Mission To Mars (2000)

Featured Audience Ratings

• Phil H

  
  As the end of the 20th Century came to a close, in the final year, we were given the first of two sci-fi films based on the planet Mars, this was the first released. It kinda came across that these films were like a kind of beacon, a sign for the start of greater things to come,… More
  As the end of the 20th Century came to a close, in the final year, we were given the first of two sci-fi films based on the planet Mars, this was the first released. It kinda came across that these films were like a kind of beacon, a sign for the start of greater things to come, perhaps we would reach Mars very soon, perhaps what we were to see in these films would become reality...alas no, not yet. Even with a musical score composed by the legend Morricone this film falls short and its such a shame, to be honest its not too bad but clearly tries to be an epic and simply can't fill those boots. The plot obviously is revolving around adventures on and orbiting Mars, you know exactly what to expect really, the dangers, the tone, the atmosphere, the look etc...you can see it coming a mile off but you look forward to it because its space adventure. The problem is the film is desperately trying to be like '2001' in terms of grandeur in scale and visions but its just too plain, there is an obvious attempt to make it as real as possible but nothing looks exciting or new at the same time, its all rather dull looking. The effects are quite good with models and cgi in use (too much of course), good sets, nice Mars work etc...but there is nothing truly EPIC here, it almost looks like a TV movie at times. Casting is good, you simply can't do a space film without Sinise haha you just can't, the man just makes it look so...real! The rest of the team are decent, sensible and not overblown but maybe too big for the roles, the usage of unknowns would have been better I think. The score again like the film just doesn't quite hit the mark in my opinion, Morricone is the man and his work here is good for sure but is it me or does it sound a bit too close to his 'Untouchables' score? everytime it played I just kept thinking of 'The Untouchables'. As for the rest of the score its unusual and simply doesn't work, emotional scenes are ruined by a quite odd and poor choice in music which totally takes you out of the moment, the film may be inspired by a Disney ride but there's no need to make it sound like a Disney kiddie film. The whole film seems a tad rushed really, the plot jumps from one section to another not even showing the launches from earth or much travel, sure there are time constraints but maybe make the film a bit longer and add some realism or filler? characters are fleshed out mostly in flashbacks which mean nothing really, dialog is really cheesy which equals some pretty wooden/hokey acting from even Sinise! hehe. Add to that a rather dodgy looking cgi alien, a basic plot finale which was sort of an anti-climax and tries a bit to hard to do the 'E.T.' thing with your emotions but kinda fails and then a very blunt flat ending. Enjoyable film which tries its best to really be something special but isn't, the better of the two Mars films, the more sensible one (the 'Deep Impact' of the two ;) )

• xGary X

  
  An interplanetary mission is launched to the red planet to discover the fate of an scientific team stationed there. Directorial hack Brian DePalma once again cack-handedly fails to conjure any sense of wonder or tension in this half arsed space adventure that's all dry techno… More
  An interplanetary mission is launched to the red planet to discover the fate of an scientific team stationed there. Directorial hack Brian DePalma once again cack-handedly fails to conjure any sense of wonder or tension in this half arsed space adventure that's all dry techno babble at the start, giving way to ludicrous alien encounters at the end. The first half is basically Apollo 13 but even more dull, full of clumsy melodrama and absurd flag waving while the second tries desperately (and fails miserably) to create the kind of wonderment of 2001 or Close Encounters. Basically you have to endure an hour of space bound boredom just to find out that the pay off is really weak CGI and some unbelievably patronizing dialogue. It's a shame that a decent cast got involved in this simplistic nonsense, mainly because it's what duped me into sitting through it. Zero suspense in zero gravity.

• Conner R

  
  With a better budget and access to special effects, it would have been a great film. However, I don’t think we’ll ever get to see what Brian De Palma envisioned when he started working on this project. The performances are really what make it a compelling and interesting space… More
  With a better budget and access to special effects, it would have been a great film. However, I don’t think we’ll ever get to see what Brian De Palma envisioned when he started working on this project. The performances are really what make it a compelling and interesting space movie, but it’s just a visual disaster. Some things look very good, but don’t even come close to something like 2001: A Space Odyssey. I also really liked the idea and I think it would have been extremely effective had things worked out.

• Tim S

  
  Interesting, but poorly executed.

• Anthony L

  
  Not a great film but it?s a bit of escapism innit. It has some really funny moments (all unintentional though!)

• Alexander W

  
  I enjoyed this sci caper that tells about Mars exploration and what could happen if we find that there is room for life on the hostile planet. Although I think the end 20 minutes was a bit over the top. Good for the dads and sons of the family to watch on the weekend.

• Morgan S

  
  Out of all the nastey death scenes I've seen in the movies, there was one in here that I find the MOST DESTURBING! The guy gets sucked up by the wind tunnel and is spinning sooooo fast that his limbs are ripped off!! My mouth literly fell open when I saw that. It was just,,,,ahh… More
  Out of all the nastey death scenes I've seen in the movies, there was one in here that I find the MOST DESTURBING! The guy gets sucked up by the wind tunnel and is spinning sooooo fast that his limbs are ripped off!! My mouth literly fell open when I saw that. It was just,,,,ahh discusting!

