Movie Nation

When the aliens visit, they might give us the standard “Take to me your leader” shtick. But if they’re young enough, they might be more interested in comparing farts.

That’s the lesson of “Maika: The Girl from Another Galaxy,” a laugh-out-loud kids’ fantasy from Vietnam, hands-down the best “E.T.” knockoff to come along in years.

A magically-empowered alien child (Chu Diep Anh) crash lands her jellyfish-shaped space shuttle and befriends a lonely little boy, Hung (Lai Truòng Phù) who finds her. But their friendship is threatened by greedy, power-mad adults and their hired thugs. Hung must team up with his wealthy, spoiled rival (Tin Tin) to foil the bad guys, save the girl and let go back where she came from.

But first she has to “phone home,” of course.

Whatever the plot and story beats of the Slovak TV series that this is inspired by (glimpsed in the movie), writer-director Ham Tram (“Bitcoin Heist”) knows that the gold here is in tried and true characters, alien fish-out-of-water jokes and grownups as “obstacles” who can only be overcome with kiddie hijinks.

We’re introduced to Hung and his still-grieving widowed dad (Ngòc Tuòng), a tinkerer who can’t make ends meet repairing people’s cell phones. Hung is an avid model airplane flyer who finds himself in battle with Beo (Tin Tin), the rich kid who lives in a nearby high-rise and likes nothing better than wrecking Hung’s “Comet” camera-plane with his fancy camera-drone.

Goons hired by a samurai-obsessed gangster are trying to evict everybody in Hung’s building.

“Hey, why are you picking on these people Black Pecker?” “I go by BULL, now.”

Yeah, that’s just as funny in subtitles as it is in Vietnamese.

And there’s a Vietnamese billionaire who plans to build a spaceport and enter Vietnam into the space race.

Everybody’s plans get upended by the girl who crashes into the harbor, takes purple-haired human form after sipping a human juice box (Hah!), and tells Hung she has no name, but that she’s from the planet Maika.

Well, that’ll do for a name, then.

Maika’s powers are borrowed from many another big or small screen alien — mind melds and the like. But her species has tentacles they can summon up to use as Wonder Woman whips, which is novel.

Tram finds the heart, humanity and humor in all this in the kids, their simpler understanding of the world and simple, goofy solutions to confrontations.

“Kimchi Bombs!” are a weapon of choice. “Mooning” the bad guys is a great distraction.

Hung must contend with the cute nurse who is sweet on his dad, his best friend moving away and a wrecked airplane long before Maika arrives. The alien is looking for “my comrade,” and has to learn Vietnamese. She figures the default language on Earth is Russian, for some reason.

Otherwise, the story arc is almost note-for-note “E.T.,” but the laughs come from the oddest places. Hung has to explain tears to Maika, noting that they taste “salty, like boogers.”

Beo’s ongoing prank war with his skateboarding older brother (Phu Truong) has him dressing in an elaborate jumpsuit disguise, painted to match the yellow, blue and red rust on a beached buoy where Bin and his “club” hang out.

The Japanese gangster’s phone ring-tone screeches “Konnichiwaaaaaaaaaaaa” every time it rings.

No, it’s not the most original kiddie fantasy to come along. The plot sets up situations it doesn’t follow through on and there are wildly inconsistent “rules” within that set-up.

But the kids are — to a one — adorable. The slice of Vietnamese working class life — outdoor brick oven cake-baking, a trek to a mountaintop amusement park, scenery that hasn’t been over-exposed in movies — is interesting and the villains are the same over there as anywhere else — gangsters who hire others to be their “muscle,” and spoiled billionaires used to getting their own way, no matter the cost.

They’ll get theirs. And before “Maika” is through, you’ll get yours, or at least be rooting for that “phone home” call to get through.

Rating: unrated, violence, fart jokes, mild profanity

Cast: Lai Truòng Phù, Chu Diep Anh, Tin Tin, Ngòc Tuòng, Diep Anh Tru, Phu Truong and Kim Nha

Credits: Scripted and directed by Ham Tram, inspired by the Slovak TV book and TV series “The Girl Who Fell from the Sky.” A Well Go USA release.

