Mars Attacks Review

Back in the 1990s, director Tim Burton had a vision for a comedy...I'm serious!

In the atmosphere of the old 1950s sci-fi horrors where anything that ranged from a radioactive pear to giant turtle set to conquer the world, Burton decided to bring back the feel in a satire known as Mars Attacks!

When an army of Martians decide to leave their red planet to strike Earth, the humans try to make peace with their solar system neighbours only to find out that they don't like us...at all. In fact, these skull-headed sharpshooters enjoy doing nothing better during a visit to Earth than unloading a good load of merciless carnage to bring a smile to their faces.

This is where Burton's vision comes in as the backbone to this movie's comedy. It's not about teaching the viewers that the aliens are misunderstood strangers from a distant world, they're mean little suckers who kill, kill and did I mention kill, just for the sake of...killing!

The cast is greatly put together. There's the classic stereotypes here, but they bring in enough personality to make them feel more than just living comedy devices. The President of the United States (Jack Nicholson) is of course trying to find a peaceful solution to this dilemna while hounded by a particular general obsessed with nuking anything that doesn't come from the same species as him. Followed by characters like the optimistic hillbilly (Lukas Haas) to the ex-wrestler (Jim Brown) gives a needed boost to their portrayals.

The visuals of the films costumes, set design and musical score really do bring a sense of nostalgia to the screen. Performances by Pierce Brosnan and Sarah Jessica Parker complete this surrounding impression of being in the present time, but channeling the period when these films played at the old Drive-In Theaters.

Decades ago, every parody Mars Attacks! gives of old mannerisms and character types that audiences would have been received just as much as the sci-fi horrors it makes fun of. Burton knew how to bridge the gaps between genuine fear, nostalgic atmosphere and hilarious comedy in this movie. Sit back, enjoy, and try not to watch the skies.

-Braydon K