If the location of the entire movie is inside a completely self-contained "tank" that is locked from the outside, why is it built in a remote and problematic area like the arctic? Is this really based on a true story?
24 Reviews
Not awful but a waste of potential
lora-jen3 September 2017
An interesting take on a space movie - being not really a space movie. Plot holes were wayyy too obvious and the flash forwards although good attempts at making the storyline believable, still weren't. Using more logic in the writing/making of this movie would have done wonders. Guessing this was done on a small budget and it did well using that. Some legit scenes which were emotional and moving.
There's a good premise buried under all the awful
jason-linker11 March 2021
A better script would have made this film a lot more bearable. I can believe that incompetence or greed might have made a mission destined to fail. But the whole idea was that they rushed the project through to spend their budget surplus. First of all, there are substantially better way to do that. But second and more importantly, how could you rush a project like this that requires setting up a simulated Martian habitat in one of the most inhospitable places on earth?
Furthermore, a simulated mission of Mars analogue conditions would be under constant surveillance. An important aspect of these missions is learning what kinds of interpersonal issues arise and how to determine if a given person is suitable for this kind of mission.
I'm a big fan of science fiction and want there to be some attempt at having science be part of it.
Furthermore, a simulated mission of Mars analogue conditions would be under constant surveillance. An important aspect of these missions is learning what kinds of interpersonal issues arise and how to determine if a given person is suitable for this kind of mission.
I'm a big fan of science fiction and want there to be some attempt at having science be part of it.
Good premise - let down by weak plot.
Shaun_of_the_Dude30 August 2017
Pretty decent start - six people thrown into a tank (think Big Brother), and are left to fend for themselves whilst governmental figurehead tries to push the crew to their limits, with dire consequences.
Standard story really, jazzed up with a bit of sci-fi. The actors must not have seen the set beforehand as it looks like it was made from plywood and glue.
The CGI is like a special one-hour episode of X-Files (1993), and the sound mixing is quite good.
We see most of the deterioration through dialogue and plot, the characters themselves do not develop past their lines and whilst one or two actors do a good job of acting insane, the film's lacklustre pacing gives it a very cheap feel.
If you are a sci-fi fan, this may tickle your ivories, but for the general viewer - go watch Big Brother.
Standard story really, jazzed up with a bit of sci-fi. The actors must not have seen the set beforehand as it looks like it was made from plywood and glue.
The CGI is like a special one-hour episode of X-Files (1993), and the sound mixing is quite good.
We see most of the deterioration through dialogue and plot, the characters themselves do not develop past their lines and whilst one or two actors do a good job of acting insane, the film's lacklustre pacing gives it a very cheap feel.
If you are a sci-fi fan, this may tickle your ivories, but for the general viewer - go watch Big Brother.
The Tank Is Empty
dariuslanghoff10 September 2017
Basically everything what might be is wrong with this picture. Any in-depth analysis would be an undeserved flatter.
1. The premise is hard to define if there is any.
2. The plot stumbles, stutters and staggers with no rhyme nor reason.
3. The acting is horrendously incompetent.
4. Music there is none - just noises.
5. The resolution does not resolve anything and tends to the incomprehensible.
One may get to like however, the scene where a gangrenous leg is impromptu amputated by means of an electric non-surgical knife. But this belongs rather to WRONG TURN series than to sci-fi genre.
1. The premise is hard to define if there is any.
2. The plot stumbles, stutters and staggers with no rhyme nor reason.
3. The acting is horrendously incompetent.
4. Music there is none - just noises.
5. The resolution does not resolve anything and tends to the incomprehensible.
One may get to like however, the scene where a gangrenous leg is impromptu amputated by means of an electric non-surgical knife. But this belongs rather to WRONG TURN series than to sci-fi genre.
Based on a True Story... What "True" Story?
xanderdeafman15 February 2021
Based on a True Story... What "True" Story?
I googled, no such "true" story exists.
Obvious flaws in the crew psychological eval. It was all done on the cheap, that's why failure.
When life must be sustained, don't be cheap.
smh
I googled, no such "true" story exists.
Obvious flaws in the crew psychological eval. It was all done on the cheap, that's why failure.
When life must be sustained, don't be cheap.
smh
What true facts?
sburtosky-0391025 May 2021
Utterly Senseless
jigae13 June 2021
This movie lacked a plot and had an oddly abrupt ending. Without going into spoilers, it's also pretty clear no one in a medical field was consulted on some of the plot points and I was torn between laughing and grinding my teeth with some utterly unrealistic plot points. Also some vaguely offensive portrayals of both gay and religious people, providing an unpleasant experience for almost any viewer. Avoid at all costs.
