And so, EnglishPatient - as a standalone entity - is no more. This account will self-destruct within...
And so, EnglishPatient - as a standalone entity - is no more. This account will self-destruct within approximately 24 hours. I can now be found under the name of DoubleTrouble - a collaboration with fellow Ciao user Broksababe. See you there!
Member since:30.07.2000
Reviews:132
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Panned by the critics, and sunk at the box-office by audience apathy, this latest movie from Brian De Palma wouldn't appear to have an awful lot in its favour. How surprising, then, to at least discover it's far from a worthless catastrophe.
Mission To Mars will never go down in cinematic history as a groundbreaking, or even particularly memorable, entry in the Sci-fi genre. An all-too-predictable opening 30 minutes, where dialogue is woefully cliched and a lack of dramatic pace almost stalls the entire project before it's begun to get to where it so obviously plans to go, sees to that. Yet, come the closing reel, the expected sensation of relief it's over is nowhere to be found : Mission To Mars turns out not to be a protracted endurance test of patience after all.
Deliberately eschewing the more contemporary approach of quick-fire editing, snappy soundbites and mind-blowing SFX, De Palma has instead created a stately outerspace mini-epic of grandiose proportions. The likes of 2001:A Space Odyssey and Silent Running come to mind as artistic touchstones, rather than the in-your-face hyperactivity of more recent Science Fiction movies. It's an important distinction to make, since Mission To Mars will appear lethargic and, frankly, twee otherwise. They simply don't make 'em like
this anymore, and it's rather like experiencing a time-warp back to a style of film from the early 1970s.
Let's get the plot out of the way, since there isn't much of it and the real beauty of the film lies elsewhere. It's 2020, and NASA's long-term program to finally put men on Mars is nearing conclusion. Everything is in place, despite personal tragedy for key members of the team in the 12-year build-up. An ensemble cast of considerable thespian clout (Tim Robbins, Gary Sinise, Connie Nielsen, Jerry O'Connell, Armin Mueller-Stahl and Don Cheadle) find themselves in the frontline when things go pear-shaped on the red planet for the expedition, and they are forced to confront a mysterious force of unknown nature.
Despite the rather uninspired prologue, there is an intelligence about Mission To Mars' second half which, allied to some solid acting from the ever-dependable Robbins and, especially, Sinise (one of the finest B-list actors in circulation), lifts the film to a more cerebral level. Nielsen and Cheadle add extra weight, fleshing out a fairly weak script with believable dignity and valuable integrity. Without this quartet of stars, the film could have easily ended up on the wrong side of Armageddon's vacuuous emoting and gag-inducing God-Bless-America stance.
That's not to say De Palma fails to weave any magic of his own. The entire 109 minutes contain some expressive camerawork, not to mention a handful of superlative tracking shots of considerable technical dexterity. The crowning glory among them is the "hamster wheel" sequence inside the recovery spacecraft, a triumph of logistics that - to those only watching - seems effortless in its depiction of zero-gravity movement around the ship.
Meticulous in its desire for realism, Mission To Mars falls tantalisingly short of Apollo 13 in terms of genuinely suspending disbelief with its reconstruction of astronaut life. Some scenes just seem too fake for comfort, particularly in this day and age. 30 years ago it was unavoidable, but intentionally or not, there are times here when it's all too obvious the action is taking place on a soundstage. No revealtion, of course, but it can be unusually distracting. Sets that appear to be inspired by the Blue Peter cardboard-and-stickyback-plastic school of design begin to detract from the unfolding drama.
De Palma's other film with Mission in the title - the 1996 bigscreen version of Mission:Impossible - managed to keep the tension at precisely the right level for maximum effect, and the same applies with this movie. As the pressure intensifies for the NASA party, he maintains an uncertainty to the film's tone, so that the eventual pay-off seems all the more rewarding when it finally....FINALLY arrives.
It throws something of a curveball with its conclusion, which is likely to receive wildly diverging responses from viewers, though it's anything but a cop-out. The ambiguity to Mission To Mars' finale only serves to further fuel its reflective qualities, the story creating a full-circle of sorts which can be interpreted in contrasting ways.
Released by Buena Vista International, this DVD would have had nothing in terms of extras as recently as a year ago, but thankfully the company has now brought itself into line with the general quality of Region 2 discs.
The picture looks fabulous, beautifully sharp and free of the blurring that often occurs with an abundance of red-tinted images. Ennio Moricone's subdued score is equally pleasing, less hyperbolic than the norm for modern Sci-Fi films.
Bonus material includes a 20-minute documentary, "Visions Of Mars" - a fairly standard behind-the-scenes look at the movie in style, but it packs more fascniating insight into its running time than most. The visual aspect of Mission To Mars is the film's forte, and the featurette ably reflects this, with a Visual Effects Analysis providing yet more examples of the SFX team's subtle magic. A Production Art Gallery continues the focus on visuals, as does the Animatics To Scene Comparisons option.
Clearly, a lot of time and care was taken in the creation of the movie, although most of these extras will obviously be of interest only to a certain section of viewers. A full-length audio commentary from De Palma adds even more detail, rounding off a thoughtful and stylish package.
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Production Year: 2007 - Science Fiction - Director: Francis Lawrence - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring: Alice Braga, Charlie Tahan, Dash Mihok, Will Smith, Salli Richardson, Willow Smith
Fantastic informative op on a great film. I had been warying of watching it after the reviews it got but was so glad that I hired it from the video shop - I thoroughly enjoyed it. I will probably hire it out on DVD now aswell.
clanmac4 26.03.2001 14:20
This does sound like my kind of movie. Your opinion gives an insight that without I would never watch this. Thanks Jason.
pakalang 25.03.2001 05:27
another excellent dvd review.. nothing will stop u i guess! anyway, back to de palma.. i'm not sure he's really a sci-fi moviemaker, more of a thriller.. i didn't really enjoy this movie because it's too slow-paced.. but the dvd does look impressive.. maybe i'll give this a second go! cheers :)
If Brian De Palma directedMission to Marsfor 10-year-olds who have never seen a science ... more
fiction film, he can be credited for crafting a marginally successful adventure. Isolated moments in this film serve the highest purpose of its genre, inspiring a s...
Postage & Packaging: £1.21 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
From the director of Mission: Impossible comes the thrilling, eye-popping science-fiction ... more
adventure, Mission To Mars starring Gary Sinise (Snake Eyes) and Tim Robbins (Austin Powers: The Spy Who shagged Me). The year is 2020, and the first manned missi...
If Brian De Palma directedMission to Marsfor 10-year-olds who have never seen a science ... more
fiction film, he can be credited for crafting a marginally successful adventure. Isolated moments in this film serve the highest purpose of its genre, inspiring a s...
Postage & Packaging: Free! Availability: Usually dispatched within 24 hours...
From the director of Mission: Impossible comes the thrilling eye-popping science-fiction ... more
adventure Mission To Mars - starring Gary Sinise ('Snake Eyes') and Tim Robbins. The year is 2020 and the first manned mission to Mars commanded by Luke Graham...
Postage & Packaging: £0.00 Availability: 3-5 working days
![Mission To Mars [DVD] [2000]](http://picnica.ciao.com/uk/78530022.jpg "Mission To Mars [DVD] [2000]")
Mar 24th, 2001
very helpful by (100%):
