George Taylor One cannot make steak with a hamburger budget. I wish this lame attempt to bring one of the greatest Science Fiction novels to the screen had the budget for hamburger! Badly directed, terrible effects and sets, horrible cast with the exception of Darren McGavin and Bernie Casey, this is a horrible attempt. Just bad enough to be on the SyFy channel today. Really. I wish IMBD. would give in and let zero stars be a rating.

Daryl_G_Morrissey After watching Ray Bradbury's 'The Martian Chronicles, part 1' last night, I was up early this morning to watch parts 2 & 3.Considering I hadn't watched them since I was a kid, there was quite a lot I remembered. There was also a lot more that I understood, now.Granted the effects are a very dated, but the storyline still holds true today. The theme of whether it is right for us to go to Mars, even as explorers, gives rise to many questions. Would the Martians take our arrival as us trying to colonise or conquer their world? Would we soon destroy their planet as we did ours? Would we be able to co-exist with the Martians or would we resort to genocide? Each part is, in itself, a separate Chronicle of the colonisation of Mars. Part 1 begins in 1976 with the first unmanned landing on the Red Planet, followed by the first two expeditions, the first in 1979, which end in tragedy for both the Human crew members and the Native Martians. The third expedition shows one crew member, Spender, trying to save the Martian ideals while also trying to stop the his own crew members from disrespecting and polluting the Martian world.Part 2 follows on with many Human colonists spread out in small colonies over Mars. The underlying story in part 2, is what is going on back on Earth. With the last superpowers escalating hostilities toward each other, it soon becomes clear that War is inevitable. On Mars, the colonists have to decide whether to return home, to maybe die with their families and friends or stay on Mars and hope for a better future. Unfortunately, War does come and both sides annihilate each other, leading the Earth burned and dying.Part 3 continues with the last handful of colonists each trying to survive on an almost deserted planet. The year is now 2007 and Colonel Wilder, whose story has tied the three parts together, returns from a trip to the now barren Earth and, goes on a search to find some living Martians. This ends with him taking his family to learn the Martian way of life and to hopefully learn how they survived for Millennia. And with the consent and understanding of his family, Colonel Wilder destroys the last Rocket, that could take them away from Mars.After nearly five hours of classic sci-fi, I just had to write this synopsis / review of what has now become one of favourite sci-fi adventures, ever.

MartinHafer Back when it debuted on TV, I watched and enjoyed "The Martian Chronicles". Now, a bazillion years later (or so my daughters say), I decided to try watching it again for old time sake. Well, if you've heard the expression 'you can't go back', that pretty sums up what it was like watching the film. It just didn't age well and I found myself a lot more critical this go around. The main problem was the cheapness of the film. Even by 1979-80 standards, it was pretty poor and doesn't come close to the qualities of other sci-fi of the time. Poor matte paintings, crappy sets (such as how one colonist home on Mars looks just like any old home you'd see on TV--including the same crappy wallpaper--even though they JUST had started colonizing the place!) and shabby props do little to create the ambiance of Mars. Additionally, the story was VERY inconsistent--and I don't blame this on the Ray Bradbury short stories on which it was based. Some tales are haunting--others (such as the one with Joyce Van Patten and Darren McGavin) are just embarrassingly poor. What we need is a remake--a newer and better produced one. Overall, a very sad viewing experience, as I really, really wanted to like it.

jacksflicks This is a British production, made in 1979. The same time as UK's Dr. Who. The production values are almost identical. Of course, there was whimsy in Dr. Who, that made the cheesy effects campy. But still, there they were. As for the implausibility of a Martian atmosphere and climate like earth's, Bradbury wrote these stories before 1950, when such was considered possible. The producers made a creative choice to retain the conceit that Mars was like Nevada, so the characters wouldn't have to wear space suits all the time.Those who trash this miniseries because of its production values miss its point. What the Martian Chronicles have going for them are terrific story lines, which the technical problems unfortunately obscure. I can't help thinking Rod Serling took a page from them when he came up with Twilight Zone, with its emphasis on people rather than the technology.Also fascinating is how the near future is projected. As in 2001: A Space Odyssey, our advancement into space was wildly optimistic, not because it wasn't possible, but because in reality we've lacked the character to see it through. The fact that we should have settlements on Mars by now, if not manned missions to Jupiter, but don't, speaks to how contemptible we are, in choosing rather to pursue personal gratification, while accommodating the barbarous primitives among us. At the end of the Martian Chronicles is an affirmation of what we could yet be, if only we'd decide to stop wallowing in the gutter and once more reach for the stars. Too bad this message is lost on today's fatuous audience.