TrueJoshNight Truly Dreadful Film

Wordiezett So much average

ReaderKenka Let's be realistic.

Chirphymium It's entirely possible that sending the audience out feeling lousy was intentional

Michael Ledo When I first watched this movie some 20 + years ago, I turned it off. The science in the movie was just that bad. In the 1940's when the book was originally written, it was passable, now it is nearly cult classic folly. When you add to it the slow moving drama and mediocre acting from a 1970's has been cast, it is a turn off.However, much of science fiction is moralistic, making a statement about human society in a way that shelters the author from criticism. In that regard, this movie was good science fiction. There are several major theme points. These are brought out by the opening flashback scenes shown at the beginning of each episode. The theme is that people are selfish. They "see nothing but their own dreams." They can't respect other people's point of view. This is shown in the colonization of America, er ah Mars, and in politics both domestic and on the world stage until we bring ourselves to ruin. A Martian eventually dies as everybody wants him to be a different person.At one point two monks are talking when one says, "Can't you see the human in the inhuman?" A theme reference to the human aspect of inhumanity. Other memorable lines are "I finally get to meet a Martian and I shot him." And when the Martian gives Rock Hudson the secret of living, "Anyone with eyes can see the way to live."By the third episode, Earth and Mars are nearly completely dead. A man named Benjamin is alone and manages to meet Bernadette Peters, perhaps the last woman in existence. In a dark comedy moment, Bernadette is more concerned about how she looks, even though there is no one to look at her, than say the destruction of civilization. She didn't go back to Earth because they wouldn't let her take all of her clothes. At this point in the film I felt the producers missed the opportunity of doing a complete re-write of the script, turning it into a classic dark comedy. However for the sake of purity to the book they didn't do that. In that regard, the movie also contained occasional needless narration.After Benjamin decides he would rather live alone than with Bernadette Peters, the movie digresses into hokey when the subliminal message of the movie becomes too overt. I think a Coen Brothers remake with George Clooney in the Rock Hudson role would be fantastic.

metropolitansales I gave it a 7.3 in my mind but marked it an 8 due to the year it was made and how it might have been if they had today's tech working for it.... Here we have a genuine Sci-Fi feature Mini Series that uses all the old Hollywood tricks of filming spaceships taking off , traveling, and landing, all with wires and toy rockets. You have to forgive it and open up your mind, give it a chance to play out and just go with it. The star-laden cast and story-line will pull it through for you. The era it was created is just before "Star Trek The Next Generation" and just after "Star Wars" the movie so it had tough competition in a young but rapidly widening outer space-opera genre. The heavy here is a 50-ish Rock Hudson playing the lead along with a hard working cast of TV series & TV movie regulars. The surprising part is how serious the cast is about their respective roles, there's no clowning around or rolling the eyes or goofy expressions, they take it seriously and it helps. Take a Sunday afternoon off and go ahead and watch it, if your a sci-fi fan and like your CG graphics you'll have to bend your standards and grin and bear it, but if your the casual sci-fi fan without great expectations, and like easy to follow scripts ,then this movie is for you! At the end you'll be glad you watched it.

