I actually own a dvd copy of this movie. It's a film that once in awhile I can turn on and just relax. There's no deep thought required, no plot holes, just protagonists fighting off an enemy. The fact that John Carpenter made it has some merit for me. Considering The Thing is perhaps my favorite sci fi horror movie of all time.
Same here. The Thing is just amazing and still holds up today. Even more than any of the modern stuff which uses more CG than practical effects. Maybe I did out Ghost of Mars. Has been ages since I have seen it.
I have to say, I liked Ghosts of Mars....I was shocked to find that people didn't like it. There was a very distinct style to this movie that folks forget, most of the story is told in a series of flashbacks, a style that I really enjoyed. The transitions were really cool and the music was on point. I also felt that the sets were believable and I wanted to see more of Mars. I feel that a good movie is one that has you thinking about it the next day and even to this day, if someone mentions Ghost of Mars, I get bombarded with mental images. I wasn't a fan of The Ward but I do feel that Ghosts of Mars deserves another look, there is a bunch to like about the movie.
I agree, The Ghosts of Mars is a great movie, also very political, not just a flick. It covers a lot of very serious issues, themes, such as the righteousness of those who colonize the territory, even a planet to claim that they have the right to destroy it and the life on it, too, the live forms that lived before the settlers, the colonizers arrived. With no knowledge of their culture, their habits, they simply want to destroy them, yes, even nuke them. Sounds familiar history? So, Carpenter yet again explores a very important subject matter in his Ghosts of Mars. It also came out very close to the September 11th in 2001, when another very significant deed that shapes our history to this day, occured. This movie is even prophetic.
I went to this movie opening weekend with my cousin and his wife. And it was exactly what we wanted it to be, an action packed Sci fi popcorn escape. Perfect for blowing off some steam in an air-conditioned theater after a hot Texas work week
The early 2000s was actually saturated with Mars movies. Including Red Planet, Mission to Mars & Ghost of Mars none of which were cash cows but I loved all of them! The Marilyn Manson looking villain in Ghost of Mars reminded me very much of Valek from Vampires. (I was 10)
I still go back and watch Red planet, mission to Mars and ghosts of Mars...the music was so close to being great in ghosts of Mars...if they had incorporated the music just a little more and let the band jam out...there are parts of the movie that are mostly silent where I'm just like sht they need to let loose some badazz metal right now to pump me up lol
Roger Ebert always took films at their face value, what they set out to accomplish. Ghosts of Mars does exactly that, and so the positive review is glowing approbation of those goals.
@@michaelmyers3709well, in your opinion. Not everyone goes by how much money a movie made. They go by how entertaining it is. Pull a stick out of your ass once a while and you'll see. Rather watch shit like this than any goddamn "Oscar contender" any day of the week.
It's one of those movies that if I run into it while channel surfing, I usually go back and either watch for it for awhile or finish it. The way he does pictures is old school and reminds me of other directors which probably makes me keep watching the same old movies over and over. Thanks Minty!
You can run "10 Things" episodes about all of John Carpenter's library. It's too bad he didn't get greater reception for his movies earlier. At least he stuck to his guns and did what he wanted to do so we got masterpieces like Big Trouble in Little China, the Escape movies, The Thing, They Live, etc. Awesome & great fun movies!!!
Fun fact: they held mass auditions for the "martians" (alien controlled horde) in Albuquerque. An agent from the film went to the gyms around town posting fliers and asking people to cone be extras. My family owned the Taylor branch of Health Clubs of America at the time, and we had several people who frequented our gym get hired as extras. :)
Oh my god!!! I had forgotten about that. I worked at Defined Fitness at the time. We had a few members and employees be in it as well. I went to your club back in the day a few times!!! Time flies!!!!👍👍👍
Didn't he just?!! There's sort of a feeling that Mr Statham is only able to play Mr Statham but I disagree. The versatility that he demonstrated in Mean Machine by playing a Scottish Mr Statham was an almost chameleonic transformation.
Brilliant film! Watched it for the umpteenth time only a few days ago. Plot, characters, soundtrack outstanding! Great to hear some new things about it.
