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One of the most widely used cliché’s of science fiction is the Little Green Men or LGMs. That and several other phrases are used to describe some of the frequently used and rather bad plot devices in science fiction movies. In the case of this movie, even the exaggerations are exaggerated. It starts with an all-star cast led by Jack Nicholson playing two roles. He plays the president of the United States and a glittery Las Vegas huckster. Among others, Glenn Close is the First Lady, Pierce Brosnan is a perpetual pipe smoking intellectual, Jim Brown is an ex-fighter now working as a Las Vegas gladhander, Martin Short is the White House Press Secretary and Danny DeVito is a loudmouth Vegas gambler. Every single role is deliberately overplayed, you get the impression that the actors really enjoyed hamming it up. The villains are Martians carrying disintegrator guns and that have green Jell-O for brains. Like the classic tale by H. G. Wells, at first the Martians win all the battles, but eventually the humans discover their fundamental weakness and after that the humans quickly win the war. That weakness is hilarious. Even though the stakes are the survival of humans on Earth, there is never a truly serious moment in this movie. It is truly impossible to select the one most absurd parody in the movie, there are so many, and all are so overdone. Read full review
Verified purchase: No
Directed by Tim Burton and released in 1996, this movie features Jack Nicholson, Annette Bening, Glenn Close, Natalie Portman, Lukas Haas, Jack Black, Michael J. Fox, Sarah Jessica Parker, Pierce Brosnan, Danny DeVito, Pam Grier, Martin Short, and Christina Applegate among others. The better question is, who isn't in this movie? The plot revolves around the age-old tale of Martians coming to Earth and invading. At first due to communication problems, everyone believes it's a misunderstanding and it isn't. Jack Nicholson is one of my favorite Presidents, mostly for his oration particularly when delivering the line, "I want the people to know that they still have two out of three branches of the government working for them and that ain't bad." Glenn Close plays the first lady who wants to redecorate the White House and Natalie Portman plays their brooding teenage daughter. It's a shame Natalie isn't in more of the movie. But I guess when you have all these big names going on and Jack playing two roles at once, there just isn't enough screen time to go around. Yes, Jack Nicholson also plays the owner of Galaxy hotel in Vegas and is married to an unhappy Annette Bening who turns to her crystals in times of crisis. Her space cadet quality has many humorous moments, but can get a trifle annoying when her voice approaches a certain octave. Sarah Jessica Parker has always annoyed me and this movie is no different. Her character constantly primps herself and doesn't have an intelligent bone in her body. However, justice comes in and has her switch bodies with her little purse dog. She shamelessly flirts with Pierce Brosnan in this form, which is fantastic because he has been reduced to a floating head. All of this occurs because the Martians are a little experimental. I really enjoy Pierce Brosnan as the "Professor of the White House" because it's hilarious to see him puffing his pipe and reasoning that advanced beings are enlightened and therefore peaceful. I can imagine him as the professor on Gilligan's island, it would crack me up. Let's see, other sub-plots. Lukas Haas, an actor we don't see enough of although he did appear in the first few episodes of season four of 24, plays a poor doughnut shop worker who is looked down upon by his family for not going around shooting everything he sees like his brother, Jack Black. Jack Black trains putting weapons together with a blindfold on and huffs and puffs into battle. At the first sign of action, he runs up to the aliens, delivers a sassy battle cry, and proceeds to be unable to fire because his gun falls apart. Karma, sweet karma. Don't worry, fans. I'm sure he'll rock it out when the Tenacious D movie comes out. Anyway, Lukas Haas and his grandmother save the world when they realize her horrible country crooning record makes the Martians' heads explode. Let me just say I love Pam Grier in this movie in particular. If you haven't seen Jackie Brown, run, do not walk, to the nearest Blockbuster/Video rental store of choice. She plays a mother who has a difficult time keeping an eye on her children but works hard to raise them right. My favorite moment is when she spots them in an arcade after not being home for two days and promptly stops the bus she's driving to drag them home. The bus applauds. So did I. She is separated from Jim Brown who does an honorable job of facing down the Martians old-school boxing style to help friends get away. Good, not great movie.Read full review
I rented the original War of the Worlds (1953) movie, and the later 2005 Pendragon version, when the newest Spielberg/Tom Cruise "blockbuster" edition hit the video stores. Watched all three movies over the course of a week. The oldest one was the best, the Pendragon version totally stunk, and the "new" Spielberg/Cruise effort was a big disappointment. Then I saw Mars Attacks! Now I understand why country music survives in our gene pool. "Mars Attacks!" is the very best of the "War of the Worlds" movies; and they did it by not taking themselves seriously. Very funny! If you want a "serious" movie that's been made funny by the passage of time, get the '53 original. If you want a movie that's just plain funny, get Mars Attacks!. (If you're looking for a serious version of War of the Worlds that doesn't suck...keep waiting. Maybe they'll make it someday.)Read full review
Watch this instead of Independence Day or the War of the Worlds remake- A hilarious satire of all the alien invasion movies, Jack Nicholson is great in his role as US president, as the government succumbs to the alien attacks. I won't spoil the ending, but civilization as we know it does survive.
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
This film is a great comedy with lots of big name stars in some very unusual roles. There is lots of action and slapstick humor for ages 10 and above. The movie is so off the wall, it won't worry people about an upcoming invasion. This is a light bit of fluff film but sometimes that is just what we need. There are too many blood and guts films that are so graffic and inappropriate for the youth of today. This is a laugh classic!
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