Director: Tim BurtonScreenplay: Jonathan Gems
Starring: Jack Nicholson, Glenn Close, Annette Bening, Pierce Brosnan, Danny DeVito, Martin Short, Sarah Jessica Parker, Michael J. Fox, Rod Steiger, Tom Jones, Lukas Haas, Natalie Portman, Jim Brown, Lisa Marie, Pam Grier, Jack Black
Country: United States
Running Time: 106 minutes
Year: 1996
BBFC Certificate: 12
Tim Burton’s Mars Attacks! will forever remain my absolute favourite movie of his. It’s his underappreciated lesser-known sci-fi comedy masterpiece with a star-studded 90s cast with titan Jack Nicholson leading the lineup with a dual performance. Every time I revisit this movie, I’m reminded by just how anarchic, dark and irreverent the humour is. It makes for a great social satire.
In time for its 30th anniversary, Warner Brothers is releasing a newly remastered version of the film in 4K UHD. It also comes with a new Dolby Atmos mix – which was terrific. A Bluray disc also comes included but this appears to be a disc from an old release. All the bonus content is on the 4K disc, for a change.
They’ve added new special features, where previously there were none. They feature interviews with the behind-the-scenes filmmakers reflecting on the making of the film. These come in the form of two separate featurettes.
WB kindly provided the steelbook edition, and it came beautifully presented with a Acetate O-Ringsleek, a transparent slipcase and cover art featuring the monstrous aliens’ phrase “Ack! Ack! Ack!”. Paying customers will also receive various posters and art cards.
Revisiting the film again, it really reminded me of Billy’s Wilder’s Kirk Douglas dark comedy satire Ace in the Hole (1951). That story features a similar plot where the idiotic general public flock to a media circus surrounding a man trapped in a cave, and they make a big gleeful event out of it. A similar situation arises around the arrival of the evil aliens. They arrive after an awesome 38-minute build-up where we’re introduced to a huge range of madcap and quirky characters. The aliens’ arrival culminates in utter carnage.
It’s a regular who’s-who of major stars. Nicholson leads the line as the President of the US in what I consider one of my favourite roles of his. He’s a populist politician who can’t stop with the salesman routine until the very end. You can scan above to see just how stacked the cast list was, but I really dug some of the smaller roles.
A young fresh-faced and athletic looking Jack Black crops up, now arguably the biggest comedy star in the world, as a young army cadet. Glen Close and Natalie Portman appears as the first lady and daughter. The most pleasing of all was watching Michael J Fox again in his prime. The storyline involving Sarah Jessica Parker and Pierce Brosnan was brutal. These stars were subjected to so many creative kills in the movie, it was utter chaos. Everything involving Tom Jones was pure hilarity.
Picture and Sound
The 4K UHD picture was utterly striking. It has the famous Burton pop art aesthetic. Where so many 90s films tend to have a washed-out looking environment, Burton’s film brings so much colour with a kitsch pulp over saturated look that gives the sci-elements such a dazzling vibrancy. There was also a lot of colour and dynamism especially to the action scenes – but this is when the sound really came into its element.
The film also comes with a new Dolby Atmos sound feature which was marvellous. I felt so immersed while watching the movie, it was as if I was surrounded by a full-on warzone. It made for such a fun viewing experience.
Film:
Special Features
Looking Back on Mars Attacks!
Filmmakers swap stories about working with Tim Burton on one of the 1990s’ wackiest alien-invasion films: (7.26mins) It was great to the screenwriter Jonathan Gems was a big part of the feature. He speaks about the genesis of the project with Burton. Then there’s discourse about how the film got so many famous actors involved and some of the crazier moments in the movie. Some really interesting stuff about Burton and his incredible imagination.
Ack! Ack!
Aesthetic Explore the distinctive style of Mars Attacks! as filmmakers reveal how then-cutting-edge CGI shaped its iconic look: (10.50mins) There are some great behind the scene clips. They speak about how they achieved some of the special effects, why they chose a certain animation style and the 50/60s aesthetic vibe they were going for.
Special Features:
Warner Brother released Mars Attacks! 4K UHD on 31 August, 2026.