Reviews

While certainly not one of the great works of modern television, Roughing It isn't as bad as some people might lead one to believe. I must admit to not having read much Mark Twain and if you are looking for something which is completely faithful to one of his works Roughing It probably isn't for you.

I watched it with few expectations but generally like Twain's style and James Garner has never let me down before. The story was witty and lively enough to keep my interest and seemed to capture at least some of Twain's style. I gave it a 7 out of 10.

While not the worst film I've ever sat through this film is certainly not one that I can see as a winner. The only actor I've ever seen before is Dean Stockwell and I have no doubt that he was as confused as his character was supposed to be wondering why he signed the contract to do this film.

The plot is pretty flimsy, the acting is ordinary at best, the script is poor and the special effects are laughable when compared to the modern standards. I cannot help but comparing this to Dantes Peak which this film seems to be a bit of a rip off of without being nearly as good.

My only other theory as to how this film came about is that Dean Stockwell runs an acting school and this film is a practical development of that course. At best, this film is unlikely to offend anyone.

This film really had some promise. I was a big fan of the series when I was a kid and with a star studded cast I thought this was bound to be a winner.

The script wasn't bad but wasn't great either. The special effects were good and something you would expect for major producers like Disney.

So, I don't know what happened. The film just lacked something which would have made it a winner. I'm not sure what it was or why but it just didn't make it.

Although not the funniest film I've seen recently, My Fellow Americans stood up well. Of course James Garner and Jack Lemmon are great actors and are well cast as two ex-presidents. The script is quick witted and well paced although credibility falters a little along the way.

Strangely the film has an excellent supporting cast with the likes of Dan Aykroyd and Lauren Bacall but not much is done with them. Being cynical I could say that this film was a chance for past-their-prime actors to get some work. I don't think that but I can see how it could be said.

When I saw that this was science fiction with Terry Farrell in it as well as Parker Stevenson who is an actor who's work I've liked in the past, I made time to see this film . . . and was greatly disappointed.

I stress now that the acting wasn't bad. In fact, I wonder how the producers of this could talk such good actors into the job! But even the best actor in the world can't make a good film if the script is garbage, and sadly that is what this one is.

This film tried hard to be like the Aliens films but just didn't have the script. I tried hard to like it but with so many glaring holes in the plot, cliche's and basic stupidity about it I just couldn't muster any enthusiasm, try as I might.

For a low budget movie I didn't think this one was all that bad. I've seen worse, in fact I used this film to try to wash the horrible taste of Star Trek Insurrection out of my mouth. Compared to that, this is Dickens stacked against Attack of the Killer Tomatoes.

However I am willing to admit that Escape from Mars has a few flaws. First and foremost the budget for special effects was about $6.50 plus what they could find in the change slot of local phone booths. This is probably what led most science fiction fans against this film. We're used to fantastic specials which create a real visual treat. To have that missing really hurts the film.

The second flaw is that the story, however realistic, is now standard for anyone who has read anything from the hard science genre. Whoever wrote this has obviously read Robinson and Bova as well as checked the NASA site every now and then. So I guess my complaint is that there were few surprises or new stuff.

Third is that the whole thing is shot on video which makes everything look cheap, like a news room set. There is little which looks realistic and one can feel a bit ripped off by the sets they have although I did notice a few nice touches in the background.

What saved this film in my opinion was the acting. Every actor in this film did a sterling job despite the problems. Many of us are used to some atrocious over-acting which is enough to make Jack Palance proud and me nauseous. Ironically it is the faults of this film which allow viewers to see what a hard job acting is. With limited special effects and poor sets you can see what normal actors see when they work. The large temptation is to over act but the entire cast bring out believable, human performances which is why I gave the film a 7.