'Jules' review: One of this year's most pleasant surprises

Space alien lands in the American suburbs: Didn't Spielberg do that already? Space alien reveals he's as human as we are: John Carpenter did it in “Starman.” Space alien touches the lives of the elderly: That twist has been done, too, in Ron Howard’s “Cocoon.” Yet Marc Turtletaub’s “Jules” somehow manages to tell a familiar story in a fresh, funny and thoroughly captivating way.

It helps that this little film features a very big star: Oscar winner Ben Kingsley (“Gandhi”), who plays Milton, a 78-year-old widower living in quiet Boonton, PA. Milton spends his days gardening, puttering and trying to convince his grown daughter, Denise (Zöe Winters, “Succession”), that his memory is fine — until a UFO crashes in his backyard. The saucer-shaped ship is straight out of the 1950s — and so is its pilot, a little blue-green man with buggy eyes. Milton’s call to 911 doesn’t do any good (the operator just hangs up) and nobody in town believes his story. So, Milton invites the banged-up alien inside, feeds him sliced apples and sits him down to watch cable news. These scenes, with their mix of deadpan humor and tenderness, set the tone for the rest of this beguiling film.

Screenwriter Gavin Steckler (this is his first produced feature) and Turtletaub (a successful film producer turned late-blooming director at 77; this is his third film) aren’t trying to reinvent the wheel: They know you’ve seen all the movies. So they throw in the obvious tropes — such as the underground bunker full of humorless secret agents — but also keep things grounded in reality. When Milton’s friendly neighbor Sandy (Harriet Sansom Harris) first lays eyes on the creature, her reaction is so totally believable — and so funny — that an Oscar nod might be in order. Jane Curtin is also terrific as Joyce, the neighborhood grouch, who unexpectedly warms to the spaceman they call Jules. “I’m telling you, I get this guy,” she says triumphantly.

Jules turns out to be the cosmos’ best therapist, listening silently as humans pour out their hearts and come to their own epiphanies. (He has other powers, but to say more would spoil things.) Jules is played by Jade Quon, who though not an actor per se (she’s a stunt and motion performer) delivers one of the film’s best performances without speaking a word. That resourcefulness seems emblematic of the whole film. With scant special effects and what must be a very modest budget, “Jules” still shines brighter than many of this year’s biggest blockbusters.

By Rafer Guzmán

rafer.guzman@newsday.com@raferguzman