What Was That All About?
Gislef18 March 2021
Warning: Spoilers
I don't understand the point of the movie. It's about five people who are running a Mars stimulation, inside of a fake Martian compound (i.e, the "tank": of the title). For some reason it's located in Antarctica. I have no idea why. They did the same thing in an episode of 'Stingray' back in 1987 (in 'Flashback'), and that was in the middle of a desert. Why they couldn't put it... anywhere, I have no idea.
All of the five characters are pretty forgettable, except for Dane, played by Brad William Henke. Henke was good in 'The Stand', and he's surprisingly good here. Jack Coleman from 'Heroes' has a small part as the project lead, who isn't eviluz per se but just kind of a jerk who cut a lot of corners. Other than some hearing, we never find out anything about Coleman's character "Reed Baker", or his boss, or their company, or the people running the hearing.
And in fairness, other than as an explanation for why there's a simulation, they don't do much. The main focus is on the five people in the simulation. One is a hardcore religious conservative, there are two women, two men, and Dane. Who seems to be the only one without either psychological problems, or a family, or both. Freed of the angst loading down the other characters, Henke is free to give Dane some actual characterization.
As to the other four... let's just say that the company running the simulation apparently doesn't believe in psych evaluations. The male commander lost his daughter, one of the women Julia has a family (so she agreed to be out of touch with them for this long period), the other male apparently has sexual issues and a history of seizures (no physical screening along with poor psych screening!), and Anne Lisa Phillips plays the other woman, Nelly. Who doesn't have much of a personality, either, although she does get undressed for a brief sex scene with Dane.
And the religious guy, Erik, slowly goes downhill mentally. He starts talking to God, there are a relatively lot of scenes of him praying, and eventually he goes berserk. He shoots Julia with a nail gun, forces the psycho male to reveal he's been peeping on his teammates and has sexual fantasies about Dane, and the guy somehow kills himself. So the religious guy shoots and kills himself with the nail gun. The company doesn't show up on time to pull the people out of the tank, the place flips over in a high wind, and I think Nelly died along with Julia, since having the habitat flipped over didn't do much for the nail in her chest.
Dane has been hobbling around on a bad ankle for months, for some reason I don't get. The flipover aggravates his injury, and the commander Will has to amputate his leg. It doesn't go well, and Dane eventually dies. Will has a vision of his dead daughter, and then the rescue team cut open the habitat and get him out. The end.
And like I asked... what was the point? Most of us have seen this simulation kind of thing before. The 'Flashback' episode I mentioned does the whole thing more effectively, and introduces an unknown variable to explain why the crew mostly killed themselves. Here, the crew dies primarily because Baker was a jerk and didn't do the proper tests. Why? Who knows?
There's also weird directorial touches. The early part of the episode is presented in pseudo-documentary style, as the crew tapes themselves. But then it switches to more standard shots. I'm not quite sure when, but it's weird when they go from the handheld style to the scene of Dane and Nelly have sex. You wonder if they're filming themselves. I eventually caught on.
The acting is pretty minimal except for Henke, and there's no coherent motivations or anything. Things just... happen.
But that's just my opinion, I could be wrong. What do you think?.
All of the five characters are pretty forgettable, except for Dane, played by Brad William Henke. Henke was good in 'The Stand', and he's surprisingly good here. Jack Coleman from 'Heroes' has a small part as the project lead, who isn't eviluz per se but just kind of a jerk who cut a lot of corners. Other than some hearing, we never find out anything about Coleman's character "Reed Baker", or his boss, or their company, or the people running the hearing.
And in fairness, other than as an explanation for why there's a simulation, they don't do much. The main focus is on the five people in the simulation. One is a hardcore religious conservative, there are two women, two men, and Dane. Who seems to be the only one without either psychological problems, or a family, or both. Freed of the angst loading down the other characters, Henke is free to give Dane some actual characterization.
As to the other four... let's just say that the company running the simulation apparently doesn't believe in psych evaluations. The male commander lost his daughter, one of the women Julia has a family (so she agreed to be out of touch with them for this long period), the other male apparently has sexual issues and a history of seizures (no physical screening along with poor psych screening!), and Anne Lisa Phillips plays the other woman, Nelly. Who doesn't have much of a personality, either, although she does get undressed for a brief sex scene with Dane.
