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R: ARCHIVE, S: MOVIES, D: 09/14/2000,

Mission to Mars

(Buena Vista)

Brian De Palma pays homage to all the great space epics with a story taking place in the year 2025 about four people traveling to Mars to discover the origin of life on Earth -- if only he hadn't stolen the most obvious scenes from 2001, Close Encounters, The Abyss, Apollo 13, and all the daytime soaps. More sweeping vistas of the red, barren Mars landscape and fewer cartoonish, computer-generated aliens would help; so would a soundtrack that didn't depend on cheesy organs, flutes and strings. Tim Robbins and (believe it or not) Jerry O'Connell make the movie almost bearable; the rest of the cast could be replaced with cardboard cutouts. Actually, De Palma should just remake the previews and pitch Mission to Mars as a comedy, because the whole thing is laughable.