I remember seeing this and really enjoying it. You summed it up as a simple and fun 80s action sci-fi movie. Even re-watching it I really enjoyed it and can appreciate the cast now. Everything doesn't need to be a once in a lifetime classic drama.
Ghost of Mars is good movie to watch when you want to just relax with plenty of omg moments and cheesey one liners. I also like the fact that there’s virtually no politics involved in this movie but just a simple yet entertaining story. As with Carpenter’s other works it’s like fine wine that just gets better with time.
Awesome! Great movie. I also really love the soundtrack, being a metal shredder myself. With the like of Anthrax, Steve Vai and Buckethead, it's really great.
it was never supposed to be a formatted blockbuster , only based on the top notch fx of the moment , that's an old school b+ movie simply , but it still shreds to pieces !!!
I go to every movie with a "switch my mind off at the door" mentality. To me, that's kind of the point. I've never actually seen it, but I probably would have enjoyed it at the time, even if I forgot about it the moment I left the theater. Great video. Very informative. Thanks.
I dont blame John for disliking his own film. Its not too good even for a popcorn film. I always expect good things from the Man who made Halloween and Prince of Darkness. Oh well.
I've often said "I love this film,but don't know why". My son says the same thing. The film has a John Wyndham feel about it,and I've often wondered if it was one of his tales that inspired this movie. Sad to hear that Mr Carpenter has retired, as he's provided us with some of Science Fictions best.
I loved Vampires! The way Jack Crowe didn't give a flying frakk about the Vampire Lord(I forget his name) was inches away from killing him and continued to taunt him :)
Thanks for the great video. I love this movie. I was working at Blockbuster video when I saw this movie. I recommend it to everyone that walk in the door. And everyone love it too. Many people after watching it said, if I didn't recommend the movie they wouldn't have picked it up. I love John Carpenter's movies. Thanks again.
I just randomly thought of the movie and wondered why we never got a number 2 and expansion of the ghosts. So I turned to youtube and saw your vid. Think we see now with disney and marvel and rotten tomatoes why poor films and series get high praise and why gems like this were ignored.
This is exactly why I don’t listen to critics. GOM is a brilliant popcorn action cheapie. John Carpenter can do NO wrong, he’s never made a single bad film. Nice one Minty 👍
I saw this opening weekend when I was a kid. I was entertained by it. Never understood why it was so frowned upon... Sure it's not's exactly one of Carpenter's masterpieces, but it's still fun.
Great video! I heard that Ghosts of Mars began as a movie adaption of the role playing game Mutant Chronicles (which has some awesome monster and weapons concept art) that Carpenter was set to direct. The evil zombies in the movie are actually based on Mutant Chronicle characters. The project got stalled, then killed by the studio... so John used the make-up he had developed so far (for the main bad guy) and wrote Ghosts of Mars.
And Mutant Chronicles did eventually get made, with Ron Perlman, Thomas Jane, and Malkovich, and made 7 times less money, than Ghost of Mars - 2 mil out of the same 24-25 million budget. I still haven't watched it, but bought multiple times on DVD and BD... 😂
I do watch his videos regardless if I’m interested in the films or not cause he makes it so much fun. Some movies I’ve seen and others on a waiting list. Hope to see them all one day.
Hey, I liked Jurassic Park 3!!! As for Ghosts of Mars, I bought it on Blu Ray, because of Natasha Henstridge. I actually enjoyed the film for what it is, and I like John Carpenter's movies.
I saw this movie in a theater near me when it came out and I pretty much liked it. My only criticism about the story was that it contradicted itself at one point. When it was decided that killing the zombies was their only hope, the story continues with the fact that the killed zombies just keep coming back. Making killing them pointless in the beginning.
I watched this film when I was 20 years old, on a Friday night home alone. I thought it was a pretty cool movie and I was a little creeped out by the main Martian!
I've always followed Richard Cetrone's career after this, even when he's just doing stunts. I like to remind people that a majority of the Batfleck "warehouse scene" everybody loves is actually Richard in the suit. Edit: Sidenote: I grew up in Austin, and I remember that Chronicle review! (the Chronicle is the hoity-toity artsy-fartsy paper in town, btw. Unless it was independent and dramatic, they didn't like anything.) My buddy and I went to go see it on opening night, and there was one other person in the theater.
