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Martian Child (2007)

Average rating

(67%)

Starring:	John Cusack \| Joan Cusack \| Amanda Peet \| Bobby Coleman \| Sophie Okonedo \| Oliver Platt
Director:	Menno Meyjes
Studio:	ENTERTAINMENT IN VIDEO RENTAL
Run time:	108 mins
Genres:	Drama
Languages:	English
Released:	April 14, 2008

Based on an award-winning short story by sci-fi luminary David Gerrold, Martian Child sees John Cusack as a recently widowed science fiction writer who forms an unlikely family with a close friend (Amanda Peet) and a young boy he adopts who claims to be from Mars. The new couple ignore some sage parenting advice from the widower's sister (Joan Cusack) and get more than they bargained for when a series of strange occurrences lead them to believe that the child's claim may be true!

Rating of 2 stars out of 5
Time Out

If you came of age in the 1980s, John Cusack holds a special place in your formative filmgoing experiences. While movie...

Highest rated reviews

8 out of 8 people found the following review helpful:

Rated 4.0 stars
Sweet little film

A Customer from Leicester, 29th May, 2008

This is a very nice under the radar kind of film, which I quite enjoyed. I watched it with my partner and he really liked it as well, although he found Joan Cusack a little annoying at points as she seems to act a part that she has played so many times before. If you like John Cusack this will definitely help as he is the real centre of the film. Basically, it is about a guy who is still troubled by the death of his wife and doesn't really feel a part of society or anything around him. He then adopts a kid who believes he is from Mars and clearly has similar contact issues with reality. The film is then about them getting to grips with eachother. It is nice, there is nothing particularly unpredictable or indeed overly sentimental about it, but as a sunday afternoon film - worth a watch.

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Most recent reviews

Rated 2.0 stars
Martian Child

A Customer from Hertfordshire, 25th January, 2010

I rented this film based on the number of stars and even though my family laughed when I told them the title I had high hopes. I was disappointed. The pace of the film was very slow that at times I thought I was missing something. The look on the faces of others watching with me told me this was not the case. I like John Cusack but this was disappointing to say the least. The characters never really quite get there. Relationships never really get off the ground or by the time they do its too late. I would give Serendipity another John Cusack film a 3.5-4 so if you think similar then maybe my view would line up with your view too. Personally I think even 2 is being generous but I did watch it to the end. If you like John Cusack and you've watched all his other movies then give this one a go - if not I wouldn't put it at the top of my list.

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