Rating: 
Summary: A Stellar Bore!
Review: What a disappointment. The movie moves so slowly, just so predictably and with such tedious and laboured dialogue. A complete shame. I cannot understand how such a pitiful storyline could attract such a (pardon the pun) stellar cast and crew.
What makes the film so very bad in particular is the boring build up, the overacting by some very very good actors and the general absurdity of the plot. As a huge sci-fi fan, I would have expected something imaginative and interesting, but all we got were truly piss-poor climax points. Words can't describe how awful the story was, and as far as some of the special effects, they were brilliant, but had been used in other films; for example: the monster sandstorm taken from the wonderful "The Mummy", the exploding spaceship was from the brilliant "Armageddon" and so on.
If you liked any of Armageddon, 2001, The Right Stuff, Deep Impact, The X-Files, Close Encounters, The Mummy or if you are a fan of Tim Robbins or Armin Mueller-Stahl - DO NOT SEE THIS FILM.
Rating: 
Summary: Well, it LOOKS good...
Review: After watching Mission to Mars, I would have liked to write a glowing review, as it looked pretty decent from the preview, but alas, I cannot. While this film might be one of the most impressive science fiction films visually, the derivative plot elements can't save it from the land of the merely mediocre. Director Brian De Palma's trademark slow pans are here, easing the camera over some wonderful scenery of the red planet and futuristic spacecraft. Unfortunately for the background, there's a story going on in the front, with ideas borrowed heavily from fare like 2001, The Abyss, and Sphere. Most of the actors do a good job with the material they're given, and it's certainly a great list of talent: Tim Robbins, Don Cheadle, Gary Sinise.
I won't complain about the slow plotting, because frankly I didn't think it was that slow. In fact, I thought that a lot of the slow buildups added favorably to the "drifting through space" feel and increased the terror and suspense built into the story.
Overall, I quite enjoyed Mission to Mars. Flawed, yes...but not tragically.
Rating:
Summary: Abort The Mission
Review: Sometimes Hollywood studios are so excited about an idea for a movie that they don't even care that another studio is making another film with the same premise at the same time. Unlike the volcanic adventures Dante's Peak (pretty good) and Volcano (really dumb), the competition to "conquer" the planet Mars in Red Planet and Mission To Mars saw no victor getting the spoils. Both of these films would make any god of war run for cover. In Mission To Mars's case, it's a convoluted mess that, despite some fine actors, never really takes off.
The year is 2020, and the first manned mission to Mars, commanded by Luke Graham (Don Cheadle, Out Of Sight), lands safely on the red planet. But the Martian landscape harbors 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, led by Jim McConnell (Gary Sinise), to investigate and bring back survivors. Confronted with dangers, but propelled by friendship, the team finally lands on Mars and makes quite a discovery.
Director Brian De Palma is usually pretty reliable as a filmmaker. His cast is made up of a solid group of actors. The effects are decent. The chief problem is the script. Writers Graham Yost (Speed) and Jim & John Thomas (Predator) are no slouches in Hollywood, here though, it's all flash and no substance. The story is very cookie cutter and that brings everything else down. The "discovery" is not all that shocking and by the film's last act you don't really care what happens--assuming you are still awake by then.
The DVD has a fairly bland audio commentary from De Palma, which may explain why his films usually don't have one on them. "Visions Of Mars" is your standard making of featurette covering the basics, while a visual effects analysis gets a bit more specific, working in concert with a production art gallery and an animatics comparision--all of it ho-hum. The theatrical trailer and some DVD-ROM material round out the extras.
Mission To Mars should be a good film. Instead it goes nowhere, thanks to a hackneyed screenplay--leaving the director and cast "Lost In Space".
Rating:
Summary: o.k. but that's about it
Review: This certainly isn't the worst science fiction movie...look to Battlefield Earth or Red Planet for that. However it certainly isn't the greatest either.
The story idea is good, centring as it does on a rescue mission from earth to rescue stranded astronauts on Mars. The effects are as high quality as you would expect in a modern sci-fi movie. Yet somehow it always feels as though something is missing and that the movie is never quite believable. The pace of the film is just too slow, the dialogue is corny at times and the characters too clichéd. Only the acting ability of the cast saves it from becoming a mess of a movie.
All in all it is movie that can be called OK; it is watchable and makes a pleasant change from the usual fast action movies in this genre. Just don't expect to be blown away by it.
Rating: 
Summary: Top-Of-The-Line Science Fiction
Review: Possibly the best near-future space exploration epic ever filmed, surpassing even such quality fare as "Stranded" and "2001" & "2010". Realistic and believable and fairly technical, but unlike too many skeptics-concious current science fiction, not afraid to dream big and speculate grand. Top-notch performances all around and oustanding technical aspects, plus superior characterization in a genre that sometimes seems to feel it has to make its players either cold and cynical or cocky and beligerent to be believable. Gripping from the start, with a fantastic finale, "Mission To Mars" is likely to awaken a curiousity for space, a sense of wonder and adventure, and an appreciation for the night sky in even the most jaded and disinterested hearts.
Rating:
Summary: I enjoyed the film.
Review: After having viewed the film at a cinema during its initial release, I purchased the DVD when it became available. I enjoyed the acting, the characters, the CGI, the music and the story. In short, I was entertained. Others have chosen to provide harsh comments. Personally, I enjoyed the film. I happen to be a science-fiction author and I like a good story. Mission to Mars provided that. I don't think Brian De Palma was trying to do anything more than entertain in an appealing way. As far as this reviewer is concerned, he succeeded.
Rating:
Summary: Hideously Horrible! 8-(
Review: Why some people gave this stinker four or five stars is light years beyond me, and I love good sci-fi. I thought Red Planet was pretty bad until I saw this movie, and I realized that even Red Planet had some (not much) redeeming value by comparison. The negative reviews here accurately sum up the reasons why this is one of the worst movies ever made. I really struggled to stay with it 'til the end, if only for morbid curiosity.Absolutely the steaming pile you've heard it is...
Rating: 
Summary: Worst Alien Ever!
Review: *SPOILER WARNING*
How would you like to go through what the characters do in this film, only to come face-to-face with a technologically advanced cartoon? What were the filmmakers thinking?
Derivative and cliche-ridden as it was, the story is actually compelling. Fine efforts were made to replicate scientifically plausible scenes in space. Once on Mars, however, plausibility is virtually thrown out the escape hatch.
Using "The Face" as a plot point was ridiculous since by the time we send a manned expedition to Mars, the planet and its landmarks would have been thoroughly mapped. The characters' sense of surprise at seeing "The Face" was when the film lost its grip on me. Despite the odds against the characters being drawn to "The Face" on a planet the size of Mars being "astronomical", it still COULD be explained by extraterrestrial intervention. Let's forget the fact that "The Face" has already been scientifically dismissed as a natural simulacrum caused by light and shadow. Kids could care less.
Once inside "The Face", we're taken on the "mysteries of the universe" goose chase which made previous films such as "2001" and "Close Encounters" memorable, but here leaves us with a sense of the filmmakers simply throwing away an ending to what has been a compelling narrative. Kids could care less.
But what absolutely lost it for me was "The Alien". C'mon, people; if you can't come up with a scientifically plausible alien, don't give us a damned cartoon! I'm not sure even kids were fooled by this one...absolutely terrible! THAT'S what made this film a waste. It's a good example of how one bad but crucial decision turned a decent entertainment into dreck.
All that being said, the overall production values elevate this film to "guilty pleasure" status. Kids might actually enjoy it in toto. Adults, however, will not look back in fondness upon seeing it.
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