And the religious guy, Erik, slowly goes downhill mentally. He starts talking to God, there are a relatively lot of scenes of him praying, and eventually he goes berserk. He shoots Julia with a nail gun, forces the psycho male to reveal he's been peeping on his teammates and has sexual fantasies about Dane, and the guy somehow kills himself. So the religious guy shoots and kills himself with the nail gun. The company doesn't show up on time to pull the people out of the tank, the place flips over in a high wind, and I think Nelly died along with Julia, since having the habitat flipped over didn't do much for the nail in her chest.
Dane has been hobbling around on a bad ankle for months, for some reason I don't get. The flipover aggravates his injury, and the commander Will has to amputate his leg. It doesn't go well, and Dane eventually dies. Will has a vision of his dead daughter, and then the rescue team cut open the habitat and get him out. The end.
And like I asked... what was the point? Most of us have seen this simulation kind of thing before. The 'Flashback' episode I mentioned does the whole thing more effectively, and introduces an unknown variable to explain why the crew mostly killed themselves. Here, the crew dies primarily because Baker was a jerk and didn't do the proper tests. Why? Who knows?
There's also weird directorial touches. The early part of the episode is presented in pseudo-documentary style, as the crew tapes themselves. But then it switches to more standard shots. I'm not quite sure when, but it's weird when they go from the handheld style to the scene of Dane and Nelly have sex. You wonder if they're filming themselves. I eventually caught on.
The acting is pretty minimal except for Henke, and there's no coherent motivations or anything. Things just... happen.
But that's just my opinion, I could be wrong. What do you think?.
Starts interesting. Loses all logic.
zuitsuit1 September 2021
I really wanted to like this movie. Several actors are recognizable from films and television that I've liked. It's written and directed by women. I enjoy science fiction (if this is based on a true story, the information is lacking). I enjoy isolation and survival stories...
The story and the performances falls off the rails at some point. Several plot points are not explained or resolved and there are many questions left unanswered.
. A Tame Thriller
tdwillis-2627313 September 2017
This film doesn't show anything new, the premise has been done many times (what isolation can do to people)....and the acting in some scenes felt forced and a bit sophomoric but I was interested enough to make it thru the whole movie without falling asleep or barfing.
Id say it is way better then a score of 2-5 which is what I usually score independent, obviously terrible, awful movies, in which even high school aged children could produce something equally as entertaining. Id rate this one a good strong 6.5....but scored 7 to give this movie a chance for those people who can appreciate it for what it is.
There is some decent acting and some interesting moments. There are certainly many many more movies out there considerably more atrocious and a waste of time, than this one.
Id recommend it to those a bit older, who are not in need of constant action or other types of stimulation to be engaged in a movie. And who doesn't mind not having very deep intellectual character studies. But a decently produced easy goes it very tame thriller.
Id say it is way better then a score of 2-5 which is what I usually score independent, obviously terrible, awful movies, in which even high school aged children could produce something equally as entertaining. Id rate this one a good strong 6.5....but scored 7 to give this movie a chance for those people who can appreciate it for what it is.
There is some decent acting and some interesting moments. There are certainly many many more movies out there considerably more atrocious and a waste of time, than this one.
Id recommend it to those a bit older, who are not in need of constant action or other types of stimulation to be engaged in a movie. And who doesn't mind not having very deep intellectual character studies. But a decently produced easy goes it very tame thriller.
It Tanked...
randyunseen25 February 2021
Warning: Spoilers
I was hoping this would be a good low budget movie... Not the case, The acting was subpar, I could get over the plywood sets. It still could have worked except the acting was horrible and I couldn't care less about the characters. The ending was slow and painful. I think they were trying to resemble the movie "Thing".
This movie Tanked... But had so much potential but for the bad acting.
Misleading
kcointment-7079330 December 2021
Not good
agm-7810830 November 2021
Warning: Spoilers
The claim that this film is based on true events is slightly misleading. While there was a 520 day Mars simulation in Russia with 6 volunteer astronauts, nothing close to the events portrayed in the film occurred.
In the real simulation, all astronauts were mentally and physically fit to be able withstand such circumstances. No one was killed or even wounded. All 6 astronauts exited the mock spacecraft in good health.
I don't think there was any research done before making this film. None of these characters would have been involved in such a simulation. Every single character has psychiatric issues that would prevent them from being selected. A simple conversation with a psychiatrist could have improved this script. I don't mind a low budget film but at least do a minimal amount of research so as to make it somewhat believable for the audience.
