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Ghosts
of Mars
Story
Mars,
2176 AD. Long inhabited by human settlers, the Red Planet
has become the dark and dangerous manifest destiny of an
over-populated Earth. 640,000 people now live and work at
far-flung outposts all over Mars, mining the planet for
its abundant natural resources. But one of those mining
operations has uncovered a deadly mother lode: a long-dormant
Martian civilization whose warriors, now unleashed and
apparently unstoppable, are systematically taking over
the bodies of human intruders, bent on ridding the planet
of the invaders from Earth.
Lt. Melanie Ballard (Natasha Henstridge), a veteran of
two years on the Mars Police Force, is on transport
assignment to Shining Canyon to bring James "Desolation"
Williams (Ice Cube), the planet's most notorious
criminal, to justice. Williams has no plans to make
Ballard's job easy and what begins as a battle of force
and wits between cop and criminal soon turns into
something more fundamental: a battle for human survival
and escape from the doomed planet.
Joining Lt. Ballard on the mission are Bashira (Clea
Duvall), the timid rookie; Jericho (Jason Statham), the
fast talking young gun; Commander Helena Braddock (Pam
Grier), the tough-as-nails veteran and Descanso (Liam
Waite), the reliable soldier. When the team encounters
Professor Whitlock (Joanna Cassidy) and learns of her
deadly mistake - accidentally unleashing dormant evil
Martian forces from an archaeological dig site - all hell
breaks loose. It's civilization against civilization and
Shining Canyon becomes the O.K.Corral - 176 years into
the future - as Ballard and Williams join forces in
mortal combat with the "Ghosts of Mars."
Review
John
Carpenter is the undisputed master of terror. He gave us
a taste of evil incarnate in "Halloween", of
claustrophobic horror on a whole new level in "The
Thing", and of insanity unbound in the mind bender
that is "In the Mouth of Madness." He has also
given us unforgettable characters like Snake Plissken and
Jack Crow, two of the coolest and meanest bastards that
have ever been let loose on the big screen, and I am
constantly waiting for a day when Jack Burton will once
again climb aboard the Porkchop Express to further shake
the pillars of heaven. For me a John Carpenter film is an
event in itself, and I rarely walk away disappointed.
Even when everything isn't necessarily at its best, there
is always something to enjoy in a John Carpenter film.
But then, that was before "Ghosts of Mars"...
There must have been a malfunctioning in the moviemaking
machinery that is John Carpenter, because very little of
what I saw in "Ghosts of Mars" worked for me.
None of the visual energy or cinematic unease that he
does better than most is present here. The backstory is
interesting enough and the premise definitely had some
potential, but somewhere along the line this film just
took a severe nosedive. None of the characters are
particularly memorable, and most of the one-liners they
have to dish out are beyond belief. Natasha Henstridge
did a perfectly fine job as Melanie Ballard, especially
considering the fact that she was only given a week of
prep-time for the part. Ice Cube, however, could just as
easily have phoned in his lines, and still it's doubtful
that he could have had any less of a screen presence
about him.
"Ghosts of Mars" feels more like a bad and
poorly made movie-of-the-week than it does the B flick,
horror-fest that I was hoping for. The make-up effects by
KNB EFX Group and the music by John Carpenter are the two
elements that come off looking and sounding the best, but
in the case of the music, it kind of overshoots the
visuals, as the on-screen mayhem can never measure up to
the intensity of the score. At one point in the film, Pam
Grier's character notices a shadowed figure that we see
quickly shooting past the frame. She then calls out
"who goes there?" in what was probably meant as
a homage to "The Thing", as that film was
originally based on the story, "Who Goes There",
by John W Campbell Jr. But, I have to say that to be
reminded of a work of such horrific greatness while
watching "Ghosts of Mars", is basically like
having salt poured into an open wound.
Image
The
2.40:1 anamorphic widescreen image comes off looking
great for the most part, but there are some imperfections
that stand out along the way, such as a bit of noticeable
grain and a hint of edge enhancement. Any film taking
place on the Red Planet, will, of course, have an
abundant use of the color red, and this transfer is able
to handle it without smearing or coming off looking
excessively harsh. The blacks are solid, with nice shadow
detail, and the flesh tones appear natural. So in all
respects, a very good transfer.
Sound
The
Dolby Digital 5.1 mix did not blow me away. As a
comparison, the mix for "John Carpenter's Vampires"
is highly active, with some seriously low bass that you
can feel pounding against your skin. For "Ghosts of
Mars" the explosions, especially, sounded like the
audio equivalent of a dull knife.
It's still an active mix, with some nice directional
effects and a good use of the surrounds, but it just
didn't have that extra kick, that edge, that low rumble
that you can feel as much as you can hear it.
Features
There
are some nice special features to be found on this disc,
including an Audio Commentary track with John Carpenter
and Natasha Henstridge. Now, anyone who has ever listened
to a commentary track with John Carpenter before, knows
that the potential for some true listening gems are most
definitely present, and believe it or not, but I actually
had a much better time listening to the commentary track,
than at any point during my initial viewing of the film.
One of the great things about a really good Carpenter
commentary track is that you not only get a sense of the
film, but also of the man, himself. The talk on this
track deals with everything from the building of sets and
the various co-stars, to pregnancy and drug philosophy,
so you should definitely give it a listen.
The "Ghosts of Mars" Video Diary runs just
short of 17 minutes and gives you a good look behind the
scenes, but this is nowhere near the type of in-depth
video diary that Paul Thomas Anderson included on New
Line's "Magnolia" DVD, or David O'Russell's
video journal for Warner's "Three Kings." The
Special Effects Deconstructions feature deals with the
visual effects, and shows you the various stages of
completion that blue screen and model shots go through.
It runs for about 6 and a half minute. The "Scoring
Ghosts of Mars" Featurette shows John Carpenter and
Anthrax at work in the studio, scoring the film, but
without providing any kind of information on how the work
was done, or why they did this and that. And finally,
there are also some bare bones Filmographies included,
but no theatrical trailer, strangely enough.
Overall Opinion
The
film was a major disappointment, but at least the DVD
comes with a solid transfer and a very enjoyable audio
commentary track. This is not a film that I would really
recommend to anyone, so if you're in the mood for a sci-fi/horror
film courtesy of John Carpenter, then I'd suggest
watching or rewatching "The Thing" instead.
| Film: |
2/10 |
| Image: |
8/10 |
| Sound: |
7/10 |
| Extras: |
6/10 |
| Overall: |
4/10 |

Copyright ©
1997-2001 Bjørn
Erik Hundland. All rights reserved.
Film related properties mentioned herein are ©
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![[Ghosts of Mars]](http://www.movie-page.com/dvd/covers/gom.jpg) 
VIDEO
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| Widescreen
2.40:1 (Anamorphic) |
AUDIO
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| English:
DD 5.1 |
FEATURES
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Commentary
Track
Video Diary
Featurettes
Filmographies |

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