Saved me a comment! Cetrone is a legend and I happily sit through GoM just to see his performance. That Warehouse scene is god tier thanks to him and the stunt team... I like to try and spot his random appearances in most of Zack Snyder's films and especially loved him as Zeus in Army of the Dead... 🤟🏻
I actually own a dvd copy of this movie. It's a film that once in awhile I can turn on and just relax. There's no deep thought required, no plot holes, just protagonists fighting off an enemy. The fact that John Carpenter made it has some merit for me. Considering The Thing is perhaps my favorite sci fi horror movie of all time.
Same here. The Thing is just amazing and still holds up today. Even more than any of the modern stuff which uses more CG than practical effects. Maybe I did out Ghost of Mars. Has been ages since I have seen it.
I love They Live from John Carpenter too
Same, with the addition to I imagine it being escape from mars and pretend it’s snake 🐍
Never seen it. Love his last name but makes movies instead
The Thing is based on real events, Russian scientists discovered real crazy creature/s down there. Only military/Govts are allowed there
I have to say, I liked Ghosts of Mars....I was shocked to find that people didn't like it. There was a very distinct style to this movie that folks forget, most of the story is told in a series of flashbacks, a style that I really enjoyed. The transitions were really cool and the music was on point. I also felt that the sets were believable and I wanted to see more of Mars. I feel that a good movie is one that has you thinking about it the next day and even to this day, if someone mentions Ghost of Mars, I get bombarded with mental images. I wasn't a fan of The Ward but I do feel that Ghosts of Mars deserves another look, there is a bunch to like about the movie.
A lot of people don't like Grindhouse I love Grindhouse that's why a lot of people did not like ghosts of Mars.....................
I agree, The Ghosts of Mars is a great movie, also very political, not just a flick. It covers a lot of very serious issues, themes, such as the righteousness of those who colonize the territory, even a planet to claim that they have the right to destroy it and the life on it, too, the live forms that lived before the settlers, the colonizers arrived. With no knowledge of their culture, their habits, they simply want to destroy them, yes, even nuke them. Sounds familiar history? So, Carpenter yet again explores a very important subject matter in his Ghosts of Mars. It also came out very close to the September 11th in 2001, when another very significant deed that shapes our history to this day, occured. This movie is even prophetic.
I went to this movie opening weekend with my cousin and his wife. And it was exactly what we wanted it to be, an action packed Sci fi popcorn escape. Perfect for blowing off some steam in an air-conditioned theater after a hot Texas work week
I like your style.
The early 2000s was actually saturated with Mars movies. Including Red Planet, Mission to Mars & Ghost of Mars none of which were cash cows but I loved all of them! The Marilyn Manson looking villain in Ghost of Mars reminded me very much of Valek from Vampires. (I was 10)
I still go back and watch Red planet, mission to Mars and ghosts of Mars...the music was so close to being great in ghosts of Mars...if they had incorporated the music just a little more and let the band jam out...there are parts of the movie that are mostly silent where I'm just like sht they need to let loose some badazz metal right now to pump me up lol
And games like red faction and doom 3
Carpenter is still one of my favorite directors.
I see ghost of mars as a spiritual prequel to Doom and I had fun watching it . Great video Minty .
Roger Ebert always took films at their face value, what they set out to accomplish. Ghosts of Mars does exactly that, and so the positive review is glowing approbation of those goals.
It set out to suck? If that was the case, full marks 👍👍👍
@@michaelmyers3709well, in your opinion. Not everyone goes by how much money a movie made. They go by how entertaining it is. Pull a stick out of your ass once a while and you'll see. Rather watch shit like this than any goddamn "Oscar contender" any day of the week.
Except for when it came to slasher movies. He categorically seemed to hate them.
It's one of those movies that if I run into it while channel surfing, I usually go back and either watch for it for awhile or finish it. The way he does pictures is old school and reminds me of other directors which probably makes me keep watching the same old movies over and over. Thanks Minty!
I JUST remembered this flick earlier this week and went back for a good rewatch! So random to see this vid on my feed today! Love it!
