Stars: Gary Sinise, Don Cheadle, Connie Nielsen, Jerry O'Connell, Kim Delaney, Tim Robbins, Armin Mueller-Stahl, Elise Neal

Director: Brian De Palma

Summary: In 2020, a group of astronauts headed by Luke Graham (Don Cheadle) set out to be the first humans on Mars. After they've landed, they investigate a strange noise near an unusual rock formation, and an unpredicted storm conjures up a living tunnel of sand that wipes out everyone except Graham. His pals back on a space station near Earth spring to his rescue despite the concern of their stodgy Russian captain (Peter Outerbridge) that in the year it will take to reach him, Graham will likely die. Nonetheless, they have to try it. Manning the spacecraft is Jim McConnell (Gary Sinise), a shaky but brilliant space cadet mourning the death of his wife (Kim Delaney); newcomer Phil (Jerry O'Connell); and married astronauts Woody (Tim Robbins) and Terri (Connie Nielsen). After various catastrophic setbacks, they make it to Mars in time to discover some shocking secrets, including the very origin of life in the universe. Highlighted by staggering special effects, this ambitious Brian De Palma film straddles the void between Kubrick's 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY and Cameron's THE ABYSS, with imaginative results. The music is by Ennio Morricone.

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Reviewed by: davybozal24-7
Posted on June 2, 2006 7:40 AM

From the director of Mission : Impossible comes the thrilling , eye -
popping science fiction adventure Mission To Mars - starring Gary
Sinise and Tim Robbins . The year is 2020 , and the first manned mission to Mars , commanded by Luke Graham ( Don Cheadle ) ,
lands safely on the red planet . But the Martian landscape harbours a bizarre and shocking secret that leads to a mysterious disaster so
catastrophic , it decimates the crew . Haunted by a cryptic last message from Graham , NASA launches the Mars Recovery Mission
to investigate and bring back survivors - if there are any . This is an
action - packed rocket ride .

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If Brian De Palma directed Mission to Marsfor 10-year-olds who have never seen a science 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 sense of wonder and awe in the context of a fascinating future (specifically, the year 2020). But because most of us have seen a lot of science fiction films, it's impossible to ignore this one's derivative plot, cardboard characters and drearily dumb dialogue. Despite an awesome and painstakingly authentic display of cool technology and dazzling special effects, Mission to Marsis light years away from 2001: A Space Odysseyon the scale of human intelligence.

After dispensing with a few space-jockey clichés, the movie focuses on a Mars-bound rescue mission commanded by Jim McConnell (Gary Sinise), whose team (Tim Robbins, Connie Nielsen, Jerry O'Connell) has been sent to retrieve the sole survivor (Don Cheadle) of a tragic Mars landing. During the sequence en route to Mars, De Palma is in his element with two suspenseful scenes (including a dramatic--albeit somewhat silly--space walk) that are technically impressive. But when this Mission gets to Mars, the movie grows increasingly unconvincing, finally arriving at an alien encounter that more closely resembles an astronomical CGI video game. But this is a $75 million Hollywood movie, and no amount of technical wizardry can lift the burden of a juvenile screenplay. Kudos to Sinise, his co-stars, and the special effects wizards for making the most of hoary material; shame on just about everyone else involved. --Jeff Shannon, Amazon.com

Aspect Ratio:	2.35 Wide Screen
Main Language:	English
Region:	Region 2
Special Features:	Audio Commentary, Visions Of Mars, Original Documentary, Visual Effects Analysis, Animatics To Scene Comparisons, Production Art Gallery, Theatrical Trailer
Subtitles:	Croatian, English, Italian, Slovenian
Year:	2000
Release Date:	August 1, 2005
Runtime:	109 minutes
Certification:
Catalogue Number:	B E D 888151
Keywords:	Mission, General, Wide, Screen, Mars, Fiction, Science, Horror, Sci, Fi, Elevation
Genre:	Science Fiction