Mars Attacks
(Warner Bros., 1996)
Today's movie is Mars Attacks. This movie is based off of the series of Mars Attacks trading cards put out by Topps in 1962. The cards were very violent (and cool) in their depictions of the Martian invasion. The movie also graphically depicts the deaths of innumerable people, and there's nothing wrong with that.
This film was directed by Tim Burton, so you should know what to expect. Everything relating to the Martians has a very retro feel, especially the ships. They are old school flying saucers. Obviously they needed to keep with the original designs from the cards, and I feel that they did a great job.
As for the talent in the movie, they managed to score a lot of big names. Jack Nicholson, Glenn Close, Pierce Brosnan, Joe Don Baker, Annette Bening, Danny DeVito, Martin Short, Michael J. Fox, Natalie Portman, Lukas Haas, Sarah Jessica Parker, Jim Brown, Pam Grier, Tom Jones and Jack Black are all in this movie.
The real stars of the movie are, of course, the ultra-violent little bastard Martians. Some of the things they do throughout the movie are hilarious. Transferring Sarah Jessica Parker's head onto the body of her chihuahua and vice-versa. Disintegrating Congress under the guise of wanting peace talks. Great stuff.
Personally, my favorite part is where the scientists are trying to use their translator. The result? "For dark is the suede that mows like the harvest." Best nonsense quote ever.
And, much like the War of the Worlds where the Martians were defeated by the common cold, something very simple and very unexpected defeats the Martians in this flick.
This movie had lots of dark humor and lots of melting people. What's not to like?
Today's song is a special treat that is fresh in my mind from last night's RiffTrax Live: Birdemic.