony Pictures Imageworks, whose credits include Oscar nominated "Stuart Little", provided the visual effect for this film. The all-star effects house provides a look reminiscent of a high quality 50s sci-fi movie. This film contains nothing spectacular or noteworthy in the realm of special effects, but the effects are well polished. ***(out of five)

Bottom Line: So let's sum things up: Excellent creative, good acting, slightly above mediocre directing, good music, and average special effects. Sounds like a must see to me. What Planet Are You From? isn't quite the pinnacle of comedy, but if your in need for a cheap laugh give this film a try. **** (out of five)