Mars Attacks! arrives on Digital and 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray on August 11, marking the first time Tim Burton’s 1996 sci-fi comedy will be available in 4K resolution with HDR. The newly remastered release comes just ahead of the film’s 30th anniversary and brings Burton’s deliberately over-the-top alien invasion back to home screens in a new format.
Inspired by the classic Topps trading cards, Mars Attacks! imagines what happens when a fleet of Martians arrives on Earth and humanity’s attempts at peaceful first contact go spectacularly wrong. Jack Nicholson leads the ensemble cast as President James Dale, who must contend with an increasingly chaotic invasion as the Martians demonstrate that they have little interest in diplomacy.
The film is packed with familiar faces, including Glenn Close, Annette Bening, Pierce Brosnan, Danny DeVito, Martin Short, Sarah Jessica Parker, Michael J. Fox, Rod Steiger, Jim Brown, Lukas Haas, Natalie Portman, and Tom Jones. Burton approaches the alien invasion story as a colorful send-up of 1950s science fiction, disaster movies, and big-budget Hollywood spectacle, complete with flying saucers, ray guns, exploding landmarks, and the Martians’ unmistakable “Ack! Ack!” dialogue.
The new 4K release also includes two newly produced special features looking back at the movie three decades later. Looking Back on Mars Attacks! brings members of the filmmaking team together to share stories about working with Burton and making the unusual alien invasion comedy. Ack! Ack! Aesthetic focuses on the film’s distinctive visual style and the use of what was then cutting-edge CGI to create its Martians and their attack on Earth.
Mars Attacks! released August 11 on Digital and 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray.
