Some Good, Some Bad
But This Mission is a No-Go

I can't remember the last science fiction movie that put hard-science ahead of special effects. Maybe it's because calculations and mathematics don't make for interesting viewing. But after seeing the trailer for Mission to Mars, I had hopes that it might be the kind of movie I had been wishing for. Instead, the new Brian De Palma film is reminiscent of a number of other space epics. But Mission to Mars isn't merely derivative. Sadly, it doesn't have anything interesting to say.

As the film begins, the crew of the first manned mission to Mars is enjoying its last night on Earth. If all goes well, Mars One will be gone for two years, returning when Mars Two meets her sister ship on the red planet.

A year later, as Mars Two is still preparing for their departure a few months away, Mars One is hit by a catastrophic force that cripples their base camp. Soon, Mars Two and her crew, led by Commander Woody Blake (Tim Robbins) and his wife Terri (Connie Nielsen), is rocketing toward Mars on a rescue mission, not a rendezvous.

Mission to Mars tries to center on hard science and space travel. In that respect, it does well. The first part of the movie has a little 2010: The Year We Make Contact combined with Apollo 13. The special effects and the suspense of the mission make it interesting. There are a few minor distractions that pulled me from the story, but all in all I enjoyed it.

The same can't be said for the second half of the movie. When the crew of Mars Two arrives on the red planet, Luke (Don Cheadle) explains what the first crew encountered, a puzzle that proved disastrous for them. This is where the movie lost me, not because it became confusing or unbelievable, but because it lost its suspense and sense of wonder.

I like stories of wonder, but I don't have to see everything spelled out for me. In Close Encounters of the Third Kind, I was perfectly happy to see Roy (Richard Dreyfuss) disappear into the spaceship and let my imagination take over from there. In Mission to Mars, however, everything is spelled out. And just in case you might miss it, the characters explain it point-by-point. The entire climax of the film would have been improved by removing all or most of the dialogue and letting the audience make its own conclusions.

Perhaps the biggest distraction is the soundtrack. Ennio Morricone's score is often annoying and horribly inappropriate in places. The resounding melancholy crescendos overemphasize each moment. There were scenes when the film would have been better served by no music at all.

In its defense, the movie offers some good acting. Gary Sinise plays Jim McConnell, a pilot who withdrew from the program when his wife (who was to be his co-commander) became ill. His grief for her loss makes him one of the most interesting characters in the film. When the mission of Mars Two becomes one of rescue, McConnell joins the crew at the request of its commander. Jerry O'Connell (television's "Sliders") rounds out the crew of Mars Two as Phil, a technician. Although he has appeared in a number of movies since leaving "Sliders," I enjoyed seeing him return to science fiction.

I doubt that Mission to Mars will become a box office blockbuster, but it was an interesting film. I might rent it when it comes out on DVD, even if I end up turning it off after Mars Two reaches the red planet.

MY RATING: 6 out of 10.

RATED: PG
RUN TIME: 120 min.