Mars Needs Moms (Four-Disc Blu-ray 3D / Blu-ray / DVD / Digital Copy Combo) Reviews

What can I say?  I love 3D!  From the moment I began watching 3D content in my home I quickly discovered that I needed more content.  I suspect that those of you just purchasing your first 3D hardware will acquire the same ferocious appetite.  That's why I became the HTF 3D ADDICT.  I personally love images that pop off the screen and come inches away from your face without becoming overly gimmicky.  However, I certainly appreciate the nature documentaries that offer beautiful depth and separation.  These are not necessarily reviews of the film themselves.  I am not going to concentrate on story or supplements -- you can find the 2D reviews elsewhere on this forum.  My job is to let you know exactly what kind of 3D experience to expect from the titles that are being released.   As I will be receiving a handful of new product from the studios expect to see more title coverage.

 

 

 

 

MARS NEEDS MOMS

 

  

Studio: Walt Disney

Product Release: August 9, 2011

Ratio: 2.40:1

Audio: 7.1 DTS-HD MA; French and Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital

Running Time: 88 Minutes

Rating: PG

 

 

ON A SCALE 0-5

Overall 3D Presentation Rating: 3

3D Separation: 3

3D In Yo' Face Factor: 2

 

 

With the studios still deciding whether to fully embrace the 

3D format or not, these past few months have been barren

of any substantially appealing new product.  Thank goodness

for Walt Disney.  Here is a studio that has fully embraced the

3D format, releasing not only all their 3D theatrical fare to 

Blu-ray, but also is in the process of upconverting classics

such as The Lion King and Beauty and the Beast.  This is

a studio that puts a considerable amount of care into their

product and to date, I don't think I have been disappointed

with the quality of a single 3D Blu-ray release from that studio.

 

All that being said, I must admit that I am really struggling with

my feelings for Mars Needs Moms, which seems to be one of

the dullest efforts out of the Robert Zemeckis animation camp

to date despite its high-tech animation. 

 

 

The story centers around young Milo (Seth Green/Seth Dusky),

a selfish 9 year-old boy who feels as if he is being constantly nagged

by his loving, patient mother (Joan Cusack).  Milo is about to

learn a big lesson about hurting his mother with harsh words when

she is suddenly abducted by aliens fom another planet. 

 

You see, the martians have been spying on human moms for

quite some time as it is those fine motherly qualities have become

their focal point.  For once on Mars, we come find to find the

abductors plan to steal the mother's memories in order to program

"nanny bots" who have become the planet child-rearers while the women

martians run the planet.   Now motherless and abandoned, Milo seeks

the help of the only other human colonist on the planet, a portly, obnoxious

geek named Gribble (Dan Fogler) who quickly hatches a scheme to free

infultrate the martian city and rescue the boy's mother. 

 

 

Mars Needs Moms comes from ImageMovers, the animation

studio that Robert Zemeckis founded which was responsible

for bringing groundbreaking capture-motion technology to films

such as The Polar Express and A Christmas Carol.   In many

ways the technology has been greatly advanced as the characters

of Milo and Gribble look so incredibly human that sometimes it

becomes easy to forget you are watching animation.  However,

for some odd reason, the Mother looks eerily out of place, more

limp than the other characters, as if the animators were running

low on budget and concentrated all their efforts into the starring roles.

 

The film's production design has a very hi-tech look to it, thanks to

the the bewildering and electrifying martian city with its complex

and stylish labyrinth layout that look like something out of a Kubrick

film.  Unfortunately, the visuals are the only thing of real interest

here as the film suffers from being a little too long, a little too preachy

and practically void of any of the humor or charm one would expect

from a Disney film.

 

The 3D effects are mostly "adequate," but I am afraid in times

where studios should really be convincing the public that there is

real worth in charging higher tickets prices for this technology, there

ought to be more of a payoff for the audience.

 

 

The biggest problem I found with Mars Needs Moms in 3D is that

the film mostly takes place within the darkness of the planet landscape.

I have talked about this many times in my reviews but it definately needs

to be repeated here.  It's my opinion that dimly lit scenes somewhat

minimize the the overall 3D effect.  Additionally, dark scenes generally

introduce ghosting issues, which fortunately are very minimal here.

 

When the screen is vibrant with lighting, such as scenes inside the

martian city, there is a much greater sense of separation of foreground

and background, though it never gets to the level of looking like cardboard

cutouts, which is generally my degree of preference.  There is an absence

of any objects being thrown towards the reviewer, though animated props

such as guns and laser needles seem to protrude the screen from time

to time.  There's also a very nice "shattering" effect that happens towards

the end of the film that offers interesting 3D effect.   

 

Here's where things really get good....

 

At the top of this review I talked about the care that Disney puts into

their Blu-ray product.  We all know that their Blu-ray titles come with

a price premium, but at the same time, there is always a level of confidence

that the product will be first-rate.  That tradition continues with Mars

Needs Moms -- for here lies a transfer that packs a first-rate visual

and sonic experience.    

 

 

Let's begin with a picture that is as amazingly sharp and detailed as one

would expect from a digitally animated transfer.  Colors seem perfectly

in line here with nice black levels.  The film seems to lack a lot of color

in many of the scenes involving the martian landscape which is mostly

dark and drab.  However, later the film moves to scenes that display a

beautiful array of psychedelic colors that looks visually impressive.

 

The film's 7.1 DTS-MA audio is something to behold even when 

downconverted to 5.1 on my system.  This is a real powerhouse 

presentation with booming fidelity.  All my speakers were actively

engaged throughout as I was immersed in an abundance of directional

voices and effects.  Despite the amount of surrounding noise activity,

dialogue remained well grounded. The most impressive aspect of this

soundtrack is the booming LFE.  The bass response is through the roof

here, enabling the viewers to feel the movie beneath their feet.  

 

The 4-disc 3D Blu-ray combo pack features alternate and deleted scenes,

an extended opening and a full-motion capture experience with audio 

commentary.  Those are exclusive to the Blu-ray copies.  The included

DVD feature supplements adds a Martian 101 language lesson and a featurette

showcasing the on-set antics of Seth Green and Dan Fogler.  There is also

a digital copy of the film included here.

 

 

CONCLUSION

 

 

Mars Needs Moms was a financial disaster for the Disney studio.  It 

cost $150 million to make and raked in only $6.9 million domestically.

The motion capture technology was not well received by audiences even

in early screenings.

 

I mention all of this because even as I viewed this film, I felt somewhat

emotionally unattached to its story despite what I felt was amazing

animation.  The 3D was overall just average.  For the approx. $8 price

difference between the 2D and 3D versions I suppose that I would

recommend the upgrade.  However, I would not advise anyone to buy

this title blindly without having seen it first.

 

 

Images are for illustrative purpose only not representative of the picture quality of this disc. 

 

 

Equipment

 

LG 60PX950 THX Certified 3D display

Oppo BDP-93 3D Blu-ray Player

Denon 3311CI Receiver

Atlantic Technology H-PAS AT-1 fronts, 4400 center; 4200 rear speakers

SV Sound Subwoofer