The forthcoming sci-fi thriller THE LAST DAYS ON MARS is being compared to John Carpenter’s paranoia-fuelled classic THE THING and with the superb Ray Donavan star Liev Schreiber leading, that’s all I need to know to make sure it’s on my list. The British film, previously titled THE ANIMATORS, was supposed to hit UK cinemas on the 19th September and that date has come and gone without an appearance, while it’s set for US VOD in the US for 31st October with a limited theatre run on 6th December. Ruairi Robinson directs.
On the last day of the first manned mission to Mars, a crew member of Tantalus Base believes he has made an astounding discovery – fossilized evidence of bacterial life. Unwilling to let the relief crew claim all the glory, he disobeys orders to pack up and goes out on an unauthorized expedition to collect further samples. But a routine excavation turns to disaster when the porous ground collapses, and he falls into a deep crevice and near certain death. His devastated colleagues attempt to recover his body. However, when another vanishes they start to suspect that the life-form they have discovered is not yet dead. As the group begins to fall apart it seems their only hope is the imminent arrival of the relief ship Aurora.
An impressive supporting cast includes Olivia Williams, Romola Garai, Tom Cullen, Goran Kostic, Johnny Harris and the ever-exellent Elias Koteas.
Source: IMPAwards
