Red Planet Reviewby Michael Sanford

I have to preface this review to let you know that I went to Mission to Mars and thoroughly hated it. Mission to Mars had a moronic script, plot, and some of the worst science I have ever seen come out of Hollywood. Consequently, I had a very low expectation for the success of this film.

First, let me say that I was pleasantly surprised that the science in this movie was a lot better than Mission To Mars (of course, when you are at bottom, you have nowhere to go but up). However, Hollywood did screw up on several key points regarding biology and evolution. There were several other scientific errors, but I am not going to go into them here. I would spoil some of the plot if I said much more on this point. Suffice it to say, the producers must have learned a few things from the mistakes of Mission to Mars. Thank god!

The plot was not moronic, but it was uninspired. The plot moved in a single direction without much interruption and without any significant subplots. The plot was not slow though. Right from the beginning, we had a crises and then it was one crises after another. There were some curious plot twists that I hadn't expected.

Val Kilmer played a systems engineer. Early on it became clear that this movie was made for him. His performance was ok. I have seen him in better films. I am not sure whether his bland performance was due to a bland script or he just didn't have his heart in it.

This movie is not the best I have seen. It seems that Hollywood just doesn't want to take the time to do a science based moved right. However, like I said before, it is better than Mission to Mars. Maybe they have learned something.

I know that this review seems to allude to the fact that it should not be seen. That is not the case. I do recommend it, especially to those who went to Mission to Mars. This is better. Would I recommend it enough for a full price ticket. Hmmm, I am not sure. I paid full price and I didn't feel cheated. So, yes, I guess I would.

I rate this movie the following way:

One item that should be noted is the trailer for Dungeons and Dragons. I think that even people who didn't play this game will love it. The special effects look astounding. I can't wait for its release.

Red Planet

Three and a half Beakers
(out of five)

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