You can run "10 Things" episodes about all of John Carpenter's library. It's too bad he didn't get greater reception for his movies earlier. At least he stuck to his guns and did what he wanted to do so we got masterpieces like Big Trouble in Little China, the Escape movies, The Thing, They Live, etc. Awesome & great fun movies!!!
I LOVE this soundtrack. Searched high and low for it at the time. Totally worth it.
Fun fact: they held mass auditions for the "martians" (alien controlled horde) in Albuquerque. An agent from the film went to the gyms around town posting fliers and asking people to cone be extras. My family owned the Taylor branch of Health Clubs of America at the time, and we had several people who frequented our gym get hired as extras. :)
Oh my god!!! I had forgotten about that. I worked at Defined Fitness at the time. We had a few members and employees be in it as well. I went to your club back in the day a few times!!! Time flies!!!!👍👍👍
Fine! ..but learn to spell/grammar. Thank you.
@@dizcretsure thing Karen. FFS.
Facts maybe
Fun
No
Anybody who starts with "fun fact" should preface that with "I'm a dweeb"
@@tomobrien1444 Who pissed in your tea mate?
I forgot Jason Statham had hair, and looked like a young Bruce Willis back then
They joked bout that
Wait, did Bruce Willis have hair?!
@@itsagundam79 he still had some hair in the first die hard movie
Didn't he just?!! There's sort of a feeling that Mr Statham is only able to play Mr Statham but I disagree. The versatility that he demonstrated in Mean Machine by playing a Scottish Mr Statham was an almost chameleonic transformation.
He's actually a wannabe Bruce Willis
Brilliant film! Watched it for the umpteenth time only a few days ago. Plot, characters, soundtrack outstanding! Great to hear some new things about it.
This played on TV pretty often as i recall. I watched it a number of times.
I always enjoyed watching this movie. Soundtrack is a killer heavy metal instrumental piece, too.
I remember seeing this and really enjoying it. You summed it up as a simple and fun 80s action sci-fi movie. Even re-watching it I really enjoyed it and can appreciate the cast now. Everything doesn't need to be a once in a lifetime classic drama.
I own Ghosts of Mars on DVD. Awesome movie. It was Assault on Precinct 13 set on Mars.
I'm watching Ghost of Mars right now and it still holds up in 2024 this movie is one of my favorite movies of the early 2000s
Silly movie, yes. And we had lots of fun enjoying it for what it was, back in the theatres. Henstridge is gorgeous, just beautiful.
You should do a list on Wes Craven's Shocker!
Ghost of Mars is good movie to watch when you want to just relax with plenty of omg moments and cheesey one liners. I also like the fact that there’s virtually no politics involved in this movie but just a simple yet entertaining story. As with Carpenter’s other works it’s like fine wine that just gets better with time.
Awesome! Great movie. I also really love the soundtrack, being a metal shredder myself. With the like of Anthrax, Steve Vai and Buckethead, it's really great.
With the exception of the original Halloween and the latest Halloween trilogy, Ghosts of Mars is easily John Carpenter's best score.
it was never supposed to be a formatted blockbuster , only based on the top notch fx of the moment , that's an old school b+ movie simply , but it still shreds to pieces !!!
Remember working in the theater when it came out. I'd watch it on my break.❤
I go to every movie with a "switch my mind off at the door" mentality. To me, that's kind of the point. I've never actually seen it, but I probably would have enjoyed it at the time, even if I forgot about it the moment I left the theater. Great video. Very informative. Thanks.
"whoopsies".........classic Minty! Lol
Always good to look for the moral lesson in a situation.......😀
It never gets old!
minty i remember renting this at blockbuster. it was like that deserted island movie where late on all the zombies attacked
This movie was hideously under rated. Space travel in movies is always an awesome topic!
I remember renting this. Before diving in, I imagined Day of the Dead on MARS. Fun film, and I really liked Ice Cube then.
Speaking of ice cube performances, I think you should cover the movie TRESPASS which is a underrated gem
I live near E. St. Louis where that movie takes place. It inspired countless abandoned factory treasure hunts.
Not really.
