Reviews of 'Last Day on Mars' + interview by The Hollywood Reporter
Several news outlets have released their review of 'Last Days on Mars', which premiered in the Cannes Film Festival. Here's an interview with Olivia and the director, Ruairi Robinson. (there are stills from the movie + discussion of the movie's plot)
link, in case embed doesn't work
Excerpts of the reviews will be under a cut because spoilers.
From FirstShowing.Net (6/10 stars)
At least with the visual effects, Robinson gives us something to appreciate. It does borrow from the likes of Alien and Prometheus, including the flashing-lights-alarms-in-enclosed-spaces style, but he uses the camera effectively in shots. It doesn't so much feel like an independent film, which is really the biggest achievement, but it doesn't help that there's a blaring Universal Pictures opening animation at the beginning to remind us this still had some money behind it. I can't even say much for the performances either, with Liev Schreiber being serviceable at most, and Olivia Williams taking cake as the nuttiest character, however Elias Koteas was highly underutilized and the rest of the cast didn't even have much of a chance to make an impression.
From the LA Times
Well-written by Clive Dawson in a plot initially reminiscent of Ridley Scott’s “Prometheus,” a crew member discovers a form of bacterial life on the planet and makes the mistake of thinking of taking it back to Earth. The bacterium, however, turns out to have the nasty habit of turning crew members into grotesque and violent zombies (are there any other kind?).
The story may be familiar, but the way Robinson has directed it is undeniably gripping. “Mars” is a nifty genre exercise, a lean, muscular and fast-moving B picture that shows that science-fiction smartly done on a budget can hold its own with anything.
From Variety
As the rapidly dwindling crew attempts to keep the rabid predators at bay, Robinson tries to play on his characters’ mutual mistrust and a mounting sense of claustrophobia. But the characters are all ciphers in spacesuits, playing out a bare-bones formula: There’s the tough, wisecracking hero (Liev Schreiber), the sweet young medic (Romola Garai), the wise crew leader who succumbs too soon (Elias Koteas), the insufferable hardass you’d want on your side in a crisis (Olivia Williams), et al. All of which would have been more or less acceptable if the film succeeded in packing a visceral punch or generating real suspense.
From Screen Daily
As the characters amiably shuffle their way through rote zombification, what’s missing is a sense of peril on the way to the film’s intriguing finale. With zombies in the low figures, The Last Days On Mars could lack enough meat for genre fans to feed on, and it needs more brains to bring out the Alien fanbase. However, genre fans are a resilient lot and this mid-budget outing from may have enough star-power to secure decent returns internationally.
Jordan stands in for Mars as the film’s real selling point, outside reliably good performances from Schreiber and Koteas, with Olivia Williams at her scene-stealing best.
link, in case embed doesn't work
Excerpts of the reviews will be under a cut because spoilers.
From FirstShowing.Net (6/10 stars)
At least with the visual effects, Robinson gives us something to appreciate. It does borrow from the likes of Alien and Prometheus, including the flashing-lights-alarms-in-enclosed-spaces style, but he uses the camera effectively in shots. It doesn't so much feel like an independent film, which is really the biggest achievement, but it doesn't help that there's a blaring Universal Pictures opening animation at the beginning to remind us this still had some money behind it. I can't even say much for the performances either, with Liev Schreiber being serviceable at most, and Olivia Williams taking cake as the nuttiest character, however Elias Koteas was highly underutilized and the rest of the cast didn't even have much of a chance to make an impression.
From the LA Times
Well-written by Clive Dawson in a plot initially reminiscent of Ridley Scott’s “Prometheus,” a crew member discovers a form of bacterial life on the planet and makes the mistake of thinking of taking it back to Earth. The bacterium, however, turns out to have the nasty habit of turning crew members into grotesque and violent zombies (are there any other kind?).
The story may be familiar, but the way Robinson has directed it is undeniably gripping. “Mars” is a nifty genre exercise, a lean, muscular and fast-moving B picture that shows that science-fiction smartly done on a budget can hold its own with anything.
From Variety
As the rapidly dwindling crew attempts to keep the rabid predators at bay, Robinson tries to play on his characters’ mutual mistrust and a mounting sense of claustrophobia. But the characters are all ciphers in spacesuits, playing out a bare-bones formula: There’s the tough, wisecracking hero (Liev Schreiber), the sweet young medic (Romola Garai), the wise crew leader who succumbs too soon (Elias Koteas), the insufferable hardass you’d want on your side in a crisis (Olivia Williams), et al. All of which would have been more or less acceptable if the film succeeded in packing a visceral punch or generating real suspense.
From Screen Daily
As the characters amiably shuffle their way through rote zombification, what’s missing is a sense of peril on the way to the film’s intriguing finale. With zombies in the low figures, The Last Days On Mars could lack enough meat for genre fans to feed on, and it needs more brains to bring out the Alien fanbase. However, genre fans are a resilient lot and this mid-budget outing from may have enough star-power to secure decent returns internationally.
Jordan stands in for Mars as the film’s real selling point, outside reliably good performances from Schreiber and Koteas, with Olivia Williams at her scene-stealing best.