In 2176, a Martian police unit is sent to pick up a highly dangerous criminal at a remote mining post. Upon arrival, the cops find that the post has become a charnel house.
Recovering from an ambush that killed his entire team, a vengeful vampire slayer must retrieve an ancient Catholic relic that, should it be acquired by vampires, will allow them to walk in sunlight.
Snake Plissken is once again called in by the United States government to recover a potential doomsday device from Los Angeles, now an autonomous island where undesirables are deported.
An unlikely partnership between a Highway Patrol Officer, two criminals and a station secretary is formed to defend a defunct Los Angeles precinct office against a siege by a bloodthirsty street gang.
Director:
John Carpenter
Stars:
Austin Stoker,
Darwin Joston,
Laurie Zimmer
200 years in the future a Martian police unit is dispatched to transport a dangerous prisoner from a mining outpost back to justice. But when the team arrives they find the town deserted and some of the inhabitants possessed by the former inhabitants of the planet.Written by
IMDb staff
Production had to shut down for a week when Natasha Henstridge fell ill due to extreme exhaustion (she had just done two other films back-to-back before joining the production at the last moment). See more »
Goofs
During the martian attack on the jail, "Akooshay" is seen being grabbed from behind and stabbed in a medium shot. In the subsequent wide shot, this can be seen happening again in the background. See more »
Quotes
Melanie Ballard:
Look, if we even get back to Chryse, those things will just keep coming. We've got a chance here. We got a chance to stop this thing before it goes any further. This is about one thing: dominion. It's not their planet anymore.
Bashira Kincaid:
What about him? Isn't it our job to take him back?
Jericho Butler:
Is he still a prisoner, or is he one of us?
Desolation Williams:
I can give a damn about saving this planet. Seems like it was after me since the day I was born. If I'm gonna die, I'm gonna die fighting, not running.
See more »
First of all, i have to say that John Carpenter is a brilliant, flawless director because his every shot, every scene, narrative style is perfect, whatever he wants it's on screen. I know, then why his movies are flops at the theatrical release? - 'cause there's a problem with us(people) to understand his films that are really old-fashioned aiming rather at the people in the 60's-70's and that's the only Carpenter's flaw as a director, his bad timing(maybe born out of time). But when his movies at its core are good it's only a matter of time to be fancied. I think we should start appreciate such a director who's devoted to an old genuine film-making and not to these days where everything has to be big, right in your face. I love his subtle style especially in future classic as Ghosts Of Mars. This film is very essential: it represents every directorial aspect what John Carpenter uses in other films(hardy women equal to men, defiance against authority etc..), but it's not just a hotch-potch of his early works it has its own low-key style and Forbidden Planet-like feel, it combines genres Sci-fi, Horror, Western, Action, Comedy, it has a message(perhaps Carpenter's biggest at all) that beautifully reflects us. I know it is a B-Movie, it has a silly dialogue, silly situations but that's exactly what Carpenter wanted and he takes all these elements to encapsulate into its own form and never let it slip out, it never tries to be serious, it never tries to be something what it's not, there's nothing what doesn't fit in (that's what i can't say about for example Kill Bill), something what should these young filmmakers learn from. i've been watching Carpenter films since the early 80's and still like them all so i'm deadly serious when i'm rating Ghosts Of Mars as a masterpiece and one of his best that will certainly stand the test of time especially for its form and uniqueness.
Somewhere i read a review where one guy as if justifying himself likes this movie only because he's a Carpenter fan but on the top of that i have to tell you that's what it's all about, only his fan can recognize his masterful touches, that he's a true author and that's why he has more cult films(which most of them were then supposed to be a failure) than any other director.
116 of 228 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful to you?
| Report this
First of all, i have to say that John Carpenter is a brilliant, flawless director because his every shot, every scene, narrative style is perfect, whatever he wants it's on screen. I know, then why his movies are flops at the theatrical release? - 'cause there's a problem with us(people) to understand his films that are really old-fashioned aiming rather at the people in the 60's-70's and that's the only Carpenter's flaw as a director, his bad timing(maybe born out of time). But when his movies at its core are good it's only a matter of time to be fancied. I think we should start appreciate such a director who's devoted to an old genuine film-making and not to these days where everything has to be big, right in your face. I love his subtle style especially in future classic as Ghosts Of Mars. This film is very essential: it represents every directorial aspect what John Carpenter uses in other films(hardy women equal to men, defiance against authority etc..), but it's not just a hotch-potch of his early works it has its own low-key style and Forbidden Planet-like feel, it combines genres Sci-fi, Horror, Western, Action, Comedy, it has a message(perhaps Carpenter's biggest at all) that beautifully reflects us. I know it is a B-Movie, it has a silly dialogue, silly situations but that's exactly what Carpenter wanted and he takes all these elements to encapsulate into its own form and never let it slip out, it never tries to be serious, it never tries to be something what it's not, there's nothing what doesn't fit in (that's what i can't say about for example Kill Bill), something what should these young filmmakers learn from. i've been watching Carpenter films since the early 80's and still like them all so i'm deadly serious when i'm rating Ghosts Of Mars as a masterpiece and one of his best that will certainly stand the test of time especially for its form and uniqueness.
Somewhere i read a review where one guy as if justifying himself likes this movie only because he's a Carpenter fan but on the top of that i have to tell you that's what it's all about, only his fan can recognize his masterful touches, that he's a true author and that's why he has more cult films(which most of them were then supposed to be a failure) than any other director.