Red Planet

¨Red Planet¨ (2000) by Anthony Hoffman boasts a nice cast with Val Kilmer , Carrie Anne Moss , Terence Stamp , among others . Some stronauts (Val Kilmer, Tom Sizemore , Benjamin Bratt , Simon Baker , Terence Stamp) , and their robotic dog AMEE (Autonomous Mapping Evaluation and Evasion) commanded by Bowman (Carrie-Anne Moss) are sent to a dangerous mission : search for solutions to save a dying Earth by searching on Mars , only to have the mission going terribly awry. When the manned flight to Mars lands on the desert location , things go awry . As expert astronauts endure a hard assignment to Mars in hopes of finding some sign of life . As usual , during the expedition , risks and distresses happen step by step , but it eventually ends in disaster . As weird beings and unfortunate events cause wreak havoc while the equipment suffers life-threatening damage and the crew must depend on one another for survival on the hostile surface of Mars . In this alien environment they must come face to face with their most human interior . As a number of "living" astronauts decreases , a race against time unfolds for any astronaut hoping to return to earth safely . The search for life is about to end !. Not A Sound. Not A Warning. Not A Chance. Not Alone. In the near future, Earth is dying . A new colony on Mars could be humanity's only hope. The Color Of Fear . They Didn't Find Life On Mars. It Found Them.

This enjoyable picture blends Science Fiction and adventure genre , developing an intelligent script that disseminates the clues to maintain the interest and tension of the viewer and reflect on the eternal theme of the confrontation between man and nature , as well as the struggle between faith and scientific reason . Adding other philosophical themes as crew doubts , fears and questions about God and divine providence , man's destiny and the nature of the universe turn defining elements in their fates . Filmmaker Anthony Hoffman spent a long period at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston (Texas) with the goal of researching Mars and space travel and studying photography to see how light behaves in the atmosphere. The result is a feature film narrated with rhythm enough, with careful production design and a sober touch on the scenes in which the dazzling special effects created by the Cinesite Inc. Company also responsible for ¨Deep Blue Sea¨ and ¨Matrix¨stand out . It is an interesting and thought-provoking motion picture , though typical routine -at times- space odyssey that goes wrong when some astronauts find death , one by one , in diverse strange forms . On the way , they encounter problems you've seen in other , better-done sci-fi flicks . In the film there're chilling set pieces , suspense , body-count , intrigue and visual wizardy , but the very used plot and indifferent interpretations undermine whatever it was attempting to accomplish. Red Planet (2000) follows the style of other 2.000's films in which expeditions on Mars get in trouble , such as : ¨Mission to Mars¨ by Brian de Palma with Gary Sinese, Tim Robbins and the subsequent¨The Last Days on Mars (2013)¨ by Ruairi Robinson with Liev Schreiber , Elias Koteas , Romola Garai , Olivia Williams . Although the greatest rivalry and competence was ¨Brian De Palma's Mission to Mars¨, being made at the same time . The biggest claim of this space epic ¨Red Planet (2000)¨ is its cast , headed by Val Kilmer (The Saint) as a mechanical systems engineer who goes from being in the background at the beginning to gain more relevance throughout the film and Carrie-Anne Moss as valiant and risked commander Bowman at the head of the expedition , along with Tom Sizemore, Benjamin Bratt and Terence Stamp.

Highlights the mysterious and suspenseful musical score by Graeme Revell . As well as colorful , though dark at times cinematography by cameraman Peter Suschitzky , David Cronenberg's regular cinematographer . The yarn was adequate and professionally directed by Anthony Hoffman , though with no originality , because copying other films . Being Hoffman film debut , he's presently working on an ambitious feature film that he wrote and with direct for 20 Century Fox, 'Fox Hunt' that will shoot in Hong Kong and Los Angeles, in addition a ten part series 'The Keepers' set in the world of illegal animal poaching across the globe. Rating : 6.5/10 . Well worth watching . The pic will appeal to Val Kilmer and Carrie Anne Moss fans.

Whoa there kids! Red Planet is just a movie and in my opinion a pretty good sci-fi picture. Yes, it is not 2001: A Space Odyssey or Mission to Mars (which I think was ridiculous). It is not meant to be. Maybe the characters are not fully developed but name a science fiction movie where the characters are completely developed. The movie is called "Red Planet" not "Who are the People Who are Going to Mars to Save Earth?" and we join the action "in media res" which means in the middle of things so character development is not stressed in the beginning. Good grief. People throw around scientific, cinematic, and character development flaws with the movie instead of trying to enjoy the suspense of this movie.

You are stuck on the planet Mars. No food or water. Someone on the crew is already dead and another is a little sketchy. You have a limited time to get off the planet, your friendly neighborhood military robot has decided to play "Seek and Destroy", and something mysterious is happening on the surface of Mars involving tiny, bio-luminescent aphids.

So imagine all of that and you will get an idea of what the writers and director wanted to recreate for the audience. I liked this movie. I recognize there are flaws in the movie and possibly the acting but honestly I thought it was a great premise. Reminded me of the Greek myth of Jason and Argonauts on their quest for the Golden Fleece.

I would give the movie 4 stars out of a possible 5. Before you write and tell me how inaccurate or misguided a movie-goer I am realize I have read the classic sci-fi adventures from the likes of Heinlein, Clarke, and Bradbury. They would recognize the film for what it was: a piece of escape fiction that had its moments of comedy, intelligence, and suspense.

This movie was released the same year as "Mission To Mars" and both movies had an interesting twist to them.

While "Mission To Mars" dealt humans "visiting" the planet and dealing with the "face on Mars" and a previous civilization living on that planet at one time, "Red Planet" dealt with humans trying to "colonize" the planet but running into a problem they didn't count --- life still being there.

I would suggest viewing both movies as companions to each other.

I think it will take about as much time to see a good film about Mars as it will take mankind to land on it. Although this film is much better than the (oddly) bigger box-office hit Mission to Mars it still lacks a lot. OK Carrie Ann Moss and Tom Sizemore are good in their roles, but the plot is just too predictable at times. The biggest compliment though goes out to Val Kilmer who on his own earned one of the points I give this film.

6 out of 10

If you are looking for some exotic space creature like Sigourney Weaver, or even Jane Fonda. Then this is not the movie for you. The closest it comes to this is the obligatory shower scene. If you are looking for big ugly killer creatures or space pirates, again this movie is not for you.

What this movie does contain is the popular actors of this time. One popular actor included but overlooked in a lot of reviews is Benjamin Bratt ...Ted Santen, who shows up again in "Miss Congeniality" (2000) where he seems to have gotten a much higher rating.

The movie is a formula with a standard mix of personalities. The Mission is like all the others. There is a compelling need to go to Mars. Naturally, disaster strikes. Some sacrifice some good guys, maybe some bad guys, a few anticipated suppress, and AMEE knows the way to a man's heart.

The DVD has some outtakes that you may find enhances the film and then again, the scenes may have been taken out for good reason. There is no running commentary. I am not going to transliterate the story. If you watch it for fun, then you should not be disappointed.