The Last Days on Mars

If this is the best and brightest Earth has to sent into space we need to defend NASA. If this is how people act after 6 months in isolation we need to train crews better. They argued, made stupid decisions, and disobeyed orders just like normal people, not people who have trained their entire lives for space travel.

I remember when this came out having absolutely no interest, though the solid cast appealed nothing else did. Now I've seen it I see that I was wrong, mostly.

Starring Liev Schreiber, Elias Koteas and Olivia Williams the film has no issues with it's cast. The premise being of the horror sci-fi type was not what I expected and I certainly mean that in a good way!

The film was interestingly constructed, had my attention and when the first encounter took place it had me gripped. This was good! This was really good and I couldn't wait to see where this adventure was going to go.

Sadly shortly after the quality starts to dip, the potential I saw gets thrown in the trash and the incredible movie I foresaw faded away. Gone was the premise, gone was the tension, gone was the interest.

Sure it doesn't get bad, but it doesn't retain the same quality and it certainly doesn't utilize its potential. I was fascinated by this concept so why did they have to drop the ball so badly? There are so few movies that deal with such subject matter so when one comes out and wastes it's opportunity it's heartbreaking.

The Last Days on Mars is still a watchable affair but damn it should have been so very much better.

The Good:

Starts strong

Great cast

The Bad:

Quality dips hard

Disappointing ending

THE LAST DAYS ON MARS is a surprisingly well-made film about things we've already seen before. And that's the charm that makes it worth watching. To begin with, the film is brisk (1 1/2 hours) and doesn't waste much time in telling its story. Even the few moments of quiet contemplation of life/death don't overstay their welcome. The characters don't make stupid decisions, but they do make them with little motivation.

The film is essentially a cross between 28 DAYS LATER and THE THING, but the film is aware of its influences and doesn't try to reinvent the wheel. If anything, it strips them down to the foundation and goes with a simple explanation that feels more believable than 28 DAYS LATER. The film takes the technology seriously without turning it into a spectacle. It kind of reminds me of RED PLANET in that sense, but it doesn't depend on CGI spectacle to lend undeserved importance. The film very simply suggests that the characters be taken as real people who are reacting to the situation in front of them, just on a different planet where the rules of survival are equally alien.

TLDOM is worth watching because of the skill and confidence of the people making it. Perhaps the only thing holding it back from the attention it deserves is that in spite of that skill, it doesn't have anything different to say.

I am a fan of the space/horror genre, and always try and watch whatever is about, but somehow this passed me by. I was keen to watch it, even more so when I say it had Liev Schreiber in it, what a surprise. I'm assuming this was a box office flop, or simply didn't even make it to the big screen, and that's a shame, as it's a really decent watch. The story isn't particularly original, it's been done to death, but the execution was really rather good. It was atmospheric, beautifully shot, and well acted. Liev Schreiber of course was great, so strange to watch Romola Garai in sci fi, seen her in so many costume dramas, but she was excellent. I liked the imagery of the 'zombies,' and I liked the sense of panic and claustrophobia that was generated. One that got away, I really liked it. 7/10

When watching the trailer I couldn't help but feel intrigued. Although it gave you a basic idea of what the film was about (the title is a massive clue), it didn't give any sign of the problem that would occur. I liked that, normally it is just standard procedure for a newly released movie to throw its cards on the table and show the inquisitive audience what to expect. "The Last Days on Mars" doesn't exactly follow in that tradition and leaves you guessing up until the moment the horror is realised.

Although location and purpose is completely different i couldn't help but associate it with "Sunshine"; of course with a less stellar cast. Just the crew falling apart, and mentality being tested in such environments. Not to take anything away from this, it does have its own display of originality, the location (mostly Jordan) was simplistic but effective; not needing Transformers to take away from the scenery. I thought Liev Schreiber played his part well, he gets a lot of flack, but he produces a solid display of acting. Everyone else just did their job; no-one really stood out.

Now although I enjoyed this film, there where several things that bugged me. Acting left a lot to be desired. The little flashback back-story was very, very anti climatic. Some of the characters where in need of a slap and the story lacked certitude.