Ghosts of Mars

Béčko, qui se veut sérieux et pense qu'il est super cool, pendant que le spectateur secoue la tête incrédulement. Artificiel, sans magie, essayant maladroitement une anarchie de genre audacieuse ("film d'action de science-fiction d'horreur avec Ice Cube sur Mars" !!!). Les "Fantômes de Mars" sont le type de film que chacun des participants préférerait effacer de sa filmographie. Et il y a aussi plein de stars en émergence et cultes ici. (08/09/2011)

To say the least, a very mediocre B-movie from horror staple John Carpenter, who seems to have exhausted his creative potential in the first half of the 1990s. The open ending suggests that they were counting on a sequel, which I don't really believe and hope won't happen. I'm sorry that this obscure affair stars the charismatic Ice Cube, he deserves to be in better movies. (01/09/2002)

Carpenter is no longer at the top of his game, but this film doesn’t deserve to be called garbage, it’s not that bad, it’s an average B-movie that shouldn’t piss-off anyone (unless you’re expecting another The Thing). The story is fast-paced, the actors are alright, so are the make-up effects, but Ghosts of Mars won’t leave any lasting impression; if that is what you want, better watch The Thing again. (15/08/2007)

Unquestionably the weakest of John Carpenter's films that I have had the opportunity to watch so far. Honestly, I don't understand how the director of The Thing or Madness could have signed this creation at all... That one star is actually more for his previous merits. The acting performances are, diplomatically speaking, uneven, the directing is uninspired, but the crown of it all is the screenplay, for which the author should fry in hell. Similar botched films are occasionally saved by magnificent production, but in this case, that's also worthless. So, all in all: a complete waste of time. Overall impression: 20%. (05/01/2007)

Je ne peux pas m’empêcher de penser que John Carpenter a dû jeter l’éponge au cours du tournage, car on est bien loin de ses perles classiques. Ce film d’horreur bizarrement structuré dont le motif semble tout droit venu des années 80 est emmené par une blonde charmante et un gangsta rapper qui essaient tant bien que mal de jouer les « durs à cuire désenchantés de l’univers ». Et cette finale prétendument cool est tout bonnement pathétique. (23/05/2019)

Terrible actors, crappy script, catastrophic sets, idiotic action, incredibly goofy editing... it's everything I expect from a Carpenter action movie. And from a director who made a name for himself partly by making action movies, despite never knowing how to shoot an action movie. In a way, Ghosts of Mars is a bit of a retread of both his Escape franchise (it was also originally intended to be the third installment of The Tales of Snake Plisskin, which was rewritten after the disastrous Escape from L.A.) and Assault on Precinct 13 taken to the extreme. I mean, B-grade like all get-out, a label everyone proudly swears by today, but back then you’d be very dignified and affronted. (24/10/2020)

If I didn't know that it was filmed by the same director who also made my favorite movie, The Thing (1982), I wouldn't believe it. I still find it hard to believe. This film had a considerable number of flaws, and some moments startled me. No, it wasn't fear; it was just that there were some poorly executed scenes with weird action or messed-up logic. The logic was being disregarded throughout the whole time. Plus, many action scenes looked very poorly done, and some of the performances weren't exactly up to par. Yet, I'm giving it four out of five stars. Why? Because it was a typical action B-movie without any unnecessary message, which is often supposed to compensate for the lack of a plot in movies today. Nobody was trying to guide me ideologically, and no matter what objections I had, the story itself wasn't bad at all, so despite all the negatives, I had a good time. / Lesson learned: An angry group of miners is dangerous enough; doping is redundant. (22/01/2023)