Wikipedia

Mars Needs Moms

Not to be confused withMars Needs Women.

Mars Needs Momsis a 2011 American animatedscience fictioncomedy filmco-written and directed bySimon Wells,produced byImageMovers Digitaland released byWalt Disney Pictures.Based on theBerkeley Breathedbook of the same title, the film was animated through the process ofperformance captureand starsSeth Green,Dan Fogler,Elisabeth Harnois,Mindy Sterling,andJoan Cusack.It was the second and final film produced by ImageMovers Digital before the studio was shut down and re-absorbed into ImageMovers resulting in the company leaving the animation business for good.[3]It tells the story of a nine-year-old boy named Milo who sets out to save his mother on Mars after she is abducted by Martians.

Mars Needs Moms
Milo sees the spaceship in fount of the door.
Theatrical release poster
Directed bySimon Wells
Screenplay by
  • Simon Wells
  • Wendy Wells
Based onMars Needs Moms!
byBerkeley Breathed
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyRobert Presley
Edited byWayne Wahrman
Music byJohn Powell
Production
companies
Distributed byWalt Disney Studios
Motion Pictures
Release dates
Running time
88 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$150 million[1][2]
Box office$39.2 million[1]

Mars Needs Momspremiered at theEl Capitan Theatrein Los Angeles on March 6, 2011, and was released in theaters on March 11, 2011, inDisney Digital 3D,RealD 3DandIMAX 3Dformats. The film received mixed to unfavorable reviews from critics, who praised the visuals, set design and cast, but criticized its story, characters and "unsettling" character animation, with critics saying that it "suffers from a lack of imagination and heart". It grossed $39.2 million worldwide on a $150 million budget, becoming one of the biggestbox-office bombsof all time, losing an estimated $100–144 million for Disney.

Plot

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Unbeknownst to humans, there is a thriving, technologically sophisticated society ofMartiansliving below the surface of Mars. The Martians' Supervisor, while observing Earth, sees a mother persuading her son, Milo, to do his chores. The Martians decide to bring her to Mars, where her "mom-ness" will be extracted and implanted into the next-generation of nanny-bots. Meanwhile, Milo, who doesn't like to follow house rules and do chores and has been sent to his room for feeding broccoli to his cat, Cujo, sarcastically tells his mother that his life would be better without her, which hurts her deeply.

Later that night, Milo goes to apologize, but discovers his mom is taken away. He runs after her, but they end up in separate parts of the Martian spaceship. On Mars, Milo is taken to an underground prison cell. He escapes and is chased by the Supervisor's henchmen, but he follows a voice that tells him to jump down a chute, and lands in a lower subterranean level. There, he sees a trash-covered landscape that is inhabited by furry creatures.

Milo is whisked away by the creatures to meet Gribble, also known as George Ribble, the childlike adult human who had told him to jump down the chute. Gribble explains to Milo that the Martians plan to extract Milo's mom's memories at sunrise, using a process that will kill her. Gribble, who is lonely and does not want Milo to leave, pretends to help Milo find his mother. His plan goes awry, leading to Gribble being captured and Milo being chased by the Supervisor's henchmen. Milo is rescued by Ki, one of the supervisors who raise Martian babies. Milo tells her about his search for his Mom and what a human relationship with a mom is like, as Ki and her kin were mentored by only nanny-bots and supervisors and do not know of love.

Milo returns to Gribble's home but finds him missing. Gribble's robotic spider, Two-Cat, takes Milo to the Martian compound where Gribble is being prepared forexecution.Milo is captured by his henchmen, but Ki tosses him a laser gun, allowing him to escape. Milo and Gribble retreat to an even lower uninhabited level, where Gribble describes his own mom's abduction and murder by the Martians 20 years ago. Gribble blames himself for her being chosen and regrets that he had not been able to save her. Milo convinces Gribble to actually help him just as Ki finds them. They discover an ancient mural of a Martian family and realize that Martian children were not always raised by machines. Gribble explains that Martian female babies are currently raised by nanny-bots in the technologically advanced society, while the male babies are sent down below to be raised by adult male Martians, which are the furry creatures he encountered earlier.

