{"href":"https://api.simplecast.com/oembed?url=https%3A%2F%2Fprecinct13.simplecast.com%2Fepisodes%2Fghosts-of-mars-ZbbbTIiy","width":444,"version":"1.0","type":"rich","title":"Ghosts of Mars (2001)","thumbnail_width":300,"thumbnail_url":"https://image.simplecastcdn.com/images/914d94cf-fc19-4650-8dff-f497bc80d026/d14152a6-ab1b-40e9-8912-b69a5ae84970/5pbku_ft.jpg","thumbnail_height":300,"provider_url":"https://simplecast.com","provider_name":"Simplecast","html":"","height":200,"description":"On our latest episode, it's finally time to take a look at John Carpenter's post-millennial moviemaking career, beginning with his 2001 effort Ghosts of Mars. This sci-fi/action/horror romp marks Carpenter's last foray into directing (relatively) big-budget studio movies to date, and while the film didn't set the world on fire critically or commercially, it did receive a memorable thumbs-up review from Roger Ebert. The film stars Ice Cube and Natasha Henstridge alongside a stacked cast of B-movie favorites -- from Pam Grier to Carpenter regular Peter Jason -- and it puts a high-concept sci-fi spin on a lot of familiar Carpenter ideas: outlaw antiheroes, western movie tropes, Alamo-esque siege situations, and more! At first glance, Ghosts of Mars looks a lot like classic Carpenter -- but, is the final product an unheralded late-career masterpiece, a misfire of epic proportions, a hyper-violent Scooby Doo episode set in space, or something else entirely? Chris and Nick attempt to tackle those questions, and many, many others that this film leaves unanswered, in a discussion that, love the film or hate it, we at least hope gives it its due!"}