Roving Mars: Critic Reviews

Only a series of pics featuring a set of strange little nodes that look like blueberries planted in a pile of red rocks carry any kind of translatable otherworldly kick.

Read no more if you want to grow up to be an astronaut; here are 40 minutes of nonstop robots, spaceships and bright-eyed NASA geeks enthusing about tangles of circuitry and nifty hydraulics.

The movie is more compelling than exciting with one exception: the kind of rocket blast-off sequence for which IMAX screens were seemingly invented.

Manages to present scientific inquiry as an emotional journey, during which two exquisitely designed machines go from being gears and hinges to the embodiment of our best hopes and dreams.

Despite audiences knowing the happy ending from the get-go, [director] Butler manages to inject considerable drama.

[Butler] caught the tense moments at NASA as scientists waited to see whether the robots would land safely. And he got amazing pictures from them of the red surface of Mars pocked with what may be dried-up lake basins and riverbeds.

The sad thing is, even for NASA/space fans, a snooze isn't out of the question despite the film's scant 40-minute running time.

As informative as it is cool to look at, this Imax documentary combines science with special effects that would be the envy of any sci-fi film.

... a heartfelt tribute to a couple of robots.

A splendidly photographed IMAX 2-D film.

One of the most educational and entertaining large-format movies ever.

While it does present a series of stirring images of the Red Planet, far too much of the film's already brief (40-minute) running time is consumed by shots of anxious-looking scientists and engineers peering intently at their computer monitors.

Not having a way to capture images of the machines at work means that too much of Butler's film ... is disappointingly made up of computer simulations.

The interaction of two amazing NASA roving robots, named "Spirit" and "Opportunity," with the mysterious terrain of Mars is authentically captured by writer/director George Butler on IMAX cameras.

...has been designed to appeal primarily to viewers with an inherent interest in all things outer space...

Originally made for IMAX screens, George Butler's Roving Mars is a visual marvel %u2013 even if it boils down to a piece of corporate propaganda.

Standard IMAX docu fare: a few talking heads, some lush narration, and a whole heap of impressive visuals.

The actual images from the barren surface of our solar neighbor don't fill the giant screen.

It's shot through with edge-of-your-seat excitement.

Capably accomplishes its mission to Mars by blending solid science with sci-fi eye candy.

The first third of the film is weak, but from there it blasts off with strength and connects emotionally, visually, intellectually and even motivationally with the audience.

Too small for the giant Imax screen, Roving Mars is an interesting enough documentary about space exploration but doesn't deliver sufficient gee-whizzery.