In the real simulation, all astronauts were mentally and physically fit to be able withstand such circumstances. No one was killed or even wounded. All 6 astronauts exited the mock spacecraft in good health.
I don't think there was any research done before making this film. None of these characters would have been involved in such a simulation. Every single character has psychiatric issues that would prevent them from being selected. A simple conversation with a psychiatrist could have improved this script. I don't mind a low budget film but at least do a minimal amount of research so as to make it somewhat believable for the audience.
No direction
jp-1574827 June 2019
True story? And these are the types of ppl we're sending to Mars?
MrWildthang26 July 2021
The idea was promising until they rolled the film. Ok, let's say this was loosely based on a true story, well whoop-de-doo we're gonna f* up Mars, too? The story line was laughable. And I'm not gonna lie, there were moments I LOL'd because of the silliness so it did entertain a bit, especially the end scene. Glad there's ffwd.
I enjoyed it, but the script seemed unfinished
mistela6726 June 2021
Warning: Spoilers
I'm sure there will be people who didn't like the movie. That's common for pretty much all movies reviewed on IMDB. The Tank went from normal to "serious issues" a bit too fast for me. No build up, which would have been nice. Not much in the way of character development. They could have cut out several unnecessary scenes and taken advantage of that screen time. So, there were issues with pacing and writing. But once it got going, I felt entertained, and I never felt bored. A couple of the deaths weren't explained well enough (the homosexual guy, and the blond), but, we knew they were gonna go. Not sure why the black guy shot the woman, and then felt profoundly regretful after the homosexual guy died. Just, things like that. Writing was both good and bad. The little girl's spirit at the end was lame; no originality there. Never got the bead on why the manager of the project allowed things to occur as it did, nor what his fate was. This movie felt as if it had a good 30-45 minutes cut out, or needed to be filmed. It was a good movie for a lazy afternoon. Nothing more.
Not Realistic
dncorp4 September 2017
Warning: Spoilers
Choice of Crew would be, U.S. Military Special Warfare known for proved Life or Death Team Work, that have also been on the 6 month Deployments on Submarines many times. Psychologically screened as Introverts.
4 Women, 2 Men. Commander a Woman, 2nd In Command Man.
The Skill Sets. 2 Medical Specialists as Doctor, Emergency Room and Trauma, Surgeon, Dentist, Biology, Psychiatry.
2 Mission Specialists, Engineer, Mechanic, Electrical Engineer, Systems Engineer, Applied Physics, Machinists.
2 Mission Specialists, Propulsion, Navigation, Pilot, Survivalist, Environmental Sciences, Geology, Agriculture, Cartography, Computers.
Everybody is cross trained, and continues to cross train during Flight.
Psychology, all meals are eaten together. Not hungry there anyway.
Everybody wears a transponder with wireless communications ear piece. That also monitors health and blood pressure, temperature, hearth rate, O2. Worn like a U.S. Army Special Forces Mission Computer, yes has functions like a Multi function Casio Pathfinder Wrist Watch also.
8 armored Spacesuits with Rebreather systems, replaceable refillable O2 tanks, and Chemical cartridges.
Location of the Test. On ground at NASA Facility. Similar to a Submarine built inside of the NASA Facility on top of hydraulics. Images projected on walls, simulate Space, Martian Surface. All problems must be solved by the Crew, with support of Mission Control.
Spacecraft Outer Hull self sealing. Inner Hull self Sealing. Between inner and outer hulls self sealing water storage. All water is recycled. Water is changed from H20 to Hydrogen and breathable Oxygen. Oxygen scrubbers, scrub out CO2 and Carbon Monoxide like on Nuclear Submarines.
All compartments have air tight bulkheads and hatches, including individual crew compartments. All hatches are normally closed.
Electricity from internal to spacecraft from two Thorium Nuclear Reactors. Deployable and retractable Solar Arrays.
2 Lifeboats, capacity 10 per Lifeboat capable of one way trip back to Earth and Reentry. Emergency Equipment. Emergency Rations. Water and Oxygen Recycling.
10 Emergency Escape Individual Pods, Must Be In Spacesuit. Allows User to do a Orbital Jump from Space, Reenter Earth's or Mars Atmosphere. Parachutes deploy manual emergency deployment. retro rockets fire if Mars manual emergency ignition.
