Pete's Meteor Reviews

Imagine if a meteor crashed into your backyard. A blessing or a curse? In the case of Pete's Meteor it's the latter, and the concept of such a potentially whimsical occurrence turning into such a tragic plot point is what keeps the film from lifting off the ground. That, and Mike Myers' particularly wan Irish accent, but Myers is the least of this would-be feel-good heartstring-tugger's worries. Still, there's no getting around the scene-stealing performance of Ian Costello as Mickey, the troubled young orphan into whose life the titular star shoots; he looks up at the world through a perpetually furrowed brow, already hardened by a raw life in a depressed Dublin suburb. It's a performance beyond the 12-year-old's years. Alfred Molina doesn't get to do much except play victim to everyone else's whims as the scatterbrained scientist who removes the meteor for study. Brenda Fricker is reliable as always as the protective grandmother who is slowly losing her mind. The curiosity factor here is Myers, assaying a rare dramatic role (he was better in 54). The trouble here is not all his -- although a little fire in the eyes would have helped immeasurably -- it's his character of Pete, who causes much of the trouble for the kids who are so danged likeable (despite Mickey's criminal predilections) that Molina's scientist wants to adopt them. Myers' forgiving fans may enjoy this by-the-numbers drama, but others are likely to react violently, if they react at all.