Running time: 1:47

First-time feature writer-director Seth McTigue co-stars in this thriller about a “prank” hired kidnapping birthday stunt that goes seriously off the rails when his brother hires the worst possible kidnappers.

Roy Huang co-stars in “Take the Night,” which opens July. 8.

“Bob’s Burgers” makes the journey to the big screen, a dozen years into its TV run, its rat-a-tat banter, goofy production numbers and screwball dilemmas faced with doom and ditzy optimism by its chinless-to-a-one animated cast intact.

It plays like bubbly fan service bon bon to its loyal devotees, the folks who don’t forget what time it’s on every week and don’t have any meaningful boycott of Fox they’d care to adhere to. Then again, maybe they’re bingeing it on Cartoon Network.

As somebody who’s never gotten into it — at least past any given episode’s first commercial break — I found “The Bob’s Burger Movie” a pleasant surprise. They step up the quality of the animation, although that TV cost-saving crutch of having a couple of actors with too-distinctive voices do too many characters gets magnified on a big screen, surround sound and 100 minutes of story.

Once again, the beach town burger joint is in jeopardy. Once again, the dogged Bob (H. Jon Benjamin) is overwhelmed, upbeat wife Linda (John Roberts, the good one, not the democracy-gutting one) is…upbeat if not all that helpful. It’s up to the kids — hormonal eighth grader Tina (Dan Mintz), delusionally dorky Eugene (Eugene Mirman) and their bunny-eared younger ring-leader, nine-year-old Louise (Kristen Schaal) to save the day.

This time, the predicament involves a sink hole in front of the shop, a bank loan due, their dismissive eye-patched landlord (Oscar winner Kevin Kline) and a skeleton found at the bottom of said sinkhole.

The plot’s cartoon cute and sitcom silly, and it’s perfectly serviceable. But it’s the characters and their rapid RAPID fire exchanges, comebacks and zingers that are the special sauce on this “Burger.”

Louise is mocked at school for her bunny ears, called a “baby,” and thus must act extra tough, and publicize the hell out of her own toughening up efforts. She will go INTO the sink hole, because “you know what they say.”

“‘Babies’ come OUT of holes, they don’t go IN them!”

The landlord might be placated by the right amount of begging.

“I’m of TWO minds…and by that I mean I’m DRUNK.”

The corpse Louise encounters buried in that sinkhole was plainly “Murdered to death and buried to death by a murderer and a buryer!”

And she freaks out when she accidentally swallows one of the skeleton’s teeth. Brother Gene takes pity on her.

“You can’t HANDLE the tooth!”

To find out whodunit, the kids will have to cut school and visit “CarnyOpolis” — the neighborhood where the local tourist trap hustlers congregate.

There’ll be chases, cliffhangers, songs and dances among the carnies, but also duets of longing and hope by Bob and Linda, and intrepid efforts by their most loyal, loving customer — blue collar Teddy (Larry Murphy).

“I can’t LIVE…if living is without you!”

No, it’s not particularly cinematic. It’s not a must that you catch this on the big screen. But if you’re a fan of the show, or have the faintest inkling that you could be one, you should. It’s not deep or all that sophisticated. Yet it’s always quick, and often damned funny.

“What’s THIS thing?”

“Ah yes, my old organ.”

“Your WEINER?”

Rating:  PG-13 for rude/suggestive material and language

Cast: The voices of H. Jon Benjamin, Kristen Schaal, Kevin Kline, John Roberts, Dan Mintz, Eugene Mirman, Zach Galifianakis, David Wain, Gary Cole, Nick Kroll, Keegan Michael Key, many others

Credits: Directed by Loren Bouchard and Bernard Derriman, scripted by Nora Smith, Jim Dauterive and Loren Bouchard. A 20th Century release.

Running time: 1:42

I couldn’t resist. I mean, isn’t it adorable that those digitally sense-dulling action beaters The Russo Brothers, of several utterly forgettable Marvel blockbusters, are being promoted as a brand now?

