I'm sure this has happened to many of you; you go to the movies to see one movie, but that one turns out to be sold out, so you end up seeing a different one. Well that's what happened to me with Red Planet. I intended on seeing The Grinch Who Stole Christmas, but was beat out by a bunch of screaming children and amateur moviegoers. And after leaving the crowded, noisy, lobby with my large Diet Coke (no ice), and settling gently into the padded darkness of the relatively empty theater, I was already glad I was seeing this movie and not The Grinch. A feeling that was confirmed by the time the credits rolled.

The year is 2050 and the earth has not aged well. Due to the poisoning of it's eco-system by mankind, top scientists give all life on the planet roughly 100 years to live. To remedy the situation, humanity must find a new home. Mars, being the closest in size and proximity to the sun as ours, is chosen as that new home. Probes containing algae are sent to the planet so that they might begin creating oxygen and the slow process of terra-forming is begun. While at first, things seem to be proceeding nicely, suddenly and inexplicably, the new oxygen levels begin dropping, undoing all the work that has been done. Someone must go to Mars and investigate. Enter the Mars One and it's crew, on a mission to save mankind.

Upon their arrival at Mars, things start to go wrong. A solar flare disables the ship, the escape pod crashes in the wrong spot, one of the crew is injured beyond hope, all of the algae seems to be gone, and the navigation robot, damaged in the crash, is now locked in military mode, viewing everything that moves as an enemy, including the crew. But there is one small sign of hope when Val Kilmer's character discovers by chance that he can breathe without his helmet. And it's now a race to discover why, get off the planet before starving or dying of thirst, avoiding death by the mad robot, and finally repairing the ship and getting home.

I've always been a fan of Val Kilmer. I know all about the rumors that he is difficult to work with and a perfectionist on a movie set, but I don't give a shit. Why should I? I don't have to work with him, I just get to enjoy watching him on screen. He gives a good performance here as the engineer, even though this movie is obviously not an Oscar Contender. He's likable and by the end of the film you are rooting for him.

Carrie Anne-Moss continues her intelligent, beautiful, Sci-Fi action babe, thing that she started in The Matrix. She plays the Commander of the mission and the only woman. And no woman has looked this hot in fatigues on a spaceship since Ripley stripped down to her underwear to kick some Alien Ass.

30 years ago, Red Planet would have been the blockbuster of the summer just on the merits of its special effects, which are superb, but times have changed and we now take these things for granted. Mars is recreated with great care, you have a 'you are there' kind of feeling, and the scenes in space are done as well or better than I've ever seen. The good part about these effects is that none of them are pushed in your face. They never take over the movie. They just sit quietly in the background like special effects should, without getting in the way of the plot.

So while Red Planet breaks no real new ground, it is solidly entertaining and a good film.

Did you enjoy Scott's review? +4 -1

Red Planet is a decent  science fiction film. It would have been a great film if I had never seen another movie before.  It is predictable and follows a plot that you can see unfolding long before it actually does. 

I would think that of all movie genres, science fiction would be one type of film making where originality was most prevalent.  This film proves me wrong.  I knew who would live and who would not fairly early on. As soon as I saw AMEE (the droid) I knew she wasn't going to help the crew. It looked far too threatening. When they were all about to die from lack of oxygen I was thinking "I bet they can breath the atmosphere." Did I know because I am so science fiction savvy? No, I knew because it was the only logical way out of the situation the writers had put the characters in.

With a little thought, you can guess who makes it to a possible sequel.  Val Kilmer is the star. Obviously he would not have an early exit from the film. The directors were not about to keep his pretty mug behind a helmet the whole movie, so I knew they were going to find a way to breath without them. As soon as Baker accidentally killed Bratt and lied about his death, he became a flawed character signaling his minutes of screen time were numbered.

Scott sings Val Kilmer's praises as an actor. In my opinion he is just another movie star that needs to thank God he was born photogenic. I like relative newcomer Simon Baker. This guy could have a great career. Watch him as the bisexual prostitute in LA Confidential and now television's The Guardian. This is an actor. He actually shows emotion on his face without speaking lines.

The direction, as Scott mentioned is good, except he telegraphs the plot. The effects as well stand out. To the amateur movie goer this is a very good movie. However, us seasoned movie watchers require a little more creativity.

Did you enjoy Eric's review? +2 -2