Great Video Minty 😀👍👍
Critics: “We hate John Carpenter’s movie.”
Carpenter: “Dude, I hate my own movie.”
Me: "I liked that movie. You're all wrong. Go sit in the corner and think sbout how wrong you are."
I dont blame John for disliking his own film. Its not too good even for a popcorn film. I always expect good things from the Man who made Halloween and Prince of Darkness. Oh well.
I've often said "I love this film,but don't know why".
My son says the same thing.
The film has a John Wyndham feel about it,and I've often wondered if it was one of his tales that inspired this movie.
Sad to hear that Mr Carpenter has retired, as he's provided us with some of Science Fictions best.
I loved Vampires!
The way Jack Crowe didn't give a flying frakk about the Vampire Lord(I forget his name) was inches away from killing him and continued to taunt him :)
Thanks for the great video. I love this movie. I was working at Blockbuster video when I saw this movie. I recommend it to everyone that walk in the door. And everyone love it too. Many people after watching it said, if I didn't recommend the movie they wouldn't have picked it up. I love John Carpenter's movies. Thanks again.
i love this movie i watch it 100 times and i wait since day one for the 2nd part thinking this can't be the end
😂😂 I love this movie. Always watch it when it’s on tv 👍🏻
I just randomly thought of the movie and wondered why we never got a number 2 and expansion of the ghosts. So I turned to youtube and saw your vid. Think we see now with disney and marvel and rotten tomatoes why poor films and series get high praise and why gems like this were ignored.
This is one of my favorite movies… no it’s not that good of a movie but for some reason I’ve always loved it
Best part of that film is Clea Duvall who is smokin' in every scene she is in (apart from the last one obvs).
Totally agree Minty, I loved watching this movie for what it was - a great fun popcorn movie! THANK YOU!
I love his movies .❤
Im a carpenter fan boy so i love all of his movies. Good or bad. He was something special.
Great one. Look forward to your videos all the time. Thank you for the entertainment.
Worked at a movie theater and we got this film! Everyone avoided it but I loved it's Cheesyness!
I feel bad that Clea DuVall never gets any recognition. She's been in so many big productions but isn't remembered at all.
It's like she's a real life version of her character in Buffy the Vampire Slayer (Season 1 episode)
I actually watched this again last weekend. I enjoy Ghosts of Mars. Its not a masterpiece, but its not as bad as its reputation.
_Three Kings_ was unexpectedly excellent. If you haven't seen it, try it.
Please do vampires next I love that film 😂
I love Ghosts Of Mars. A great popcorn flick.
Luv U Minty. U always come up with tha goods. Cj!
This movie is so cool Iove it..underrated gem
John Carpenter's Vampires is an epic vampire movie. James Woods chews up the scenery!
Ghosts of Mars does have kinda interesting story and world, I wouldn't mind if it was remade as a series.
Die szene wo er sich den daumen abhackt ist Legendär. 😂
This movie was awesome! Saw it in theaters. Was great. Has an awesome soundtrack!
This is exactly why I don’t listen to critics.
GOM is a brilliant popcorn action cheapie.
John Carpenter can do NO wrong, he’s never made a single bad film.
Nice one Minty 👍
I love this movie, it is exactly what Carpenter was aiming for, over the top camp... It is a wonderful time!
Natasha was the Star and she's gorgeous
THIS MOVIE IS ONE OF MY WORST GUILTY PLEASURE FLICKS...
@@Me-qp8vz WHAT?! I CAN'T HEAR YOU!
Hard to believe the same man made Halloween, The Thing and Escape from New York, his slide into oblivion begun around here...
I saw this opening weekend when I was a kid. I was entertained by it. Never understood why it was so frowned upon... Sure it's not's exactly one of Carpenter's masterpieces, but it's still fun.
Carpenter is a Master
My favorite movie is they live so dope that you mention it throughout
This is an underrated movie. I really enjoyed this sci-fi movie. Lots of action 😎👍
Just watched this with some friends. Awesome.
Where i saw in theaters when i was 13 i had a blast and stlll do when i watch it time to time.