Milo, Gribble, and Ki save Milo's mom just before sunrise, causing the energy of the extraction device to short out the electronic locks to the control room. This lets the adult males and babies enter, where they run amok, attacking the guards and robots. Milo and his mom steal oxygen helmets and try to escape across the Martian surface, but the Supervisor, while attempting to kill them, causes Milo to trip and his helmet shatters. His mom gives him her own helmet, saving Milo but causing herself to suffocate in the planet's air. The Martians are awed, as this is the first time they have seen love. Gribble finds his own mother's helmet and gives it to Milo's mom, saving her. Milo apologizes to his mom for his earlier words and the two reconcile. Ki brings a ship for them to escape in, but the Supervisor intervenes. Ki argues that Martians were meant to be raised in families, with love, but the Supervisor insists that the current situation is better because, to her, it is more efficient. The henchmen realize the Supervisor's cruel nature and arrest her, deciding that they now prefer the loving vision of family life, and the other Martians celebrate.

Milo, his mom, Gribble, Ki, and Two-Cat travel back to Earth. Gribble decides not to stay because he wants to pursue a relationship with Ki on Mars. Milo and his mom return home just before Milo's dad arrives.

Cast

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  • Seth Greenas Milo (performance capture), a 9-year-old boy who has a strained relationship with his mother
    • Seth Dusky as Milo (voice)
  • Dan Fogleras Gribble, a man-child human who lives beneath Mars and befriends Milo
  • Elisabeth Harnoisas Ki, an English-language-knowing martian who defects from the Supervisor and teams up with Milo and Gribble
  • Mindy Sterlingas The Supervisor, the owner and ruler of the Martians who seek to capture children's moms, extract their "mom-ness", and implant it into nanny-bots
  • Joan Cusackas Milo's mother, who has a strained relationship with her son and is taken away by Martians
  • Kevin Cahoonas Wingnut, a male martian and one of Gribble's friends
  • Dee Bradley Bakeras Two-Cat (voice), Gribble's bug-like robot assistant
  • Tom Everett Scottas Milo's father
  • Raymond,Robert, andRyan Ochoaas Martian Hatchlings
  • Matthew Henerson, Adam Jennings, Stephen Kearin, Amber Gainey Meade, Aaron Rapke, Julene Renee, Kirsten Severson, and Matthew Wolf as Martians

Production

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Simon Wells had known Robert Zemeckis since the mid-1980s, having worked onWho Framed Roger Rabbit(1988),Back to the Future Part II(1989),Back to the Future Part III(1990), andThe Polar Express(2004).[4]The production designer wasDoug Chiang,and the supervising art director was Norm Newberry.[5]The title of the film (and to an extent, the source material) is a twist on the title ofAmerican International Pictures' 1966 filmMars Needs Women.

The makers came up with their own alien language.[6]In developing the language, all of the actors spent a day where they recorded different interpretations of a list of words; the producers picked their favorite interpretations from that recording and put them in a book documenting the fictional language for the actors to speak.[7]

Elisabeth Harnoisstated in an interview that she and the cast were given scenarios by Wells to which they acted out responses in improvised Martian language.[8]

Seth Green described doing the motion-capture as physically demanding work: "A lot of running, jumping, falling, hitting, spinning. I wore a harness for, like, 85 percent of the movie. It was uncomfortable."[9]After spending six weeks outfitted in a special sensor-equippedperformance capturesuit while simultaneously performing Milo's lines,Seth Green's voice sounded too mature for the character and was dubbed over by that of 12-year-old newcomer Seth R. Dusky.[10]

For the auditions, Kevin Cahoon performed two scenes, including the ending; he recalled the instructions saying, "create your Martian language and play the scene."[7]He previously playedEd,another non-speaking role, in theBroadway musical versionofThe Lion King(1994): "it's almost like silent film. You have to speak with your heart and soul and face, and you have to act as if you have dialogue with everyone else. I think that's where you find the humanity, or the martiananity, of the character."[7]Cahoon's mannerisms were also used for the other martians.[7]Mars Needs Momsis Cahoon's first time collaborating with Dan Fogler since the two worked with each other in New York stage theater.[7]As he described his opinion on the film, "I was blown away. It's beautiful. The technology is incredible and the IMAX is awesome. I was so impressed with the score, but also the heart. I got misty-eyes towards the end with the mom/Milo relationship. I thought it really connected in a wonderful way and am so honored to be a part of it."[7]

In 2020,Brie Larsonrevealed viaYouTubethat she had auditioned for the character Ki, who was eventually portrayed byElisabeth Harnois.[11]

Release

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Mars Needs Momswas released in theaters on March 11, 2011.[12]The film's premiere was held at theEl Capitan Theatrein Los Angeles on March 6, 2011.[13]

