The Martian Chronicles (1980)

Country of Origin: UK / USA / West Germany
Date(s) of Broadcast: 1980
Number of Seasons: 1
Total Number of Episodes: 3
Average Episode Running Times:
Format: colour 35mm
Ratio: 1.33:1
Sound: mono

CREDITS

PRODUCTION
Production Companies: Charles Fries' Martian Chronicles Productions in association with the BBC / Polytel International Film / Stonehenge Productions
Executive in Charge of Production: Malcolm Stuart
European Production Executive: John Whalley
Executive Producers: Charles Fries, Dick Berg
Producers: Andrew Donally, Milton Subotsky
Associate Producer: Charles M. Fries
Production Managers: Graham Ford, William P. Owens

SCRIPT
Script: Richard Matheson
Novel: Ray Bradbury

DIRECTION
Director: Michael Anderson
2nd Unit Director: John Stears
Assistant Director: David Bracknell

PHOTOGRAPHY
Director of Photography: Ted Moore
2nd Unit Photographer: Bob Kindred
Camera Operator: Mike Roberts
Aerial Sequences: K.H. Wallis
Labs: Studio Film Laboratories Ltd

EDITING AND POST-PRODUCTION
Supervising Editor: John Jympson
Editor: Eunice Mountjoy
Assistant Editor: Marcel Durham
US Post-Production Supervisor: Thomas Fries

MUSIC
Music: Stanley Myers
Electronic Music: Richard Harvey
Music Editor: Graham Harris

SOUND
Sound Recordists: George Stephenson, Bob Jones
Sound Editors: Teddy Mason, Ron Davis

MAKE UP AND COSTUMES
Make Up Designer: George Frost
Make Up: Mark Reedall, Colin Arthur
Hair: Jeanette Freeman
Costume Designer: Cynthia Tingey
Wardrobe Supervisor: Bridget Sellers

SPECIAL MAKE UP EFFECTS
Gold Contact Lenses: Sam Silver

SPECIAL EFFECTS
Special Effects: John Stears

VISUAL EFFECTS
Matte Artist: Ray Caple
Model Photography: Bob Kindred
Visual Effects Liaison: Henry Richardson
Titles and Optical Effects: Cinefex London Ltd

DESIGN AND SET CONSTRUCTION
Production Designer: Assheton Gorton
Property Maker: Rodger Shaw

MISCELLANEOUS
Script Supervisor: Cheryl Leigh
Production Administrator: Ron Atkinson

LOCATIONS
Locations: Lanzarote, Canary Islands, Spain; London, England, UK; Malta
Studios: Lee International Studios, England

CASTING
Casting: James Liggat, Caro Jones

CAST
Rock Hudson (Colonel John Wilder)
Gayle Hunnicutt (Ruth Wilder)
Bernie Casey (Major Jeff Spender)
Christopher Connelly (Ben Driscoll)
Nicholas Hammond (Captain Arthur Black)
Roddy McDowall (Father Stone)
Darren McGavin (Sam Parkhill)
Bernadette Peters (Genevieve Selsor)
Maria Schell (Anna Lustig)
Joyce Van Patten (Elma Parkhill)
Fritz Weaver (Father Peregrine)
Linda Lou Allen (Marilyn)
Michael Anderson Jr (David Lustig)
Robert Beatty (General Halstead)
Estelle Brody (Mrs Black)
Phil Brown (Mr Black)
John Cassady (Briggs)
Vadim Glowna (Hinkston)
Alison Elliott (Lavinnia Spalding)
James Faulkner (Mr K)
Jon Finch (Christ)
Richard Heffer (Conover)
Laurie Holden (Marie Wilder)
Derek Lamden (Martian on sand ship)
Terence Longdon (Martian)
Peter Marinker (McClure)
Barry Morse (Peter Hatheway)
Richard Oldfield (York)
Nyree Dawn Porter (Alice Hatheway)
Wolfgang Reichmann (Lafe Lustig)
Anthony Pullen Shaw (Edward Black)
Burnell Tucker (Bill Wilder)
Maggie Wright (Ylla)

PLOT SUMMARY

In 1999, a team of astronauts lands on Mars and are murdered by a Martian driven mad with jealousy when his wife starts fantasising about the visitors. A subsequent mission is endangered when they are hypnotized into believing that they have landed in an idyllic community drawn from the mission leader's memories. A third expedition is launched, led by Colonel John Wilder and they discover that the Martians have now been wiped out by chicken pox brought to the planet by members of the previous expeditions. As the Earth is ravaged by war, a hardy group of colonists set up home on Mars and face terrible hardships and psychological problems.

CAPSULE REVIEW

A mediocre adaptation of Bradbury's excellent series of linked short stories. The first episode was watchable enough, but a lack of budget, skills and imagination crippled brought the remaining parts of this epic mini-series. An excellent cast seem to be going through the motions, the effects are crude and Matheson's script lack his usual flair. All in all, very disappointing.

EPISODES

1. The Expeditions
2. The Settlers
3. The Martians

USA
Television Distributor: NBC
Video Distributor: IVE; USA Video
Laserdisc Distributor: Image Entertainment Inc

ALTERNATIVE TITLES

Crónicas marcianas - Venezuelan title
Die Marschroniken - West German title
Marsin aikakirjat - Finnish title

1981
Hugo Awards, USA
Best Dramatic Presentation - nominated

LINKS

SEE ALSO
Ghosts of Mars (2001)
Mission to Mars (2000)

KEYWORDS

book into film, end of the world, jesus christ, mars, martians, nuclear wars, plagues, ruins, space, space colonies, space travel, spaceships, telepathy, viruses, war

Last Updated: 1 January, 2009