Love the videos, Minty. This was the first movie I ever rented on DVD. Lol
Cool video as always Minty, keep up the good work, you have a great weekend sir
Great video! I heard that Ghosts of Mars began as a movie adaption of the role playing game Mutant Chronicles (which has some awesome monster and weapons concept art) that Carpenter was set to direct. The evil zombies in the movie are actually based on Mutant Chronicle characters. The project got stalled, then killed by the studio... so John used the make-up he had developed so far (for the main bad guy) and wrote Ghosts of Mars.
And Mutant Chronicles did eventually get made, with Ron Perlman, Thomas Jane, and Malkovich, and made 7 times less money, than Ghost of Mars - 2 mil out of the same 24-25 million budget. I still haven't watched it, but bought multiple times on DVD and BD... 😂
John Carpenter was ahead of his time. A Legendary Director!!!!!
The movie looked and played out like a bad dream you don't remember when you wake up
I LOVE this movie! I saw it in the theater when it released, and I own it on Blu-ray.
Saw it in theaters, this movie is good, just serious enough to not get too campy.....and "Big Daddy Mars" is scary.
This has always been one of my favourite John Carpenter movies.
The sing like John Carpenter's version of DOOM. It was a decent action movie. It was weird to see Jason Statham with hair.
Thank you for saying this! You beat me to it. Ghosts of Mars is what the Doom movies should have been.
Love this film 👏
All these years and I thought I was the only fan of this movie. The music is awesome BTW
I think John carpenter is a underrated director I think he should get some credit for making movies like the thing ghosts on mars and ect
It's a entertaining movie. Fun oldschool action.
Sounds like a lot of fun. Personally, I'm holding out for "Ghosts of Mars - The Musical" - John Carpenter is a great composer.
Every Carpenter's movie is entertaining regardless of what the critics might say.
It was the only time where the ticket seller tried to talk me out of seeing this movie. I took it as a fun movie and I liked it
I don't think we'll see another John Carpenter movie being that he has passed
Does anybody else go watch whatever film Minty features in his videos immediately after?
I do watch his videos regardless if I’m interested in the films or not cause he makes it so much fun. Some movies I’ve seen and others on a waiting list. Hope to see them all one day.
Yep
Not this stupid movie. I still have it on VHS.
You da man Minty!!!
Hey, I liked Jurassic Park 3!!! As for Ghosts of Mars, I bought it on Blu Ray, because of Natasha Henstridge. I actually enjoyed the film for what it is, and I like John Carpenter's movies.
This is certainly one of the movies of all time.
I saw this movie in a theater near me when it came out and I pretty much liked it. My only criticism about the story was that it contradicted itself at one point. When it was decided that killing the zombies was their only hope, the story continues with the fact that the killed zombies just keep coming back. Making killing them pointless in the beginning.
I watched this film when I was 20 years old, on a Friday night home alone. I thought it was a pretty cool movie and I was a little creeped out by the main Martian!
Loved it!
More John Carpenter!!
I liked ghosts of Mars and escape from LA and vampires
I've always followed Richard Cetrone's career after this, even when he's just doing stunts. I like to remind people that a majority of the Batfleck "warehouse scene" everybody loves is actually Richard in the suit.
Edit: Sidenote: I grew up in Austin, and I remember that Chronicle review! (the Chronicle is the hoity-toity artsy-fartsy paper in town, btw. Unless it was independent and dramatic, they didn't like anything.) My buddy and I went to go see it on opening night, and there was one other person in the theater.
Saved me a comment! Cetrone is a legend and I happily sit through GoM just to see his performance. That Warehouse scene is god tier thanks to him and the stunt team... I like to try and spot his random appearances in most of Zack Snyder's films and especially loved him as Zeus in Army of the Dead... 🤟🏻
Awesome as always, minty!
My brother rented this back when it came out and we weren't expecting much but we loved it
I saw this theaters. I enjoyed it! I miss Carpenters films
NUMBER. ONE.
The confusion between which was Red Planert, this, and whatever Mars movie came out the same day was real.
Great popcorn movie, harking back to the old action movies of the 80's
I never watched Ghost of Mars or Vampires. Neither looked interesting to me but these days GoM would be exactly what I'm looking for!