The downfall that faced Tobe Hooper's creative relationship with The Cannon Group in the eighties wasn't much different than the fate of George A. Romero's collaboration with Orion Pictures. After leaving an iconic legacy for horror in the previous decade, Hooper had a reputation to live up to when he made a three picture deal with Golan and Globus that resulted in the ambitious, but entertaining failure Lifeforce, the misunderstood parody The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2, and the family friendly remake of Invaders From Mars that helped sink Cannon out of Hollywood forever.
When considering the talent involved in this production that included screenwriting duties from Dan O' Bannon and special effects from legends like Stan Winston (who was simultaneously working on James Cameron's Aliens), John Dykstra (Star Wars) and Alec Gillis, this quite frankly should have been an exhilarating fantasy spectacle at the very least. Ironically, Steven Spielberg was in early talks to direct this project in the early development stages and Hooper obviously wanted to go with Spielberg's familiar family friendly approach. Perhaps Cannon wouldn't have shot themselves in the foot by repeatedly cutting this film's budget during filming if it was Spielberg's master approach of this territory at the helm, instead of Golan and Globus expecting something more horror from a filmmaker who s made one of the terrifying films of the seventies.
When revisiting Invaders From Mars, one of the biggest problems that severed any connection I could make with this film is the annoying lead character David Gardner, portrayed by the terribly miscast son of Karen Black. Much like how Indiana Jones and the Temple Of Doom is meant to be seen from the adolescent perspective of Short Round, the weight of Invaders From Mars rests solely on the shoulders of David and this character doesn't have the imagination or personality of Short Round on paper, not to mention that Black's son lacked the charisma or charm to elevate this character beyond a stubborn and irritating young lad. None of the supporting cast is much help in lifting this burden above mediocrity, including Karen Black herself. Louise Fletcher is game in doing a variation of her Nurse Ratched character from One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, and Bud Cort barely leaves an impression as a nerdy young S.E.T.I. scientist. The only actor that breathes life and energy into his role is the great James Karen of The Return of the Living Dead as an ass kicking, cigar chomping Marine general and carries the duty of delivering the hammiest lines in the movie with full force.
The military retaliation in the finale carries some weight due to the guidance of Dale Dye as a credible military technical advisor, who later achieved fame for being the advisor for Platoon and Starship Troopers. Having real marines as extras at his disposal certainly helped him make the most out of his odds with the production. The spaceship sets are stunning, despite Hooper's baffling creative input, but having talent like Leslie Dilley (Star Wars) on production design and Craig Stearns (Halloween) on art direction will certainly bring something visually interesting to the table. Unfortunately, as a whole Invaders From Mars, is a misguided mess from the out of place Superman-inspired opening title credits to the dream ending premonition.
For fans of Invaders From Mars, Scream Factory's Blu-ray release is an overall worthy addition to your collection, just don't expect a ton of bells and whistles in the special features. Scream Factory once again delivers a quality presentation with a crisp HD visual presentation and high quality sound. There is a new retrospective I found to be more interesting than revisiting the movie itself, called The Martians Are Coming!, that features new interviews with Tobe Hooper, actor Hunter Carson, special creature effects artists Alec Gillis and Gino Crognale, and composer Christopher Young. There's audio commentary with Tobe Hooper along with an illustration gallery that features commentary with artist William Stout and a theatrical trailer and TV spot that rounds everything out.
Movie Score: 2/5, Disc Score: 3/5
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