"Meet Dave" is harmless sci-fi summer fare

This unremarkable sci-fi gagfest begins with a bang, when a spaceship in the form of Eddie Murphy smashes face-first into New York's Liberty Island. Inside the mechanical body is a crew of micro-size humanoids whose commander also looks like Eddie Murphy.

The Eddie ship and the Eddie captain are on a mission to deploy a tiny orb into Earth's ocean so that their home planet can be saved from extinction (they need the salt). What follows is in the service of vignettes that let Murphy do some signature mugging in the context of a family-friendly story about discovering that things work out pretty well if everybody just helps each other.

The sight of Murphy strutting stiffly around Manhattan in a spotless white suit makes for a few laughs (the aliens' concept of fashion comes from intercepted broadcasts of Ricardo Montalban in "Fantasy Island"). But the typical grinning and goofing that made Murphy who he is don't get enough backbone of spirit to keep the goof running for long. The same goes for the other Murphy character, the Lilliputian ship's captain, who gets hardly any gags of his own.

Scenes inside the spaceship, which depict the crew furiously working out Earth culture and the proper ways to manipulate their vehicle, are integrated nicely into the real-world action. Unfortunately, the banter sometimes comes off like a rehash of "Herman's Head." There's a good ensemble cast filling typical spaceship roles. Gabrielle Union is especially appealing as the captain's junior officer, foil and co-conspirator as the entire crew learns about humanity.

Spaceship Eddie also gets sidekick shtick from Gina (Elizabeth Banks) and her son, Josh (Austin Lynd Myers), who has the orb. They make an agreeable if fairly saccharin trio who inhabit a fantasy version of New York City.

The movie packs a fair amount of visual pizazz, from the squeaky-clean cityscapes to the understated special effects. Families who take an evening to "Meet Dave" could do worse in the risky world of innocuous summer fun.

Ted Fry: tedfry@hotmail.com