Soporific Shocker in Shaky-Cam.

What is it with Mars based movies? It's a planet that has been in all our lives via press, geography, history and etc, yet when it comes to film it proves to be a subject too much too far for some film makers.

The makers here add a zombie slant to things, which in truth is just another excuse for a monsters on the loose plot. Only it's in shaky-cam this time, the hope obviously was to add realism to the preposterous story. On the page it clearly had potential to be a fun-packed thriller, the execution sadly not only wastes a grand cast list, but plays out as dull and introduces nothing remotely smart or interesting to the sci-fi and horror genres. 4/10

This is a movie that I kept putting off. I love Science Fiction so I knew it was something to check out. I just thought it looked low-budget and that's something that can cause problems within the genre. My delay in viewing kept the plot entirely unknown to me, which surprisingly ended up hurting my overall rating. Because as it turns out, the threat to the astronauts is zombies.

You see, I am sick of zombies. I've always found them to be totally boring. Disgusting and slow, the only thing threatening about them is that they keep coming. However, that's neutralized by how easily they are stopped. Contrast that against other truly unstoppable forces of Horror like "The Shape" in the original "Halloween", the alien being of "The Thing" or even the sexually transmitted entity of "It Follows". They all can't be stopped. Zombies, though great in number, are usually defeated en masse with a shot or stab to the head. The evil in this movie are basically zombies. They are a little more determined but still escapable.

There is much to like here. The score is quite good. It's atmospheric and electronic with elements of a building dread, but with none of the screeching cues found in most Horror scores. I do hear the usual Hans Zimmer/James Newton Howard shadings. Mash up "The Dark Knight" and "Signs" with moments of "2001: A Space Odyssey" and you'll have the recipe.

The design of the mother ship, the mobile transports, the Aurora, were all very good. The Tantalus Base outpost was what I imagine a functioning Mars laboratory and living quarters would look like. A lot of this is very imaginative and creative.

What isn't so good is the dull, zombie-oriented plot and the just serviceable cast. There are no memorable characters other than Kim, played by Olivia Williams. Her character's strong leadership and resourcefulness is impressive.

I did like the ending. It caught me off-guard and ticked up my overall satisfaction with the film.