Review of Mars Attacks! (1996) by Richard L — 06 Apr 2012

'Mars Attacks!' is director Tim Burton's homage/parody of 1950's/1960's science-fiction and alien invasion films. It is also based off the children's Topps trading cards of the same name.

I must say that I was surprised when I viewed the Topps trading cards because, at times, they seemed vastly more violent and gory than the movie. When this film came out, it did not do very well at the box-office.

This can be seen as mainly due to 'Independence Day' being released earlier that same year. Critics also did not really like this film. I suppose that the film was not well-liked by many United States audiences yet it was very well-liked more in foreign countries may be due to the fact that the film seemed like it was making fun of the United States government and army at times.

I, myself, actually greatly enjoyed this film. The film does very well in creating the feel of a 1950's alien invasion film. The film does have a certain type of creativity to it. I actually found myself very entertained by this film.

It does have its very humorous moments. One of the aspects I loved most about the movie is the Martians. The Martians are very entertaining and humorous. You could tell director Tim Burton preferred the Martians over the humans due to how much screen time is dedicated to the Martians.

They could be seen as the main reason to see the film. I also loved the music score by Danny Elfman which greatly enhances the feel of a science-fiction film. The greatest piece of music in the film is most likely from the film's incredibly well-made opening title sequence.

I must admit that this movie is stupid, but it is supposed to be stupid due to it being a homage/parody of 1950's alien invasion films such as 'Plan 9 from Outer Space' directed by Ed Wood.

In fact, I find it very interesting that Tim Burton released this homage to films like Ed Wood's 'Plan 9 from Outer Space' soon after he released his terrific biopic film 'Ed Wood.' I could certainly call this a love-it or hate-it film due to how split the audience is on this film.

Overall, 'Mars Attacks!' is an entertaining and humorous homage to 1950's alien invasion films, and it is definitely a guilty pleasure film of mine.