Released in 2001, the American science fiction film "The Ghosts of Mars" almost ruined the career of the legendary Hollywood director, screenwriter and composer John Carpenter. The picture was a box office failure and received negative reviews from most reputable film critics. Even the fact that some actors of the movie "Ghosts of Mars" have the status of Hollywood stars did not save from low ratings and losses. According to the unanimous opinion of the audience and critics, director John Carpenter, who became famous in the past as the cult action movie Escape from New York, faced a severe creative crisis and lost the ability to make high-quality films.
Plot
The film takes place in the second half of the 22nd century. The human race has managed to colonize Mars, artificially changing the atmosphere of this planet, as well as its temperature and climatic conditions. Immigrants can be on the surface without spacesuits. Martian society is based on matriarchy: all important government posts are held by women.
One of the main characters is police lieutenant Melanie Ballard. She is tasked with delivering an arrested criminal nicknamed Desolation (Devastation) from a small mining town. When they reached a remote settlement, Ballard and members of the police team found that all the locals had disappeared. Later it turns out that they found an underground portal built by an ancient Martian civilization. Ethereal spirits escaped from his freedom, which inhabited the bodies of the inhabitants of a mining town. Obsessed with ghosts, people kill each other, and also commit acts of destruction and self-harm. The police fight with them, but the forces are unequal. After the death of the commander, Lieutenant Ballard was forced to take over the leadership of the squad.
Actors and roles
The film "Ghosts of Mars" boasts the participation of several celebrities. Especially dangerous criminal played rapper Ice Cube. Initially, it was assumed that the image of the prisoner will be embodied on the screen by Jason Statham, but the producers rejected his candidacy. In those years, he was not too famous for the audience, and the creators of the picture decided to invite such a star as Ice Cube to this role. Statham played a less visible character - police officer Jericho Butler, who heroically dies in a battle with ghosts.
The search for a candidate for the main female role was accompanied by numerous difficulties. Courtney Love agreed to play Lieutenant Ballard, but could not do this due to a leg injury. Famke Janssen and Frank Potente rejected the proposal of the creators of the film "Ghosts of Mars". Actors often avoided collaborating with John Carpenter, whose reputation has already been tarnished by a number of failed paintings. In the end, the Canadian character Natasha Henstridge became the main character.
In the film "Ghosts of Mars", actors and supporting roles sometimes make a more vivid impression than the main characters. Many viewers noted Jason Statham's compelling play. The role of the commander of the police squad, Helena Braddock, was played by Pam Grier, a famous African-American actress and film industry veteran.
Filming
The difficulties in the process of creating the film were associated not only with the selection of actors. The "Ghosts of Mars" was originally conceived as a continuation of a cult story about the adventures of the one-eyed war hero Snake Plissken, who became a criminal. The most famous film in this series is "Escape from New York," filmed by Carpenter in 1981. However, subsequent returns to the screen of the Snake of Plissken did not bring much commercial success, and not a single film studio agreed to finance another sequel. Carpenter was forced to rewrite the script for the film "Ghosts of Mars." Actors on the set worked to the limit of physical capabilities. Production of the painting had to be suspended for a week, as Natasha Henstridge fell ill due to overwork.
Critic reviews
According to film connoisseurs, the low quality of visual effects, excessive theatricality and poor script were the main reasons for the failure of the film “Ghosts of Mars”. Actors who performed the roles of the main characters also gave very skeptical reviews about the quality of the picture. Ice Cube said that the film disappointed him, and he agreed to take part in the project only because of personal respect for Carpenter.
Interesting Facts
Filming of the Martian landscape took place in a gypsum mine. Using a huge amount of food coloring, the white mineral was given a red color.
The main part of the action takes place in the dark, despite the fact that on Mars the cycle of the change of day and night is almost identical in duration to the earth.
After the film failed at the box office, John Carpenter announced that he would leave the film industry forever. However, in 2010, he returned to directing and shot the psychological thriller "Chamber".