Customer Reviews

The Mating Habits of the Earthbound Human [VHS]

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I came across the ending of this movie a few years ago on cable and had to see the whole movie. It was on one more time that week and I finally watched the whole movie. It was so great, that I had to buy it. I cannot tell you how many times I have watched this. I love David Hyde Pierce's commentary. One more thing I have to mention, is that I am a female. Many other comments talk about "sitting around with the guys" but I laughed my A&& off. What a great way to look at our mating rituals. How very true!! Enjoy!!

Wouldn't it be funny if someone made an "alien documentary" all about the mating habits of Earthlings? Well, somebody has. The Mating Habits of the Earthbound Human takes you all the way through the entire mating ritual of two human beings, from their initial meeting in a bar (or "sacred meeting ground") to their first date, a number of mating practice sessions, and all the way up to the culmination of the whole mating process. Our trusty narrator (David Hyde Pierce) explains everything that happens along the way, providing some very funny comments that don't always match up exactly with what is taking place.

Mackenzie Astin plays the male who somehow attracts the female (Carmen Electra) despite the fact she is so far out of his league it isn't even funny - she's ready for a "nice guy" at this point of her life, and he basically just gets extremely lucky. He goes on to get extremely lucky a number of times over the course of the next year's time (although, strangely enough, there's no real nudity to speak of in the movie). The film is at its funniest early on, as the guy works up the courage to speak to the girl, proceeds to lose her phone number after waiting a few days to call her (following the instruction of his pack); the importance of the male and female packs in the whole mating ritual is delineated rather clearly here. After the early dating period evolves into a full-fledged relationship, the film loses a little bit of its humor. After about a half hour of the narrated commentary, the novelty of the thing begins to wear off a little bit at a time. The film also ends up going to the well too many times with some of its examples of the whole conception process. Additionally, a golden opportunity is wasted to some degree in the "meeting the parents" segments. Up until then, the relationship was pretty close to normal, but the two sets of parents are exceedingly stereotypical and definitely not normal. Then, of course, you have to have a break-up in there at some point, as well as the moment of truth when a certain something is not available at a critical time - you know what I mean.

I have to say I really enjoyed this film; aside from the whole parents thing, it wasn't nearly as stupid as I expected it to be. Many of the dating rituals really are rather silly, when you think about it. I think the film does tilt decidedly toward the male perspective after the relationship becomes a physical one, but I think women are just as likely to enjoy this movie as men are - although I daresay the guys will appreciate Carmen Electra much more than the gals will appreciate Mackenzie Astin.

What would you get if you crossed THE HITCHIKER'S GUIDE TO THE GALAXY with THERE'S SOMETHING ABOUT MARY? Well, I would wager that the outcome would be something not dissimilar to this erotic farce of a movie!

The film is narrated by an alien observer and seems to take a few shots at anthropologists. So many times you see documentaries on the DISCOVERY channel where experts say that such-and-such people lived in "exactly" such-and-such a way. Perhaps I am wrong, but it would appear the writer of this story saw one-too-many cultural documentaries and decided to have a little fun.

Carmen Electra is good to her name as she electrifies the screen. Although this is the only movie I've ever seen her in, I must admit that she does seem to possess some decent acting talent - which is more than I can say for a great many "typecast" actresses.

If you're in the mood for a zany Romantic comedy, this one just might be worth a try. It covers our mating habits from beginning to end, and it includes all of the wonderful nonsense in between!

Alien's view of the human dating and mating game. When you look at it from that viewpoint we do some really wierd and funny stuff. 'Alien' commentary throughout. Hilarious, but not for younger teenagers.

This movie ROCKS. I have never laughed so hard in my whole life. Just sit back with some buds, beer, and babes and let the laughter flow. And besides, what other movie are you going to see Carmen Electra topless in! Watch and enjoy!

Mating Habits of the Earthbound Human might very well be the second best documentary on humans in the world. (The best is probably The Human Animal by Desmond Morris). Jeff Abugov has created a stunning true to life presentation of the ritual mating ceremony of human beings, and he has done it in a manner that is not only "informative" but highly entertaining.

In the tradition of Dinosaurs and Mammoth, Mating Habits of the Earthbound Human has a celebrity narrator. This time, that duty falls to David Hyde Pierce. Actually the film tells us the narrator is an alien, but believe it or not, lots of documentaries misrepresent the narrator. That is if we are even given information about him at all. Avery Brooks (narrator of Dinosaurs never even mentions his name.

The only difference in the filming of this movie and other documentaries is that Abugov has filmed actors to represent the subject in the documentary. This might not be as weird as it sounds. Documentaries often fake events. Dinosaurs uses computer generated imagery. A Hard Road to Travel reenacts the Battle of Shiloh, and Disney chased Lemmings off of a cliff to film White Wilderness. But the thing is, none of those films are as funny as this one.

Carmen Electra stars as Jenny (the female). Mackenzie Astin is Billy (the male). The film details their "mating ritual." From meeting to marriage. It shows us their customs, their relationships with other members of "their packs", the steps they take to attract each other and the manner in which they copulate. All while Pierce, the ever present narrator, alien to the situation, attempts to understand and explain the phenomena in as detached and scientific a manner as possible.

The part that makes the film so enjoyable is that it is true. Every one of us has taken part in the mating ritual, and every one of us seeks to understand it while we all realize the folly of it. This movie attempts to explain it to us while at the same time letting us in on the joke. Yes, this is a piece of fiction. It's written. But it's written to be true. It's a film about us. And like always we take great delight in laughing at ourselves.

I watched this movie on a whim just because of the interesting title and it ended up being such a funny movie! I highly recommend it!

This movie, now 10 years old, is the BEST dating movie ever! It is a mock-umentary narrated by David Hyde Peirce with an unexpected cast. We have SO many roving comments in our lives now thanks to this movie!

As long as you pretend you are watching National Geographic or the Discovery Channel this stuff is awesome. The acting is incredibly terrible, yet adds to the quirky charm of this offbeat movie about human sexual behavior. The "alien" narrator, who is never seen, (a la "National Geographic" narrator) saves the film from being mediocre trash by giving deadpan explanations for the behavior of the "mated pair." Of course the explanations are usually wrong and funny. The humor in this movie is aimed mostly at the male ego, although I'm sure there are some women who will find this movie funny as well. If you like Kevin Smith movies you will find this funny as well. (at least the first time you watch it.) P.S. Watch this with friends, don't endure this alone.

Yesterday, 11/02/07, this movie brightened a dull day for me. If only someone other than Carmen Electra had played the lead female role! Mackenzie Astin, other reviewers to the contrary, was just right as the testosterone-driven male lead. Carmen Electra looked too old and worn for her part. Nonetheless, this is a good deal better than a great many Hollywood comedies of more recent vintage. Though the idea is an almost obvious one, it comes to life because of the clever script. It IS better than most of Woody Allen. Thank goodness no one had the poor judgment to cast Jim Carrey in the male lead. Astin's character has to be played, as he does it, naively and innocently jn order for the movie not to seem overly contrived. Where has Astin's career gone?