Hahahahahahahaha hahahahahahahaha.

Ryan Gosling, Chris Evans, Ana de Armas and Alfre Woodard are among these stars of this no-expense spares action pic about “wet work” and rival assassins and what not.

Looks like they broke the bank, and no, it doesn’t look Tom Cruise stunt “real.” That’s true Russo Brothers’ brand.

I’m catching this one just before it opens because I’ve had conflicts at earlier showings, and I’ve never gotten past the first commercial break watching the animated series.

Quite right, you have to invest in a sitcom with the sort of dry, droll, askance view of life that this one traffics in. I saw no evident return on that investment. Same with “Schitt’s Creek,” which those who love praise to the high heavens. Anyway, I like some of the voices and characters and I hear BBTM is funny and that’s promising enough. And the investment in time is limited to 90 minutes or so.

Here goes!

Michael McKean, Rainn Wilson and Larry Wilmore are among the co-stars this June 17 release has to offer.

It’s a true story about a mathematical flaw in a particular corner of the lottery, and a math whiz who exploits it.

Looks cute. Paramount+ has it, as it doesn’t look theatrical.

Probably won’t see it, as Paramount didn’t pitch the trailer and doesn’t usually pitch me their wares. I guess they figure “that with Yellowstone” and “Star Trek” and “Godfather,” they don’t need most critics.

Sharlto Copley co-stars in this safari-gone-wrong thriller, featuring doting dad Idris Elba struggling to save his kids from a monstrous and ever-so-digital lion.

August 19.

Well Go USA is putting this Sundance pic in theaters — some theaters anyway — June 3.

Looks cute.

For everyone who chose not to chance COVID and show up in theaters to make “Jackass Forever” a box-office-boosting hit back in February, I get it.

One could get downright sentimental over the idea that these lovable louts literally saved the cinema, that the “old men” among them had done their doofus duty, pummeled, blown-up, bitten and battered for our entertainment, probably for the last time. But not everybody felt safe going.

And it’s just as understandable that Johnny Knoxville, Jason ‘Wee Man’ Acuña, “Danger” Ehren McGhehey, Steve-O, Chris Pontius, Preston Lacy and the newcomers wouldn’t want all their trials, tests and injuries to have been for naught. Thus, “Jackass 4.5,” a film of reminiscences surrounded by stunts not good enough to make the theatrical release, was assembled for Netflix. I get that, too.

But let’s not kid ourselves. Most of these gags didn’t make the “movie” for a reason. And those that did and are recycled here don’t add up to the same sort of experience “Forever” delivered.

Guys, you already dropped the mike. There’s no coming back on stage and stumbling, kicking it around as you try to pick it up again.

We see 2019 “test footage” where producer Spike Jonze, directed Jeff Tremaine and white-haired, gaunt, bespectacled and 50 year-old Knoxville started shooting to see “if this was still funny” and “if we had a movie” in all of their tomfoolery.

And we’re treated to entire bits that didn’t make the theatrical feature — a jokey electric eel shock stunt with Wee Man dressed as Ben Franklin, subjecting a castmate to jolts via a brass key inserted up the lad’s anus. I think that was “Danger” Ehren on the receiving end of that “prod.” He’s the stand-out in much of what’s seen here, a man they love to abuse and who takes it (mostly) like a good sport.

“Ehren was amazing in ‘Jackass Forever,'” Knoxville notes. “He didn’t MEAN to be.”

There’s “Hot Sauce Enemas,” which is exactly as titled, with the added bonus of popsicles on offer to cool off the nether regions scorched by having sauce piped up four Jackass’s poop-shoots.

It’s easy to see why Knoxville’s disguised stunts — dressed as Old Man Irving Zissman for assorted pranks on hapless recruits who don’t recognize him — were ditched for “Forever.” They aren’t funny enough.

The big finish this time out is mainly all about the build-up of subjecting streetwise Dark Star, father of newbie Jasper and a man who has survived multiple gunshot wounds, to his first ever taste of skydiving. The build-up is OK, the payoff anticlimactic.