• Film C

  
  i liked this movie but i hated the ending it was pretty unbelievable i like sci fi's but i dont like some movies where its going well and you think there is going to be a great ending but end up giving you a shit excse as to way things happened its like the ending to indiana… More
  i liked this movie but i hated the ending it was pretty unbelievable i like sci fi's but i dont like some movies where its going well and you think there is going to be a great ending but end up giving you a shit excse as to way things happened its like the ending to indiana jones 4 which i also didnt like as it was great and then the ending is a let down!!

• Pierluigi P

  
  Clearly inspired by Kubrick's 2001, DePalma visits outer space, weaving a planetary panspermia theory of evolution, and choreographing some impressive shots. Despite the weaknesses of the story, and the exclusively scientific and introspective point of view, the last minutes are… More
  Clearly inspired by Kubrick's 2001, DePalma visits outer space, weaving a planetary panspermia theory of evolution, and choreographing some impressive shots. Despite the weaknesses of the story, and the exclusively scientific and introspective point of view, the last minutes are lifted audibly, visually and emotionally by Ennio Morricone's ethereal music; and the capableness of its director and lead actor.

• Douglas W C

  
  This movie was pretty good until the cheesy ending. Though it is funny how Depalma waited until Kubrick passed away to completely Rip off 2001.

• Dan S

  
  To doggone long, and Robbins hammed it up real bad.

• Curtis L

  
  Pretty stupid.

• Candy R

  
  Movie about a trip to Mars and what do they find?

• Mike S

  
  Ok movie, but got very silly in the end. They should have some better cgi people next time :P

• Jason S

  
  They paid a lot of money to kill off Tim Robbins five minutes in.

• danny d

  
  Don Cheadle should have run from this movie.

• Aaron N

  
  Flawed film, but good casting makes it enjoyable. A very strange choice for De Palma. A lot of good scenes make this movie better than it should be, but at points it tries to be an almost epic journey, when it really isn't.

• Luke B

  
  A film that is so terribly ridiculous it should almost be good. Unfortunately the cast play it dead serious, as though they are tackling hard hitting issues. It is ultimately a forgettable film with no redeeming qualities.

• Nate Z

  
  [font=Arial][color=darkred]Mission to Mars' begins with a team of astronaughts making the first manned mission to the red planet. Unfortunately things go... um, bad, and thus with no knowledge of any survivors and the six month time period it takes to travel to Mars, NASA sends… More
  [font=Arial][color=darkred]Mission to Mars' begins with a team of astronaughts making the first manned mission to the red planet. Unfortunately things go... um, bad, and thus with no knowledge of any survivors and the six month time period it takes to travel to Mars, NASA sends out a rescue mission. More things go bad.[/color][/font] [font=Arial][color=darkred]The setting is supposed to be 2020, but everything looks exactly like 1980. In the future there seems to be heavy reliance on product placement. From Dr. Pepper, to M&Ms, to having the damn Mars buggy plastered with Penzoil and Kawasaki. Are these astronaughts Earth's interstellar door-to-door salesmen? I was half expecting them to nix the American flag and firmly plant one for Nike. Maybe the future's just this way because they drink from square beer. Square![/color][/font] [font=Arial][color=darkred]Director Brian DePalma unleashes fantastic special effect after another, but they can only sugarcoat the bitter taste 'Mars' resides in your mouth. 'Mission to Mars' is tragically slow paced, full of interchangable and indiscernible characters, and begging for some kind of insight. Don Cheadle and Gary Sinise prove that no matter how great an actor you are, when you're given cheesy sci-fi dialogue, it's still cheesy.[/color][/font] [font=Arial][color=darkred]The fault lies with the more than three screenwriters, and DePalma himself. Plain and simple, DePalma has become a hack! His good days ('Carrie', 'Scarface', 'The Untouchables') are clearly behind him on his new downward slide. 'Mars' in any other director's hands would no doubt be different -- and that's no bad thing. DePalma's style of appropriations rapes the earlier, better, and more insightful '2001' and 'Close Encounters of the Third Kind'. DePalma and his relentlessly swinging stedicam doesn't create art anymore - he creates masturbations of art.[/color][/font] [font=Arial][color=darkred]'Mars' is surprisingly and sadly devoid of any tension or suspense. The suspense was likely killed in the efforts to portray an "accurate and realistic NASA manned planetary exploration". Yet the scientific inaccuracies in this "accurate" portrayal are far too numerous to mention - let alone remember all of them. You cannot have tension during a problematic situation when the score is blaring church organs![/color][/font] [font=Arial][color=darkred]One can suspend belief and enjoy movies, but 'Mars' is a listless journey toward sentimental other-worldly beings that just want a hug. The friendly alien thing seems to have been driven dry by now. Can we have them destroying our cities again? Pretty please.[/color][/font] [font=Arial][color=darkred]Nate's Grade: C-[/color][/font]

• Matt P

  
  The visuals are definitely arresting, but the story behind them is too timid and unadventurous to keep up with them.

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