MARS NEEDS MOMS – The Review

I’m going to begin by saying that I’m approaching this review for Disney’s MOM NEEDS MARS from a Mom P.O.V. – this is the kind of movie I’d like my kids to see. In director Simon Wells’ (THE TIME MACHINE, THE PRINCE OF EGYPT) adaptation of Berkeley Breathed’s book “Mars Needs Moms, we meet 9-year-old Milo (Seth Green). He has comic books to read, zombie movies to watch and bed-jumping to do. He doesn’t have time to eat his vegetables and do chores, no matter what his mom says. Mom (Joan Cusack) is sick of nagging, and Milo’s sick of Mom. Her good intentions and loving ways may not please Milo, but they certainly impress the Martian scouts who are looking for a good mom. But when he suggests moments later that he’d be better off without her, that’s when things get a little hairy. His efforts to apologize are interrupted when Martians – yep, those Martians – arrive, steal his mom, return to their spaceship and rocket to Mars…with a 9-year-old stowaway who’s determined to rescue the mother he’d wished away just moments before. To Milo, the whole thing would be downright hilarious if he weren’t headed to another planet.

It’s once on Mars that Milo encounters Gribble (Dan Fogler). He’s a 30-something who has been on Mars since his own mom was “needed” by Martians many years ago. When Milo reaches the planet and is taken prisoner, Gribble rescues him, guiding him through a series of secret chutes to the elaborate lair on Mars’ lower level that Gribble calls home. Tricked out with various electronic and spy devices, Gribble’s digs allow him to tap into the planet’s communication systems and spy on what is going on in the hub of all activity, the Citadel. Gribble still uses the ’80s lingo from his childhood and refers to himself as as “Reagannaut” – one sent to the Red Planet with President Reagan’s secret astronaut program. It’s this kind of diatribe that makes you instantly like this bumbling refugee. No surprise that Gribble is understandably bummed when he realizes that Milo, his first human friend in ages, plans to save his mom and return to Earth. But Gribble agrees to help Milo – even if deep down, he’d love it if Milo could hang out with him forever.

Wingnut is the leader of the Hairy Tribe Guys, who embody the lost love of Mars. They live in the underground trash caverns, discarded by the misguided civilized society above. Wingnut was Gribble’s buddy before Milo arrived on Mars, and Gribble thinks he’s a little crazy and not too smart. But Wingnut just might understand far more about what is happening on Mars than anyone thinks.

We also discover that all these mom-nappings stem from The Supervisor (Mindy Sterling), the much-feared, heartless Martian leader. She is behind the planet’s dismal belief system that promotes cold, strict conduct and prohibits warmth and love, virtually forcing the need to steal Earth’s moms and extract their mom-ness to help nurture their young. She is the leader of Mars’ special security forces, the Siss Guards. But the hippy-dippy of Mars is KI (Elisabeth Harnois) – a strong-willed young Martian who learned to speak English by watching a ’70s sitcom. She spends her time secretly painting elaborate graffiti on the walls of Mars and is forced to hide her artistic side on a planet that is devoid of color and emotion. The Martians are strictly forbidden from expressing any individuality by The Supervisor, but Ki thinks for herself – particularly when she decides to help Milo. Talented and tough, Ki makes Martian history by being the coolest renegade ever.

Finally there is Milo’s Dad. This dedicated family man and father is away on a business trip and unaware of the interplanetary adventure his wife and Milo take together. He does notice that his often-cantankerous son seems somehow different when Milo mysteriously volunteers to take out the trash. “Did something happen to Milo this weekend?” Tom Everett Scott (THAT THING YOU DO) plays Milo’s Father and I for one was quite pleased that the Dad character was included in this Disney movie.

Famed cartoonist Berkeley Breathed was moved to write the book that inspired the film after an eventful dinner at home. “One night my son Milo threw his broccoli into the air and stormed from the table, a scene depicted with more civility in the movie,” says Breathed. “Upon leaving, he said something about his mother too vile to repeat here, which would only result in expensive therapy later if he ever remembered. From out of nowhere came my next line: “You might think differently about your mom if she were kidnapped by Martians. I spun on my heels and wrote the book that night. The rest is Disney history.”

On two personal notes, I have to say that this sci-fi comedy is chocked full of heart-tugging scenes and sweet messages. A Mother’s love for her child is the strong theme that runs throughout. As parents we’d move them out of harm’s way by putting ourselves in the path of an oncoming bus or give up the very air we breathe to save our children. As you might guess, there are even more than a few moments that’ll make you weep, so have the tissues ready.

And secondly, Dan Fogler’s touching revelation scene, in which Gribble tells Milo the truth about his arrival on Mars. What Fogler did with that scene was utterly astounding. He made it deeply, sincerely heartbreaking. Fogler plays Gribble as the classic clown with a broken heart, who covers for his inner devastation with boisterous activity and noise. Fogler becomes Gribble.

As a Mom, I thought this was a really good family film that parents can take kids of any ages to. The story was good and the characters were charming. Best of all, it had tons of space adventure that any kid would love – even we big ones! I was amazed by the animation technology that was used and how far it has come. One of my favorite family movies is POLAR EXPRESS and this had that same kind of feel – like the actors were actually there and not animated. Very well done, this movie should be big hit!

The screenplay is by Wells and Wendy Wells based on the book by Berkeley Breathed. The film is produced by Academy Award®-winning director Robert Zemeckis (“Forrest Gump”), Jack Rapke, Steve Starkey and Steven Boyd. The creative team also includes production designer Doug Chiang (“Disney’s A Christmas Carol,” “The Polar Express”), editor Wayne Wahrman (“I Am Legend,” “Charlie’s Angels”), director of photography Robert Presley (“The Polar Express,” “Beowulf”) and Oscar®-nominated composer John Powell (“How to Train Your Dragon,” “Shrek,” “The Bourne Identity”).

**** out of 5 stars

MARS NEEDS MOMS is rated PG by the MPAA. Presented in Disney Digital 3D and IMAX® 3D, the film lands in U.S. theaters today, March 11th.

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