Despite audiences knowing the happy ending from the get-go, [director] Butler manages to inject considerable drama.
Comment
01/16/09
Rate this Movie 
Roving Mars (2006)
71
%
Tomatometer
How does the Tomatometer work
Reviews Counted:17
Fresh:12
Rotten:5
Average Rating:6.6/10
Consensus: Roving Mars is a decent thrill ride even when it starts feeling like a commercial plug for NASA's failing space program.
Theatrical Release:Jan 27, 2006 Limited
Box Office: $9,959,080
Synopsis: Follow the adventures of NASA's rovers Spirit and Opportunity as the robotic vehicles explore the surface of Mars and transmit images back to Earth. With a score by Philip Glass (THE HOURS, NOTES... [More]
Get This Movie
Reviews for Roving Mars
1 - 17 (sorted by date)
Top CriticNot 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.
08/18/06
Top CriticCapably accomplishes its mission to Mars by blending solid science with sci-fi eye candy.
06/16/06
Top CriticIt's harder still not to root for anthropomorphized Spirit and Opportunity as time and again they perform like whirring, beeping little robots-that-could, far exceeding the expectations of the people who designed and built them.
02/04/06
Top CriticOnly 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.
02/01/06
Top CriticThat's about what it plays like: a gigantic commerical for more space travel, from a contractor who stands to benefit financially if we go, and a government agency whose budget is threatened.
01/27/06
Top CriticThere aren't enough pyrotechnics in the paltry 40-minute run time to justify the ticket price.
01/27/06
Top CriticA splendidly photographed IMAX 2-D film.
01/27/06
Top CriticWhile 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.
01/27/06
Top Critic... a heartfelt tribute to a couple of robots.
01/26/06
Top CriticThe movie is more compelling than exciting with one exception: the kind of rocket blast-off sequence for which IMAX screens were seemingly invented.
01/26/06
Top CriticRead 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.
01/26/06
Top CriticManages 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.
01/26/06
Top Critic[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.
01/26/06
Top CriticAs 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.
01/26/06
Top CriticThe 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.
01/26/06
Top CriticWhy shouldn't the movie be gung-ho about it all? Those plucky little robots, Spirit and Opportunity, have been up there for almost two years now, and they're still sending back dazzling pictures and illuminating data.
01/26/06
Top Critic1 - 17 (sorted by date)
RT On Current TV
What’s Hot On RT
Fresh Links
Featured
Wes Anderson on Fox 
The director talks about puppetry perfection and his film, Fantastic Mr. Fox
The New Cult Canon
AV Club looks at a beloved cult classic, Sam Raimi's Army of Darkness.
New Moon Portraits
TIME offers us a closer look at the characters from the latest Twilight film.
Unsexiest Men Alive
Moviefone lists their choices for the least attractive men in Hollywood.
Promos
Follow RT on Twitter
Get the latest Tomatometer updates on upcoming movies!
IGN RSS Feeds