In “Home,” the latest adventure from DreamWorks Animation, the misfit alien protagonist is called Oh (Jim Parsons of “The Big Bang Theory”) simply because that’s the resigned reaction everyone has when he’s around. “Oh,” his brethren say with deep indifference at his desperate, over-the-top attempts to fit in and make friends. It’s meant to turn into something positive by the end of the film. Unfortunately, “oh” is also the experience of watching “Home,” an earnest exercise that falls flat, despite the best of intentions.
The film, adapted from Adam Rex’s beloved kids book “The True Meaning of Smekday,” tells the story of an isolated alien race — the Boov — who are consistently staging elaborate (albeit friendly) takeovers on planets throughout the galaxy as they run from an intergalactic enemy. Led by the cowardly, arrogant Captain Smek (Steve Martin), the Boov are six-legged creatures with wide-set eyes and pig tail ears who change skin colors with their moods and speak in a bizarre, jumbled, contraction-free version of English.
For the most part, the Boov are an ornery bunch who keep to themselves. Oh is the exception. After the Boov’s invasion of Earth (in which all the humans are forcibly relocated to a new settlement so that the aliens can have their homes), Oh sets the plot in motion by accidentally emailing a party invitation to the entire galaxy (including their enemy).
Suddenly a fugitive from his own people, he eventually teams up with Gratuity “Tip” Tucci, (Rihanna), a 12-year-old girl who avoided the relocation suction tubes and was separated from her mother, Lucy (Jennifer Lopez). Along with Tip’s cat (named Pig), they set off in a flying car powered by slushie machines in search of Lucy.