Mars Attacks! (1996)

Earth is invaded by Martians with unbeatable weapons and a cruel sense of humor.

Director:

Tim Burton

Writers:

Len Brown (trading card series), Woody Gelman (trading card series)

Stars:

Jack Nicholson, Pierce Brosnan, Sarah Jessica Parker

3 wins & 19 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jack Nicholson	...	President James Dale / Art Land
Glenn Close	...	First Lady Marsha Dale
Annette Bening	...	Barbara Land
Pierce Brosnan	...	Professor Donald Kessler
Danny DeVito	...	Rude Gambler
Martin Short	...	Press Secretary Jerry Ross
Sarah Jessica Parker	...	Nathalie Lake
Michael J. Fox	...	Jason Stone
Rod Steiger	...	General Decker
Tom Jones	...	Tom Jones
Lukas Haas	...	Richie Norris
Natalie Portman	...	Taffy Dale
Jim Brown	...	Byron Williams
Lisa Marie	...	Martian Girl
Sylvia Sidney	...	Grandma Florence Norris

Storyline

It is a normal day for everyone, until President of the United States James Dale (Jack Nicholson) announces Martians have been spotted circling Earth. The Martians land and a meeting is arranged, but not everything goes to plan, and the Martians seem to have other plans for Earth. Are they just misunderstood beings or do they really want to destroy all of humanity?

---

Plot Keywords:

parody | sci fi spoof | unidentified flying object | death of animal | part animated | 

---

Taglines:

YIKES! They've Landed!

---

Genres:

Comedy | Sci-Fi

---

Certificate:

14A

Did You Know?

Trivia

When the missile is launched at a flying saucer, the music at one point sounds similar to the main theme of The Simpsons (1989) Danny Elfman composed the theme for that show.

---

Goofs

When the saucers fly over Washington D.C., they leave no shadows on the landscape below.

---

Quotes

Billy Glenn Norris: [about to get on the bus to leave for the Army, to his brother] So long, retard.

---

Crazy Credits

A flying saucer buzzes around the opening Warner Brothers logo.

---

Alternate Versions

A television ad had Marsha Dale saying (over the desicion of what to do about the Martians): "Kick the crud out of them!" which was an edit to what she said in the theatrical version: "Kick the crap out of them!"

---

Connections

Spoofed in Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius (2001)

---

Soundtracks

Champagne Fanfare
Written by George Cates

User Reviews

Has aged well

Much derided at the time for it's shallowness and the way the stars seem to be having too good a time, this has aged better than the disaster movies that came out at the time. Especially now, with the way governments are failing us with the virus, a satire feels much more honest than any film showing people in a better light. Having said that, for a full blown satire, it is never quite funny or witty enough, and relies too much on stars undermining their own image.

Details

Official Sites:

Warner Bros.

Country:

USA

Language:

English French

Release Date:

13 December 1996 (Canada)

Also Known As:

Mars attaque!

Filming Locations:

Randy's Donuts - 805 W. Manchester Avenue, Inglewood, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$70,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$9,384,272, 15 December 1996

Gross USA:

$37,771,017

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$101,371,017

Company Credits

Production Co:

Tim Burton Productions, Warner Bros.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

106 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.40 : 1