"Martian Child": A Movie Review

I had no intention of watching the "Martian Child." I've never been a huge John Cusack fan and I suspected the movie was more of a moral piece than it was entertaining. However, I was asked to review the film so, of course, I had to watch it to do that. I have to say that I'm glad I did.

"Martian Child" is about a little boy named Dennis (played by Bobby Coleman), who insists that he is here on earth on a mission to validate our existence. In reality, he says, he is from Mars.

Of course his fantasy doesn't sit well with the social workers and psychologists at his orphanage. So he retreats even further, refusing to come out from under a cardboard box, leaving him to be labeled "weird" by all the other children.

One social worker has the idea to pair Dennis with a friend of hers; a widower author named David Coleman (Cusack), who writes science fiction novels about Mars. It seems like a perfect match. However, it is one that David resists until he realizes that he can no longer ignore the so-called "weird" child that needs him.

It would appear that all of the strikes are against this duo from the very beginning. David hasn't yet recovered from the loss of his wife and he isn't even certain he knows how to relate to a child. Dennis continues to wear a belt made of heavy batteries to make sure that he won't "float away." He also wears a half bottle of sunscreen and heavy sunglasses to protect himself from the skin. To say that communication between the two is difficult is a major understatement.

However, David sees something of himself in Dennis and refuses to give up on the boy. He willingly accepts pointers from his sister (played by his true-life sister, Joan Cusack) and his wife's best friend (played by Amanda Peet). And slowly, but surely, he begins to make progress with the boy.

Of course, nothing can be easy in the movies and things happen that threaten to tear the this fragile family apart. Whether or not they make it through to the other side and actually become father and son I won't say. You'll have to watch the movie for that answer. But suffice it to say that both of these boys have something to teach, and to learn, from one another.