RED PLANET. It was supposed to be ambitious, genre-deep science fiction

In the year 2000, producers decided to tackle Mars in what seemed like a more ambitious, less ironic, and rather genre-deep, dramatic way. Thus, on the cinema screens, we could first see Mission to Mars by the outstanding director Brian de Palma. And a few months after that – precisely Red Planet. It might seem that from these two notable and bold productions, at least one would be a film of significant quality, a milestone in sci-fi movies. However, Mission to Mars was declared a failure: due to a script full of holes, poor acting, a terrible abundance of worn-out clichés, and a cringe-worthy ending (those who watched it know what I’m talking about).

So could Red Planet save the honor of serious films dealing seriously with Mars in 2000 ? I feel like shouting: yes! Yes? It would only be a cry of despair calling for justice from above: why, for the second time, was such an interesting idea for a very good film botched even worse? Yes, yes… This time again, we are dealing with a bad movie. Unfortunately…

The film’s action takes place in the year 2053. On a polluted, dirty, and destroyed Earth, 12 billion people live. Ecological disaster is looming. However, a global program is underway that could save humanity from inevitable natural destruction. It involves colonizing Mars, the planet most similar to Earth where life could be possible. Several years earlier, microorganisms, algae, were sent to Mars to initiate primitive life forms producing oxygen. Unfortunately, it failed. There are some unforeseen problems. Now, the first human mission to Mars is planned. Six astronauts, led by Kate Bowman, will fly to the red planet. Among them are civilian specialists in chemistry and biology. One of the pilots is tasked with operating the research robot AMEE, while another, the most experienced, Chantilas, is akin to a philosopher seeking the existence of God.

They reach Mars after several hundred days. Already in Martian orbit, they encounter problems that may cause everyone to crash on the planet except Captain Bowman. The unfortunate Martian castaways must now fight for survival, although from the very beginning they have bad luck: they land in an unspecified location, one of them is injured, the AMEE robot stops functioning properly… In addition, the base with oxygen and food supplies turns out to be destroyed, and there is only enough oxygen for a few hours. The fight for survival begins on a planet completely alien to them and, as it turns out, completely unknown…

In Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey, we encountered a philosophical experiment. It involved unconventional questions about the meaning of human existence, our insignificance in the face of the immeasurable, endless cosmos. The most depressing aspect of Red Planet is the unsuccessful attempts to imitate the philosophical, unconventional message that Kubrick enchanted us with. The character played by Terence Stamp, supposedly an older sage, conveys precisely banal Hollywood phrases about the existence of man (the eternal struggle of science against God, full of meaningless, schematic comments by the characters). Later, this is seriously repeated by everyone as life wisdom. Masses adopt and trivialize even Kubrick’s allegory (and its wisdom).

But that’s not the only flaw in the debut film by Mr. Antone Hoffman. Besides clumsily trying to imitate 2001: A Space Odyssey, it lacks directorial finesse, a concept for guiding the actors who sometimes play tragically here. I have never liked Val Kilmer, and I believe that his only good role was as Jim Morrison in Oliver Stone’s The Doors. Here, as usual, he shows nothing special, and frankly, I wonder about his Hollywood star status. The script, on the other hand, is full of holes, illogicalities, absurdities. Screenwriters cram everything into one bag: science fiction, romance, thriller, horror. Sometimes there is an attempt at psychological conflict between the characters, but in a moment, everything trivializes. Everything doesn’t hold together, falls apart incredibly, is underdeveloped because the creators of this film wanted too much. I won’t elaborate on the film effects because their quality is, as usual in such spectacles, excellent.

What can be said at the end of this review? Well, I don’t know. Maybe I’ll just say that it’s unfortunate that the “serious Martian matter of 2000” started (Mission to Mars) and ended (Red Planet) with such bad movies. What a pity…