Ghosts of Mars 4K 2001 Ultra HD 2160p

Story Movie

The action of the film takes place in the distant future when humanity is actively colonizing Mars. The main character, Lieutenant Melanie Ballard, leads a team sent to a remote outpost to deliver a dangerous criminal, James "Desperate" Williams. However, upon arrival, they discover that the outpost is deserted and its inhabitants have become victims of an ancient evil that has awakened from the depths of the planet. Now they must fight against hordes of Martian ghosts that have possessed the bodies of the miners.

Review 4K Movie

The 2001 film “Ghosts of Mars” was one of the hardest blows to the career of once one of Hollywood's most sought-after directors, John Carpenter. His career had already started to crack at the seams in the 90s when movies like “Escape from L.A.” and “Vampires” failed at the box office one after another. Then the producers gave it another chance, but “Ghosts of Mars” failed mightily at the box office, although the movie isn't actually bad and has entertaining moments.

The plot unfolds in the distant future, when people colonized Mars and even created a breathable atmosphere on it. One large city was built on the planet, acting as the capital, as well as many small settlements where miners worked. Mars was governed by a council, which performed the functions of law and justice, and the main character of the story is Marshal Mellanie Ballard, who as part of a force group goes to one of the settlements.

The dangerous criminal James “The Devastator” Williams has done something wrong again and he is taken into custody. In turn, Ballard and other marshals must deliver him by train to the capital of Mars. But arriving in the settlement, the defenders of order find that the streets are empty. The only people in the area are only Williams himself and a couple of other people in the prison section. Soon it turns out that almost all the miners have become possessed by the spirits of Mars, and as soon as they learned that new people have arrived, they take up arms again and go in droves to the settlement, where there is not a single safe area left.

The problem with Carpenter's movie is that it hit the screens at the very beginning of the 21st century, and the director himself seems to have stayed in the 80s. He stays true to his favorite minimalism and theatricality in everything. It concerns both the scenery and the musical accompaniment. In addition, the heroes led by Henstridge and young Jason Statham behave frankly caricatured and throw at each other frankly comical and unrealistic phrases, because of which it is difficult to believe in the drama of their experiences.

In addition, for a movie with such a plot, “Ghost of Mars” has a frankly small budget. Still, 28 million dollars is frankly not enough to make a serious and spectacular fiction with quality special effects in 2001. Nevertheless, despite all the shortcomings, “Ghosts of Mars” will definitely please fans of old-school movies, which John Carpenter has always been faithful.

“Ghosts of Mars” is far from exemplary sci-fi, but the movie has its own special atmosphere and mystique. Nowadays, the movie seems even more outdated than when it was released, but it is a distinctive story that is not part of any franchise and can be safely watched in isolation from anything else.