The Adventures of Pluto Nash- Dir. Ron Underwood 2002

Once again, I find myself basking in the bliss that is another person’s idea of “bad cinema”. Not that “The Adventures of Pluto Nash” is the best film I’ve ever seen, but watching it was nowhere near a chore. If Eddie Murphy has made a bad movie, I’ve never seen it. And as far as ridiculous sci-fi goes, you could do a lot worse than this.

The Plot: Eddie Murphy plays Pluto, a charismatic former smuggler gone straight. Now running one of the most successful nightclubs on the moon (oh, yeah, the year is 2087), Pluto runs into trouble when a mysterious mobster tries to buy him out. Along with his robot friend (played by Randy Quaid) and a beautiful lounge singer (Rosario Dawson), Pluto must elude the bad guys and save the day. There’s a lot of chasing, a few really good cameos, and a bunch of passable special effects that all eventually culminate in a showdown between Pluto and the mystery mob boss (who, of course, is someone Pluto would never have suspected).

What made it watch-able: Randy Quaid’s role was very close to Andy Kauffman’s role in Heartbeeps. This had me poised to shut the TV off and run away, but to my surprise, Quaid was actually funny and easy to watch. It is amazing how a cyborg in one film and a very similar cyborg in another can come off so differently. Quaid’s character, Bruno, totes these huge handguns around the entire film, and gets to use them quite a bit. He exemplifies what is good about robot kind, and I’d gladly watch a Pluto Nash spin-off if it focused on Bruno’s later life or childhood.

Eddie Murphy, again, hasn’t made a single film I couldn’t watch as far as I know–and I’ve seen quite a few of them. I’d put Pluto Nash just above “Life” and just below “The Golden Child”. Eddie did a good job and kept the action and the plot going, but the best parts of the movie were in the supporting roles. The french maid robot, Babette, who’s only function was to drop things and bend over to pick them up was appealing. Pam Grier as Pluto’s Mom was perfect (though I’d have liked a little more screen time with her). Jay Mohr and Luis Guzman were both really funny, and Rosario Dawson is a welcome sight in just about any situation. Plus, there’s a gag involving Hilary Clinton that only lasts a second, but, in my opinion, is well worth the price of admission.

Anyway, it’s no “Class of 1999″, but, if you’re looking for some stupid sci-fi to fill 90 minutes of your time, “The Adventures of Pluto Nash” isn’t a bad way to go. Now, excuse me, as I’ve got a date with the Sci-fi Channel’s mini series “Tin Man” that I intend to keep.

Times I had to avert my eyes: 0

Breaks needed to complete viewing: 1

Overall rating from 1 to 10: 6

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