John Carpenter is one of the very few directors in Hollywood whom have ventured into other areas of filmmaking. Carpenter really stands out, in that way. Sometimes serving as the writer on films and most notably, also as a composer. Making him a truly unique triple threat. Carpenter has ventured into iconic status thanks to his creations like Michael Myers & Snake Plissken. Characters that have proceeded their screen status and have gone onto find homes in fellow sequels and mediums. Though, status can cause other work to get lost in the shuffle of their more famous siblings. Years before Christopher Nolan ever set sail to find humanity a new home in Interstellar or Ridley Scott ever explored the stars with Matt Damon in the Martian, Carpenter took us to Mars.
Set in the latter half of the 22nd Century, Earth’s humanity has been brought to a new age and planet – a terraformed Earth. Ghosts of Mars tells the story of a crew of law enforcement who have been tasked with transporting a prisoner from point A to point B. Only when they arrive to the transport destination, they are met with fury by a group of bloodthirsty savages. Ghosts of Mars feels lost in time. The film didn’t hit the big screens until the summer of 2001. Ghosts feels like one of those movies you’d go see in the drive-in, b-movie days of the 1970s. Thanks to its soundtrack, though, by Anthrax, Buckethead and Carpenter – the movie feels modernized for today’s audiences.
The cast is led by Ice Cube, Natasha Henstridge and features a very young Jason Statham. Ghosts is a mixed bag of goodies. While as much as my inner sci-fi, drive-in nerd wanted more from this movie, it is not without its faults. In some mystical fashion, it manages to operate in today’s climate but feels like a love letter to the drive-in movement of the 1970s. Having leads in Cube and Henstridge, viewers are invited to experience a modern day take on such movies. When the film leans into that identity, that is when it is the strongest. It’s consistently engaging in its action, sci-fi, practical effects and rocking soundtrack – quite literally. Thanks Scott Ian. Henstridge, even as a leading actress, feels out of time. Her performance feels in some ways like a love letter to Jane Fonda’s Barbarella. It’s a fun action-packed performance but there is no real depth.
Honestly, that’s’ where the film starts to dip. Featuring Cube as the blood thirsty criminal who manages to beat the system, feels a bit stereotypical. Cube has always been featured as an intense performance, even from his days in NWA. I have to give it to Carpenter, even as shallowly written as Cube feels, no one else could have managed to bring him to life. Cube rivals Henstridge for strength in the action department. Further fueling the impact of Ghosts and its action-packed fun. Statham, however, could be viewed as the weakest part of the movie. He is shallowly written, thanks to his sex-crazed mentality and lines. Leaning, once again, into stereotypes and clichés science fiction. He feels like he was written with the idea of giving a horny boy a gun. He is constantly challenging the tone of the film. Just feels out of place from everyone else.
Overall, Ghosts of Mars, much like Mars’ atmosphere hasn’t arrived to 100%. The film feels out of time thanks to its timeless pursuit of action packed sci-fi. It operates in beauty, action and its need for the drive-in audience. Boldly led by Natasha Henstridge and Ice Cube, Ghosts never quite grows past a fun action movie. The two leads rival one enough for the fun energy, the movie consistently creates. Though, the two-dimensionality of the characters gives the film a level of shallowness there is no coming back from. However, its’ soundtrack and practical effects help create a bit of depth and nostalgia to the final product.
RORSCHACH RATING
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