Rating summary

Movie		2.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.0
Overall		2.5

Meet Dave Blu-ray Movie Review

Fox delivers a fairly generic Blu-ray release of this box office bomb.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman December 17, 2008

It seems they are a more complex species than we imagined.

Meet Dave features comedian Eddie Murphy (Norbit) in dual roles, again. This time, however, he is not covered in layers of make-up and body suits, here relying on his skills as an actor and comedian instead of over-the-top visual gags to earn laughs from audiences. Meet Dave is not Murphy's best comedy, but it proves he still has a few laughs left in him. This is a harmless, family-friendly picture that isn't all that good in the grand scheme of things, but its idea is sufficiently original, the acting acceptable, the laughs fairly regular, and the theme passable, making for a decent 90 minute experience.

Don't try this at home.

A man-shaped starship from the planet Nil crash lands on Earth, crewed by tiny, English-speaking humanoids. They have come to Earth to drain its oceans and collect the salt from the water to keep their planet alive, and they are none-too-concerned that such a development would be catastrophic to the planet and her billions of inhabitants. To collect the salt they need a powerful orb which has crash-landed ahead of them, through a young boy's window, to be precise. He is Josh (Austin Lynd Myers), who lives with his mother, a widow and amateur artist named Gina (Elizabeth Banks, The 40-Year-Old Virgin). As fate would have it, Gina hits Starship Dave with her car and the pair quickly become friends despite Dave's (or Dave Ming-Chang, to be more precise) awkward, alien ways. Dave quickly discovers that her son is the keeper of the orb, and he sets out to find Josh, whom he also befriends. As the crew of Starship Dave become infatuated with human culture, the ship's captain must choose to complete the mission or continue the budding relationship with Gina, all the while dealing with a burgeoning love interest from one of his own crew, Number Three (Gabrielle Union), and staying one step ahead of a zealous police officer hot on his trail (Scott Caan).

Eddie Murphy delivers a surprisingly suitable performance in Meet Dave. His antics early in the film come across as lighthearted fun, and they rarely cross over into ridiculous territory. His dual roles are often played wonderfully; he is both a serious but somewhat goofy captain of a man-shaped vessel and is also that same life-sized vessel trying to come off as a normal human individual. Both characters Murphy portrays must come to understand and embrace the human condition, each with comic results as the mind (the tiny Murphy) is often disconnected from the body (the life-sized Murphy) when interaction with other beings is required, resulting in some genuine laughs stemming from both comical dialogue and physical humor. The remainder of the cast is about as expected for a film of this sort. Each of the primaries are competent but don't perform to any sort of high level. They get the job done, playing in support of Murphy, and allowing the veteran to bear the load of the film. Marc Blucas of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" fame is the best of the supporting cast in a minor role.

There are some very funny moments in the film, such as when the crew of the Starship Dave try to fine-tune the vessel's voice at the right pitch for proper dialogue and human interaction. Also funny are Dave's various attempts throughout the film to understand culture and mannerisms, earning laughs from a broad array of the most mundane tasks gone awry, such as the purpose of and accepted response to a basic handshake, how to correctly wear a shirt, or repeating "Welcome to Old Navy!" as an accepted form of personal greeting. The film earns plenty of laugh-out-loud moments, but there are still other problems that keep Meet Dave from being a top-flight comedy. The movie's dramatic moments don't work out so well, particularly the budding romance scenes between Starship Dave and Gina and tiny Dave and Number Three. Almost any plot device outside the gags feels forced, be they the romance, the police investigation of the crash site, or even the crux of the story, Starship Dave's crew's mission of collecting salt for their dying home world. Also problematic are a few of the visual effects, a surprise to be sure considering the film's semi-big budget. There are a few moments the film could have done without, like the numerous shots inside Starship Dave's mouth or his version of a personal ATM machine. All in all, Meet Dave works and should entertain audiences capable of taking the film at face value and not going in expecting the next great Comedy or Science Fiction masterpiece.

Meet Dave Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

20th Century Fox brings Meet Dave to Blu-ray in a quality 1.85:1-framed, 1080p transfer. The picture looks somewhat warm with a reddish tint to flesh tones and a red/orange/golden hue to much of the image. Oftentimes, the transfer sports fantastic attention to fine detail and offers plenty of depth, making for what is usually a very film-like transfer. The many exterior New York shots in particular feature some realistic textures and intricate detail that brings the image to life. The transfer also features many bright, alluring colors. Not all is well, however. Many shots look washed out with muted colors and a slightly soft look. Blacks are hit or miss, but are more often better than they are worse. Flesh tones vary from the red tint mentioned earlier to natural in appearance, with seemingly little to no correlation to shot location or lighting. The transfer looks better far more often than not, but it lacks in a few places. Meet Dave features a strong, but not reference-grade, high definition transfer.

Meet Dave Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Meet Dave crashes onto Blu-ray with a high powered DTS-HD MA 5.1 lossless soundtrack. This track features plenty of activity, including bass that rattles the floorboards in many scenes and places the viewer in the middle of the action. Listeners will also find great sound effects that may be heard all around the stage, many offering fantastic precision, clarity, and attention to detail. There is plenty of surround activity as well, both in support of the fronts and through the inclusion of discrete effects that seem to always create a full sense of 360-degree realistic atmosphere. A scene in chapter seven featuring Starship Dave listening to headphones with disastrous results inside the ship due to the prodigious amounts of bass makes for a rather interesting sonic moment. The bass is a bit muddied and unclear, but it's supposed to be in this instance and taken in the context of the scene. The scenes in the Havana restaurant in chapter 19 feature lively, realistic music and atmosphere that plays with pitch-perfect precision throughout the soundstage. Dialogue is crisp and natural in delivery. Meet Dave does not always feature a nonstop audio assault as many segments of the movie remain focused across the front three speakers, but this is a well-above average and lively track considering the film's comedy roots.

Meet Dave Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

20th Century Fox brings Meet Dave to Blu-ray with a few supplements. The disc features three Fox Movie Channel Presents... features. The first is Life After Film School With Director Brian Robbins (480p, 28:58). This piece features the film's director being interviewed by three students. Making a Scene (480p, 9:54) looks at the creation of one of the film's most effects-heavy and important scenes. World Premiere (480p, 4:35) features interview clips with the cast and crew on the red carpet. Moving along, viewers will find The Making of 'Meet Dave' (1080i, 22:29). This is a rather standard making-of piece that looks at the origins of the film, the appeal of the script, features plenty of back-patting amongst the cast and crew, the making of some of the effects shots, and more. The piece is intercut with plenty of behind-the-scenes footage and clips from the film. Next up is Cast and Crew Profiles (1080i), an interactive piece that allows viewers to learn more about the Starship's crew. Rounding out the special features is a gag reel (1080i, 2:42), four deleted scenes (1080i, 2:24), and an alternate ending (1080i, 0:47).

Meet Dave Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Meet Dave is harmless fun. A classic or even just a good picture it is not, but passable entertainment it most certainly is. Eddie Murphy turns in above average performances in his dual roles. The film offers plenty of laughs in the form of a number of sketches that serve as the heart of the film, everything else playing second fiddle to Starship Dave's attempts to fit into modern culture. Film snobs need not apply, but anyone in search of an easygoing, somewhat different, family-friendly comedy can do worse. 20th Century Fox brings this box office disappointment to Blu-ray as a very average package. The disc features quality video and audio presentations but only a few supplemental features. Considering the disc's current $40 MSRP, Meet Dave is probably best enjoyed as a rental for family movie night.