That seems all too appropriate for “Jackass 4.5,” a movie with some funny new bits, some new gross bits and a lot of guys (and newcomer Rachel Wolfson) standing around cackling, mostly at stunts we already saw in “Jackass Forever.”

Rating: TV-MA, violence, nudity, nude-violence and ensuing profanity

Cast: Johnny Knoxville, Steve-O, Rachel Wolfson, Chris Pontius, and Eric Andre.

Credits: Directed by Jeff Tremaine. A Paramount picture released on Netflix.

Running time: 1:30

The Cold War Soviet military provides a high-stakes backdrop for “Firebird,” the true story of a gay romance in a place where homosexuality wasn’t merely shunned and shamed, it was forbidden and persecuted.

It’s a policy that returned under the dictator Putin, which makes this period piece timely as well a reminder of a bitter past.

British stage actor and occasional big screen supporting player (“Kingsman,” “Blood on the Crown”) Tom Prior has co-written and produced himself a breakout star vehicle in which he plays a closeted conscript who finds love with a superior officer on an (occupied) Estonian airbase in the late ’70s.

A fighter squadron stationed there is on high alert during a time of rising tensions with NATO. The Soviet Empire is teetering towards the Afghan debacle that brought it down, and the Sukoi jets stationed here are scrambled at the merest hint of a Western provocation or probe of their defenses.

That’s what brings Lt. Roman Matvejev (Ukrainian actor Oleg Zagorodnii) there. He’s a crack pilot.

But what the clerical workers Sergey (Prior) and Luisa (Diana Pozharskaya) notice is his dashing good looks. They may flirt and talk about the future — Sergey’s enlistment is up in weeks, Luisa is studying for admission to medical school — but artistic-minded Sergey has a secret, something the handsome lieutenant picks up on.

Yes, gaydar was one area where the Soviets had absolute parity with the West.

A shared interest — photography — leads to an invitation to a Roman’s dark room. And where there’s darkness and intimate, hands-on instruction, and needless to say — “chemistry” — signals are sent and received.

Sorry, but the early flirtation scenes have a same-sex-romance corniness that invites a little teasing.

Still, this is going on at an airbase, a perilous place to start an affair.

The lieutenant takes the younger private to his first ballet — Stravinsky’s “Firebird.” Even that turns fraught, as there are checkpoints and base patrols to be evaded. We’ve already seen a “Stop or I’ll shoot” encounter with men on guard duty that Sergey, his friend Volodya (Jake Henderson) and Luisa faced, just for taking a late night dip in an on-base lake. Imagine what will happen if two men in uniform are caught in an intimate same-sex moment.

And naturally, there’s a Major (Margus Prangel) who starts to suspect what one, if not the other, is up to.

There’s something a soap operatic about all this — the “sensitive” young man who longs to go to acting school, the cultured, privileged older man, classical music LPs, the “love triangle” that develops and the threats of betrayal.

But there’s a reason romantic cliches became cliches. This is one way love develops, and as the script is taken from the memoirs of actor Sergey Fetisov, there’s only so much criticism that’s warranted about the waypoints of this romance.

It’s just that film adaptations are reductive processes, and in selecting what to include and what to leave out they make “Firebird” predictable, leaning toward the melodramatic.

Prior wrote himself a splendid part, and engagingly underplays young Sergey. Zagorodnii has great presence and a command of English that could stand him in good stead with casting directors, if he survives Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Even if the story here is as preordained as the ballet that gives it its title, they’ve made a nicely-detailed reminder of another critical difference between the totalitarian East and the more tolerant West, one that shows us how bad things were and how bad they still are there, and how bad they could be if Russia-loving/emulating politicians in the Free World are allowed to take power.

Rating: R for language and some sexual content

Cast: Tom Prior, Oleg Zagorodnii, Diana Pozharskaya and Margus Prangel

Credits: Directed by Peeter Rebane. scripted by Peeter Rebane and Tom Prior. A Roadside Attractions release on Lionsgate Home Video (June 3).

Running time: 1:47