Film

Unidentified Flying Oddball

Name: Unidentified Flying Oddball
Genre: Comedy, Science Fiction, Family
Released: 1979
Cast: Jim Dale, Kenneth More, Ron Moody, John Le Mesurier, Rodney Bewes

A 1979 Disney comedy that crashes a NASA astronaut and his robot double into King Arthur's Camelot. It's silly, earnest, and shot through with that specific kind of '70s charm where everything is allowed to be a little weird. For families who like their sci-fi whimsy broad and their robots friendly, and for anyone nostalgic for when Disney made films this charmingly unashamed of their own goofiness.

TMDb rating

2.8

If you liked this

A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court1949

The template for time-displaced fish-out-of-water comedy in Camelot. Bing Crosby brings warmth and humour to a man using modern wit to navigate a medieval court. If you love the premise of Unidentified Flying Oddball, this is where it started.

But The film is nearly seventy-five years old and moves at a pace that assumes you have nowhere to be. Some of the comedy lands softly.

A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court poster

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang1968

The same earnest, family-friendly sci-fi fantasy energy, with Dick Van Dyke charm and production design that treats the impossible as real. It commits fully to its own logic and asks you to come along for the ride.

But It's a musical, and a long one. If you find yourself resisting the whimsy, the songs won't change your mind.

The Time Machine1960

A surprisingly thoughtful time-travel adventure that inspired countless films about visiting other eras. The Morlocks are genuinely creepy, and the film balances adventure with real melancholy about what we leave behind.

But It's slower and more serious than you might expect from a 1960 sci-fi film. The special effects, while charming, don't dazzle.

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The Dark Crystal1982

Both films are whimsy directed at families, but where Oddball uses sci-fi comedy to lighten fantasy, The Dark Crystal uses craft and darkness to make fantasy feel genuine. Both refuse to apologize for their own strangeness.

Handmade puppet fantasy from Jim Henson and Frank Oz that builds a complete world without a single actor in sight. It's alien, beautiful, and utterly committed to its vision. Medieval fantasy made strange and real.

But It's entirely puppets, which unsettles some viewers. The story is slight compared to the sheer strangeness of what you're watching.

Planet of the Apes1968

A time-displaced hero trying to navigate a society that operates by different rules, forced to prove his intelligence and worth. It's sci-fi adventure with genuine stakes and a twist that still lands.

But It's considerably darker and more cynical than Unidentified Flying Oddball. If you want pure lightness, this will disappoint.

Barbarella1968

Campy, colourful sci-fi from the same era that doesn't take itself seriously for a moment. Jane Fonda is having fun, the sets are wild, and it moves fast. Pure 1960s space-age fantasy.

But The humour is broad and the plot paper-thin. If you need narrative coherence, you won't find it.

Journey to the Center of the Earth1959

A family adventure with real production value that balances exploration, danger, and humour. James Mason is excellent, and the practical effects create a convincing lost world.

But It's considerably more serious about its adventure than Oddball. Some of the romance feels dated.

Journey to the Center of the Earth poster

Mysterious Island1961

Jules Verne adaptation with stop-motion creatures, a diverse cast, and the genuine spirit of exploration and wonder. It's adventure told with craft and imagination, and it moves at a lovely pace.

But The stop-motion effects, while lovingly made, will look primitive to modern eyes. The plot is episodic and loose.

Bedazzled1967

A comedy about a meek man making a deal with the Devil, featuring Peter Cook and Dudley Moore at their peak. The sketch-like structure gives it freedom to try anything, and it's genuinely funny.

But It's British 1960s comedy, so the humour is dry and referential. Some jokes land on arcane ground.

Escape to Witch Mountain1975

A Disney family adventure with heart, mystery, and real stakes. Two children with psychic powers run from those who would exploit them, and the film treats them as genuine protagonists.

But It's slower than modern family films and relies on atmosphere over action. The pacing asks patience.

The NeverEnding Story1984

Both are European-influenced family fantasies that don't simplify their worlds for children. Both feature protagonists learning to navigate impossible rules. Where Oddball is slapstick, Neverending Story is earnest—but both believe in what they're showing you.

A boy reads a magical book that becomes the world he's in. It's a meditation on imagination, reading, and what happens when we stop believing in stories. Visually inventive, genuinely moving, and utterly of its time.

But The German sensibility means it's weirder and more melancholy than American fantasy films. The constructed-world aesthetic will look artificial if you're not in the mood for it.

Time Bandits1981

Both films believe that time travel is an excuse for adventure and that medieval fantasy and modern comedy live together. But where Oddball is orderly and warm, Time Bandits is delirious and baroque—yet both come from that brief window when studios let filmmakers make strange things for families.

Terry Gilliam's mad dash through history with a boy, a gang of time-thieving dwarves, and Satan. It's visually baroque, funny, anarchic, and manages to be genuinely touching about childhood and wonder. No two frames look alike.

But It's chaotic and frequently surreal. The plot spins in multiple directions, and if you need narrative clarity, you'll be frustrated. Gilliam's style is very much the point.