A retro-futuristic farce set in the 1970s, the melodramatic plot here—think: “lust in space”—unspools aboard an interplanetary space station called Omega 76, where newly-appointed assistant captain Jessica Marlowe (Liv Tyler) has just arrived. While attempting to work with brazenly chauvinistic captain Glenn (Patrick Wilson), she discovers that he was besotted with her predecessor (who departed under mysterious circumstances). Also aboard are self-absorbed, pill-popping Misty (Marisa Coughlan) and her neglected daughter, Sunshine (Kylie Rogers), whose father is Ted (Matt Bomer), a frustrated, pot-smoking engineer with a prosthetic hand. And there's new mother Donna (Kali Rocha), who is coping with an infant, while husband Steve (Jerry O'Connell) is having an affair with Misty. Unfortunately, little of this is actually funny, despite (or perhaps because of) the efforts of five screenwriters, although director Jack Plotnick does elicit solid performances from the experienced ensemble. Sci-fi junkies will spot Keir Dullea (2001: A Space Odyssey) in a cameo and Star Wars fans will recognize an R2D2-like psycho-babbling droid that dispenses Valium, but aside from genre diehards, few are likely to appreciate this misfire. Not a necessary purchase. (S. Granger)
Space Station 76
Sony, 95 min., R, DVD: $26.99 Volume 30, Issue 1
Space Station 76
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