4 Women, 2 Men. Commander a Woman, 2nd In Command Man.
The Skill Sets. 2 Medical Specialists as Doctor, Emergency Room and Trauma, Surgeon, Dentist, Biology, Psychiatry.
2 Mission Specialists, Engineer, Mechanic, Electrical Engineer, Systems Engineer, Applied Physics, Machinists.
2 Mission Specialists, Propulsion, Navigation, Pilot, Survivalist, Environmental Sciences, Geology, Agriculture, Cartography, Computers.
Everybody is cross trained, and continues to cross train during Flight.
Psychology, all meals are eaten together. Not hungry there anyway.
Everybody wears a transponder with wireless communications ear piece. That also monitors health and blood pressure, temperature, hearth rate, O2. Worn like a U.S. Army Special Forces Mission Computer, yes has functions like a Multi function Casio Pathfinder Wrist Watch also.
8 armored Spacesuits with Rebreather systems, replaceable refillable O2 tanks, and Chemical cartridges.
Location of the Test. On ground at NASA Facility. Similar to a Submarine built inside of the NASA Facility on top of hydraulics. Images projected on walls, simulate Space, Martian Surface. All problems must be solved by the Crew, with support of Mission Control.
Spacecraft Outer Hull self sealing. Inner Hull self Sealing. Between inner and outer hulls self sealing water storage. All water is recycled. Water is changed from H20 to Hydrogen and breathable Oxygen. Oxygen scrubbers, scrub out CO2 and Carbon Monoxide like on Nuclear Submarines.
All compartments have air tight bulkheads and hatches, including individual crew compartments. All hatches are normally closed.
Electricity from internal to spacecraft from two Thorium Nuclear Reactors. Deployable and retractable Solar Arrays.
2 Lifeboats, capacity 10 per Lifeboat capable of one way trip back to Earth and Reentry. Emergency Equipment. Emergency Rations. Water and Oxygen Recycling.
10 Emergency Escape Individual Pods, Must Be In Spacesuit. Allows User to do a Orbital Jump from Space, Reenter Earth's or Mars Atmosphere. Parachutes deploy manual emergency deployment. retro rockets fire if Mars manual emergency ignition.
Another bunker
edgy-827-48696527 August 2017
Its not great, but okay, I mean we have so many films about similar premise. First I think - "400 days", but when there film go to sci-fi, there - to thriller. I don't say its bad, I say its very bland. And yeas I can see how writer|director love this theme, but why you choose another to-Mars project? Mb you think this is or realistic then others? Well in someway - yes, actors play good, part with too directors - not bad, but little boring and like many thing (I tell about Nally) - leads no where. Actor really try to play and do good job, but script - sometimes too weak (I mean - scene with Sacks and Julia - so quick, so unnatural, he lost his daughter and wife!). And yes - black Christian and his relationship with Thom - its really good. 10 of 10.
This was bad.
charleswx-4312725 September 2021
Warning: Spoilers
This was pretty bad. I've definitely seen worse but this was bad. Bad acting, bad plot, bad story, bad script. It did have potential but it was a train wreck less than five minutes in. So much didn't make sense. Why Antarctica? Why no team monitoring their activities and health 24/7? Why were they not screened by a team of doctors to ensure that all were physically and mentally healthy to be on this "trip" to Mars?
Why would someone who knows better create such a stupid plot?
jrneptune2 January 2022
Why would someone who knows better create such a stupid plot?
I hate using the word stupid, but it seems to fit here. Between the writer, screenplay writer, director, and producers they obviously knew an undertaking like this requires trained professionals that have worked together s a team and not just be thrown together spur of the moment.
The only reason I can see was for the entertainment value. I won't bother going into the types of people that would be entertained by that.
I do hope the actors, cast and crew enjoyed making it though. The camera work was well done.
Not a movie I can recommend in any situation.
I hate using the word stupid, but it seems to fit here. Between the writer, screenplay writer, director, and producers they obviously knew an undertaking like this requires trained professionals that have worked together s a team and not just be thrown together spur of the moment.
The only reason I can see was for the entertainment value. I won't bother going into the types of people that would be entertained by that.
I do hope the actors, cast and crew enjoyed making it though. The camera work was well done.
Not a movie I can recommend in any situation.
Did anyone else notice...?
mcdonaldnora30 November 2021
Did anyone else notice that the character played by Christopher McDonald appeared to have red hair and a scraggly beard in one scene and then later appeared as a non-redhead (more like his usual look) ? But does that even matter in such a silly movie as this...
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