Quartile rating: 5.5/10 · 1 rating
Ambitious television reporter Tim O'Hara stumbles upon a martian whose spaceship has accidentally crashed on Earth. Thinking this is his ticket to a Pulitzer Prize, Tim makes plans to expose the martian, who, posing as Tim's Uncle Martin, takes human form and has plans of his own. In fact, all of Tim's efforts to divulge the truth are systematically thwarted by the resourceful alien, who ultimately recruits Tim to help him repair his ship for a return to Mars.
My Favorite Martian is a largely forgettable late-90s adaptation of the classic TV series. The plot is formulaic fish-out-of-water comedy with little invention beyond its source material. The acting, while featuring capable performers like Jeff Daniels and Christopher Lloyd, is broadly played with little nuance. Cinematography is competent but unremarkable, typical of mid-budget studio comedies of the era. Novelty is low as it is a straightforward TV-to-film adaptation recycling familiar alien-on-Earth gags without a distinctive voice. The ending resolves predictably with no real surprises. Across the board it sits comfortably in below-average territory for most categories.