Purple People Eater

Besides being an anomaly in nature, Purple People Eater is rather strange for a mainstream children's picture. It's not so sweet, as in Care Bears, that children could develop cavities from just watching, and it's not one of those increasingly prevalent kid's films (such as The New Adventures of Pippi Longstocking) which portray all adults as automatic morons. Based on the popular song by Sheb Wooley, writer-director Linda Shayne's tale revolves around Billy Johnson (Neil Patrick Harris) who, while helping his grandfather (Ned Beatty) paint his apartment, encounters a well... purple people eater. Together with "purple" (who has animated "notes" coming out of his unicorn-like horn), Billy, his kid sister Molly, and a few neighborhood kids form a band. Since radio waves take 1-5 years to get to "purple"'s planet, the, band only plays '60s hits like "The Twist" and "Good Golly Miss Molly." When slimy landlord makes plans to go condo, Beatty and fellow senior citizen Shelley Winters enlist the aid of the band for an S.O.S. concert (Save Our Seniors). It's not the most original story to come down the pike, but it's handled with the best of care and cleverness. Highly recommended.