Les Chroniques martiennes

I remember seeing this series when it was first shown circa 1980 in the UK, and could not wait till the next part was shown.

Of course the special effects weren't that special then - but I really don't think this takes much away from it. The sequences I like the most are the lights that appear to the monks, and save one when he tests them by throwing himself off a cliff on Mars. Very spiritual overtones here - makes me shiver now just to think of it.

Also, I love the way the Martians dress - the loose-fitting robes, and those masks - excellent. Their lack of cranial hair and gold eyes, also make for a very other-worldy effect.

I borrowed the video tape "version" of this film, but was dismayed to find that about 20 minutes had been cut out - beware! I read the superb Ray Bradbury novel this was based on (originally entitled The Silver Locusts) after I saw the series, and was suitably impressed. A great atmosphere in both, but much more in the novel, I think.

At some point prior to the original broadcast of this mini-series, Ray Bradbury was interviewed and asked how it was. His reply was that it was boring. He was right. I read this book when I was in junior high school for the first time and reread it many times after that. The book is great. This mini-series is boring. I gave it a six out of 10 more for the source material than this actual mini-series. A couple of my favorites are in here, Rock Hudson, Chris Connolly, Roddy McDowell, and Darren McGavin. Several other actors who were staples of 1970s television are also included. The problem is the screenplay. The Martian Chronicles are a series of short stories about the colonization of Mars and all connected with the constant threads of Wilder and NASA running through them. If the screenwriter had simply taken the book and wrote the screenplay directly from it, the mini-series would have been great. Instead it is more like a documentary with a narrator explaining what everyone is thinking or feeling, and a lot of just driving around what is supposed to be the Martian landscape by Wilder. I see a lot in the other reviews about the special effects. That's not really an issue for me as they are not a large part of the series. If you have no problems watching Star Trek TOS or Space 1999, the special effects here will not bother you. If you are expecting the latest from Disney, well you will be disappointed. The space craft in this series is reminiscent of what was available in the 90s and they were of course guessing what they would look like in the future. I think they did okay in that respect. If you like the premise of the series, then by all means visit your local library and check out a copy of the book. The book is great. You will see a few differences. The Bernadette Peters character was nothing like was portrayed in the mini-series for one. I would love to see Hollywood redo this but stick to the book this time. For those younger viewers who watched it and were surprised that we were colonizing Mars at the start of the 21st century, when I was in elementary school in the '60s, we were told we would have George Jetson cars and robot maids by the year 2000. We haven't come as far as we thought we would.

I remembered seeing this mini-series when I was ten or eleven. There were some scenes that were ever etched in my mind, and there were others which immediately raced to my mind as I began reliving my past watching it once again. This mini-series is extraordinary in many ways, yet problematic and flawed in many ways too. The whole concept is a huge undertaking when you consider when this was made. There were no CGI effects. The special effects are the things which have aged the poorest in this series. Some of the effects are probably even crude for 1979, but the design of the sets and costumes helps overshadow that now glaring flaw. The set designs, when you consider budget, etc..., are very innovative and even dream-like. The Martian landscape does seem to have a life of its own in this set of tales loosely connected about expeditions sent to Mars, the colonization of Mars, the realization that Martian life exists, the destruction of Earth from human vice, and some small anecdotal stories of people living on Mars. The thing which does bind all these together is the character of Rock Hudson. Hudson does a serviceable job, albeit a bit bland in his role. The script by legendary writer Richard Matheson is pretty good when considering how difficult Ray Bradbury's works are to film or televise. Matheson injects humour, heart, and hope in his teleplay about the human spirit and its quest to survive. Matheson also added some very nice narration that tries, if not always successful, to bring cohesion to the varying plot elements. In the end, the story is successful for its spirit. It is a thoroughly entertaining story. It has some good character acting by the likes of Roddy McDowell, Darren McGavin, Barry Morse, Bernie Casey, and Bernadette Peters. In fact the story that I seemed to remember best from my adolescent days was the one concerning Miss Peters. Hmmm....I wonder why. Anyway, if you like a pretty decent science fiction story, The Martian Chronicles will fit the bill. Its message about living life for the joy of being is a strong one, and one not to be taken too lightly.

Probably another chapter might have been needed for The Martian Chronicles mini-series to have gotten in all of what Ray Bradbury had to say in his epic science fiction work about first contact. It certainly wasn't like Star Trek's First Contact to say the least.

After a couple of failed expeditions that did not return to Earth from Mars in what was projected in 1980 to be the last dozen years or so right now, Rock Hudson the head of NASA heads the third expedition himself. He finds a presumably dead planet, but are these Martians really dead?

The 'Martians' we do meet seem to be at all levels of human development and way in advance of us on Earth. I can see where Gene Roddenberry got his ideas for the Talosian characters who can change appearance and for the incorporeal Organians for Star Trek. We'll meet both kinds in The Martian Chronicles.

Two characters really stand out for me. First is Fritz Weaver as Father Peregrine who together with Roddy McDowall has come to bring Christianity to Mars. But how do you explain religion to beings way in advance of your development. In fact though it's the Christian religion that is used here, all religions on Earth don't take into account other beings on other worlds. Every founder of every religion only had a view of the world he was on. When 'Jesus' played by Jon Finch appears to Fritz Weaver the Martians can't even grasp the nature of Weaver's conception of him. Makes for a very interesting scene.

Secondly Bernie Casey does in the old English colonial term, 'goes native' on Rock Hudson, he so identifies with the Martians as a race potentially to be exploited just as folks originating in his part of Earth were. Casey raises some interesting questions about the morality of what the Earth people are doing. There is war threatening on Earth to annihilate mankind. How many science fiction movies have as their premise a dying race coming to Earth to take it over and enslave mankind? Food for thought.

There's still enough of Ray Bradbury's ideas in this mini-series to make The Martian Chronicles good viewing. One thing I would like to say, as advanced as the Martians are, you would think that what killed them is something they would have taken measure to prevent a long time ago.

This is a British production, made in 1979. The same time as UK's Dr. Who. The production values are almost identical. Of course, there was whimsy in Dr. Who, that made the cheesy effects campy. But still, there they were.

As for the implausibility of a Martian atmosphere and climate like earth's, Bradbury wrote these stories before 1950, when such was considered possible. The producers made a creative choice to retain the conceit that Mars was like Nevada, so the characters wouldn't have to wear space suits all the time.

Those who trash this miniseries because of its production values miss its point. What the Martian Chronicles have going for them are terrific story lines, which the technical problems unfortunately obscure. I can't help thinking Rod Serling took a page from them when he came up with Twilight Zone, with its emphasis on people rather than the technology.

Also fascinating is how the near future is projected. As in 2001: A Space Odyssey, our advancement into space was wildly optimistic, not because it wasn't possible, but because in reality we've lacked the character to see it through. The fact that we should have settlements on Mars by now, if not manned missions to Jupiter, but don't, speaks to how contemptible we are, in choosing rather to pursue personal gratification, while accommodating the barbarous primitives among us. At the end of the Martian Chronicles is an affirmation of what we could yet be, if only we'd decide to stop wallowing in the gutter and once more reach for the stars. Too bad this message is lost on today's fatuous audience.