Home media

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Mars Needs Momswas released onBlu-ray,Blu-ray 3D,DVD,and movie download on August 9, 2011.[14][15][16]The release is produced in three different physical packages: a four-disc combo pack (Blu-ray, Blu-ray 3D, DVD, and "Digital Copy" ); a two-disc Blu-ray combo pack (Blu-ray and DVD); and a single-disc DVD.[15][16][17]The "Digital Copy" included with the four-disc combo pack is a separate disc that allows users to download a copy of the film onto a computer throughiTunesorWindows Media Playersoftware.[15][16]The film is also a movie download or On-Demand option. All versions of the release (except for the On-Demand option) include the "Fun with Seth" and "Martian 101" bonus features, while the Blu-ray 2D version additionally includes deleted scenes, the "Life On Mars: The Full Motion-Capture Experience" feature, and an extended opening film clip.[15][16]The Blu-ray 3D version also has an alternate scene called "Mom-Napping", a finished 3D alternate scene of the Martian abduction of Milo's mom.[15][16][18]

Reception

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Box office

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Mars Needs Momswas a box-office bomb, and the worst financial loss for a Disney-branded film. It grossed $1,725,000 on its first day, and its opening weekend earnings added up to $6,825,000.[19]Overall, the film debuted in fifth place behindBattle: Los Angeles,Rango,Red Riding HoodandThe Adjustment Bureau.[20]This is the 22nd-worst opening ever for a film playing in 3,000+ theaters.[21]Adjusted for inflation, considering the total net loss of money (not the profit-to-loss ratio), it is the fourth-largest box office failure in history.[22][23]In 2014, theLos Angeles Timeslisted the film as one of the most expensive box-office disasters of all time.[24]On March 14, 2011, Brooks Barnes ofThe New York Timescommented that it was rare for a Disney-branded film to do so badly, with the reason for its poor performance being the unoriginal premise, the animation style which failed to cross theuncanny valleythreshold, and negativeword of mouthonsocial networks,along with releasing it on the same week asBattle: Los Angeleswhich had more hype with the general movie goers. Barnes concluded, "Critics and audiences alike, with audiences voicing their opinions on Twitter,blogsand other social media, complained that the Zemeckis technique can result in character facial expressions that look unnatural. Another common criticism was that Mr. Zemeckis focuses so much on technological wizardry that he neglects storytelling. "[25]

Critical response

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Thereview aggregatorwebsiteRotten Tomatoesreported a 37% approval rating with an average rating of 5.00/10 based on 116 reviews. The website's consensus reads, "The cast is solid and it's visually well-crafted, butMars Needs Momssuffers from a lack of imagination and heart. "[26]OnMetacritic,the film had a score of 49 out of 100 based on 22 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[27]Audiences polled byCinemaScoregave the film an average grade of "B" on an A+ to F scale.[28]

The Sydney Morning Heraldlabeled the motion-capture animation superior toAvatar(2009), and while noting the story had "pure Disney cheese", Wells "thankfully know[s] precisely when to inject action and humour when the mush-o-meter approaches the red."[29]

Some critics favorably compared the set design toTron: Legacy(2010),[29][30]including Tim Grierson ofScreen Daily,who opined that the motion-capture "improved significantly since the days ofThe Polar Express."He also spotlighted the film's attempt at a" tonal divide ", as it has both comic sequences typical for a kids film and themes about sacrifice. However, he criticized the" chaotic "story and two" irksome "protagonists: Milo, whose voice actor" overdoes the character's whiny anxiousness to the point that it's hard to root for him; "and Gribble, a" predictably wisecracking sidekick ".[30]Us Weeklyalso panned the characters: "[Milo] makes a whiny hero, and Dan Fogler (as his buddy on Mars) fails to amuse. Plus, why is Milo's stay-at-home mom a saint and the working alien moms evil?"[31]

The Hollywood ReporterpraisedMars Needs Moms's motion-capture visuals, but analogized its story as too much like aDisneylandride and also called it "odd [...] how a movie meant to glorify moms is so riddled with anti-feminist concepts."[32]Time Out New Yorkcalled it not that much different from other children's science fiction movies: "After the novelty of these backgrounds and comin’-at-ya bits wears off,Mars Needs Momshas to rely on Fogler's obnoxious Jack Black Jr. shtick, a weak subplot involving a ’60s-obsessed Martian graffiti artist (Harnois) and rote video-game-y action sequences to carry it along—and that simply won't cut it. "[33]