buckikris The Martian Chronicles is a three part mini-series based on a Ray Bradbury Novel. I never read the novel nor did I catch the mini-series back in 1980. I was 8 at the time, but never caught this one on T.V.. In fact, if I hadn't listened to Bradbury's interview from Fahrenheit 451, I would be clueless still. It has 3 parts about 90 minutes each. It involved various time periods from the first expedition in 78- to the first manned expedition in 1999 all the way into the early 2000's.The First part called The Expeditions to me is the best. NASA sends two crewmen to explore Mars to see if life exists; and also to study the terrain. We catch a glimpse of Mars and Mr. K, a jealous husband that does not want anything to come between him and his wife. When the crew gets closer the wife communicates; with one of the crew of The Zeus 1 telepathically. This sends Mr. K into a rage The first mission is about to meet it demise. The Commander of the Zeus program is skeptical and wonders if it's worth sending up another crew to see what is going on. The 2nd expedition, Zeus 2, sets out; it includes 3 members. Once landing on Mars it looks as if they have landed on a second Earth. It looks exactly like Earth. The 3 look at each other and wonder if Mars could evolve the same way Earth did. The only difference is that the air is different. The crew Commander Black, Commander Lustig, and Commander Himston, see people they know from the past. They are unaware they are pawns. The Martians are playing with their heads and eventually Black discovers this; but it is too late. They all are sacrificed, and are buried on the red planet. The third expedition is the most crucial. It is with the most experienced crew. The crew Major Jeff Spender(Bernie Casey), Colonel John Wilder(Rock Hudson), Sam Parkhill (Darrin McGavin), Briggs, Cooks, Wilder. They are there to see if they can find out what happened to the first 2 expeditions, study the terrain, and see if life is sustainable. Once their they set up camp, eat, and wait for Spender to return from some of the Martian settlements. Once he returns and reports his finding to John Wilder. He explains that their was once Martian settlements that thrived, but they have been disseminated. Wilder asked how and Spender tells him from a virus, to be exact the Chicken Pox virus. Col. Wilder noticed that Spender has changed, like he has been taken over in a way. The remaining crew is clueless and vulnerable . Spender has been transformed on the inside into a Martian, but he still looks the same on the outside. While Parkhill and Wilder are away, Spender kills the rest of the crew. Spender's rampage reason , because his people do not want Earth to colonize and destroy the beautiful ancient Martian history/settlements. Wilder and Parkhill eventually kill Spender; and relay their findings to Earth's Command Center to General Halstead.The second part The Settlers is good, but some of the effects are laughable and could have been done much better. For Example, the sand ship chase, and Parkhills wig. The sand ship chase, is cheaply done with action figures. The 2nd part is about Earthlings coming and making settlements on Mars. They know that Earth is on the brink of a Nuclear War. The colonist build their city, name places after the men who lost their lives in the expeditions. In about 3 years the town is built, homes are made, it like a mall in a way. It is filled with plenty of people going about their business. We met a family who lost their son in the 2nd expedition The Lustig's. It seems David has returned, but it isn't really David. It is a Martian that can shape into anyone at anytime it wants, living or not. To the Colonist Mars is beginning to be more of a danger than a brand new world. Most of the settle's take the shuttle out and go back to Earth. The last part deals with the remaining people left the remaining settlers have to with making Mars their new home. The ones left behind some accidental, among them Ben Driscole, Colonel Wilder and Family, Sam Parkhill, and a family that realizes escape or rescue has failed. The remaining settlers now have to learn that they will never escape no matter how hard they try. It is time for them to come together, learn about the planet and continue to survive.This mini-series is good, but some of the special effects just sucked. I look beyond the effects because this had a great storyline. It included factual with fantasy. The man real life situation at the time was the Cold War. What if a Nuclear War would break out? I think we all wondered what we would have done if one broke out back then. The colonization on another planet is Sy-Fy, but it made for a hell of a story. I liked this movie because it combines everything; from Space Exploration, War, and life after wards. I recommend this movie to anyone, it's not just a Sy-Fy movie. Please look beyond some of the cheesy effects and take in the message that is being explained.

daxrodgers I can't believe I have finally found some info on this TV series, I was beginning to think I had dreamt it! I have asked into lots of DVD shops and they haven't had a clue what I am talking about.I remember watching this as a kid on late night TV in the u.k and thinking what the hell is this, it was weird and seem eerily like it could be reality, it wasn't about special effects, it's strength lay in it's pace and calm and the fact that it was like a sci-fi soap opera.Would love to see it again as it's been 27 years, but it obviously made an impact on me, it's just one of those late night show's you stumble across and captures your imagination.Dax