Entertainment Weeklypositively described the film as a children's movie version ofAvatar:"Enhanced by nimble ad-libbing from the comedy-trained cast, the screenplay is delightful, by turns funny and emotional, as befits a Disney family fable in which, through wacky adversity, Mom and kid reaffirm their love for each other while Dad is nowhere in sight. (He's not dead, just away on business.) And with its splendid use of computer-generated motion-capture animation and 3-D effects, the movie is also visually magnificent — modestly so."[34]Mike Hale of theNew York Timesalso gave the film a negative review, saying, "Mars, once again, looks to Earth to supplement its female population because, it seems, the women who run Mars think Earth mothers are skilled at child rearing."[35]

Lael Loewenstein ofVariety magazinegave the film a mixed review and called it "A modestly enjoyable performance-capture creation bearing the unmistakable imprint of producer Robert Zemeckis."[5]In addition to acclaiming the visuals, SFXalso opined gave some praises towards the writing "there are some good laughs, it's pacy enough to whizz us on by the sometimes repetitive narrative [...] and although it's hard to see little boys admitting that they really do love their mummies – as much as the film wants them to –Mars Needs Momsdoes provoke a few lumps in older throats, for all you may decry its mawkish Stateside sensibilities. "[36]

Nick Schager ofThe Village Voicewas very harsh; panning the "rubbery", "unreal", and "unsettling" character animation, which he called a "jarring dissonance" with the science fiction setting; and the stealing of common tropes in other well-known science fiction films. He also noted a major plot hole, specifically Supervisor's stealing of mothers' disciplinary skills for use on technological devices: "The plot thus hinges on a fundamental illogicality, since the chief differentiating characteristic between mothers and machines isn't discipline but compassion."[37]William Thomas ofEmpiregave the film a two out of five stars, saying, "An uninvolving mo-cap adventure that's well below par. Marvin the Martian would be unhappy to share his planet with this bunch."[38]

Some reviewers questioned the film's moral about well-behaved kids having their very good mothers taken by aliens.[39][37]

Accolades

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Mars Needs Momsreceived a nomination for aMovieguide Awardfor Best Film for Family Audiences;[40]whileJohn Powell's work on it,Rio(2011), andKung Fu Panda 2(2011) garnered him a nomination for the 2011World Soundtrack Awardfor Film Composer of the Year.[41]

See also

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References

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  2. ^Kaufman, Amy (March 10, 2011)."Movie Projector: 'Battle: Los Angeles' will rule, 'Mars Needs Moms' will bomb".Los Angeles Times.Archivedfrom the original on September 17, 2019.RetrievedMarch 13,2011.
  3. ^Finke, Nikki (March 12, 2010)."Disney Closing Zemeckis' Digital Studio".Deadline Hollywood.Archivedfrom the original on July 15, 2020.RetrievedJune 7,2018.
  4. ^Webb, Charles (August 9, 2011)."Interview: MARS NEEDS MOMS Director/Writer Simon Wells".Twitch Film.Archived fromthe originalon November 11, 2011.RetrievedFebruary 25,2012.
  5. ^abLoewenstein, Lael (March 8, 2011)."Review: 'Mars Needs Moms'".Variety.Archivedfrom the original on April 8, 2015.RetrievedSeptember 25,2014.
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  7. ^abcdefCortez, Carl (March 8, 2011)."Exclusive Interview: MARS NEEDS MOMS actor Kevin Cahoon gets a kick out playing a sidekick".Assignment X.Archivedfrom the original on December 13, 2019.RetrievedDecember 9,2019.
  8. ^"Mars Needs Moms Interview - Elisabeth Harnois".Trailer Addict. March 5, 2011.Archivedfrom the original on March 16, 2011.RetrievedFebruary 24,2012.
  9. ^Snyder, Tom (March 11, 2011)."Behinds the Scenes of MARS NEEDS MOMS".Movieguide.Archivedfrom the original on December 9, 2019.RetrievedDecember 9,2019.
  10. ^Kaufman, Amy (March 8, 2011)."Seth Green moves, but doesn't speak, in 'Mars Needs Moms'".Los Angeles Times.Archivedfrom the original on November 18, 2012.RetrievedMay 23,2012.
  11. ^"Brie Larson: AUDITION STORYTIME! (pt. 2)".YouTube.September 3, 2020.Archivedfrom the original on December 15, 2021.RetrievedSeptember 3,2020.
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  41. ^"Film Composer of the Year".World Soundtrack Awards.Archived fromthe originalon December 25, 2019.RetrievedDecember 8,2019.
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