Mars Attacks! 4K Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		0.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		1.5
Overall		4.0

Mars Attacks! 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Can we have them blow up Congress again?

Reviewed by Randy Miller III August 13, 2026

Now celebrating its 30th anniversary, Tim Burton's sci-fi comedy Mars Attacks! gets a very welcome upgrade to UHD courtesy of Warner Bros., replacing their limp VC-1 encoded Blu-ray edition from 2010. Fans and newcomers can look forward to a massive A/V upgrade courtesy of this new 2160/HDR10/Dolby Vision transfer and new Dolby Atmos remix (alongside the theatrical DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio track, of course) and a pair of short but enjoyable new retrospective featurettes. Aside from more bonus features, the only thing it's missing is a remastered Blu-ray. And if you're lucky enough to snag one, a terrific Limited Edition 4K Steelbook is also available while supplies last.

Famously based on a set of Topps' 1962 trading cards discovered by screenwriter Jonathan Gems, Mars Attacks was almost a dinosaur movie based on Topps' later 1988 card series before Steven Spielberg's then-recent development of The Lost World made Gems and director Tim Burton pivot to the Red Planet. An all-star cast was assembled, slowly at first before Jack Nicholson enthusiastically signed on, and this effects-heavy sci-fi satire was on its way to weird out unsuspecting audiences during the 1996 holiday season. Yours truly saw this in theaters during my high school years and went nuts for all the madcap destruction and colorful characters, enough so that it was one of my first VHS tapes purchased with disposable income. It's only earned a handful of home video releases over the years, even a laserdisc, and this new 4K easily tops 'em all with A/V merits that make the film even more enjoyable.

For a plot synopsis and light appreciation of Mars Attacks, please see Kenneth Brown's review of the 2010 Blu-ray linked above. I'm in agreement that it's a mostly good time at the movies, even though there's really not much to the story, but the second half is the better of the two once all of the chaos and destruction begins to unfold. A little more spit and polish to the script would've made Mars Attacks truly special... but even as-is, there's still plenty to like about this bold, subversive, and occasionally pretty funny send-up of 50s sci-fi and Hollywood spectacles.

Mars Attacks! 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

NOTE: This review's screenshots are sourced from two new retrospective featurettes detailed below, both of which feature clips from the newly-restored film rendered in 1080p/SDR. Therefore, they should not be considered a 100% accurate representation of the 4K picture in terms of HDR color, fine detail, or brightness levels.

Mars Attacks' effects-heavy visuals must've been a challenge to bring to 4K, what with its endless supply of CGI and practical elements, but Warner Bros. has done a damn near perfect job of dragging it into the next century after those relatively disappointing DVD and Blu-ray releases. The film's occasionally candy-colored palette, which also features no shortage of muted hues and earth tones, is rendered faithfully with an HDR grade that thankfully doesn't go overboard and feels more supportive than showy. As evidenced by these direct-from-disc screenshots (see note above), this is a tightly controlled picture that features strong fine detail, controlled saturation, and deep blacks that only rarely fall victim to crush. Authored on a triple-layered (100GB) disc and playing at a high bit rate, Mars Attacks runs smoothly from start to finish with a light layer of grain that hasn't been heavily processed or filtered to smooth over some of its occasionally rough edges. I'll admit that I approached this one with extreme caution, fearing the worst, but the end result of Warner Bros.' work should absolutely please long-time fans and first-timers alike.

Mars Attacks! 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Even more impressive is the new Dolby Atmos remix which, like the polished visuals, ups the fun factor with an all-in approach that especially goes overboard once, well, Mars actually attacks. LFE is extremely potent throughout, as is directionality and object-based effects placement, with a near-endless supply of whizzing laser blasts, explosions, and terrified crowds, as well as the memorable theremin-heavy orchestral score by Danny Elfman. The height channels are also used to great effect and arrive at all the expected moments, especially spaceship fly-bys and overhead explosions. All of these elements and more work in tandem to create a truly crowd-pleasing mix that's almost enough to bump the film itself into 4/5 territory, especially during all the unbridled chaos of its second half. Any way you slice it, this is one of the year's best-sounding discs and will have you cranking it as high as your neighbors will let you.

Also included is a more theatrically accurate DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio mix presented as a secondary option. I don't have the older Blu-ray on-hand for a direct comparison but this 5.1 track sounds a bit more active and dynamic than what Kenneth describes in his review linked above, so I'll assume some additional work was done on this to tighten up its sonic impact. I'd imagine that anyone with an Atmos or 7.1 setup will choose the primary option and never look back, but it's great to have both tracks here and that always translates to an easy 5/5 in my book.

Optional subtitles, including English (SDH), are included during the main feature and both extras listed below.

Mars Attacks! 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

This one-disc release ships in a keepcase with decent, cast-heavy cover art (no Martians, though?) and it includes a matching matte-finish slipcover and Digital Copy code. The only two extras here are new, meaning that the isolated score track and theatrical trailer from earlier releases have not been carried over.

• NEW! Looking Back on Mars Attacks! (7:26) - This bite-sized retrospective piece serves up interview clips with several crew members who talk about their contributions including screenwriter Jonathan Gems, editor Chris Lebenzon, director of photography Peter Suschitzky, visual effects supervisor Michael Fink, miniature DP Patrick Sweeney, and VFX supervisor David Andrews. We also get a few bits and pieces of on-set footage.

• NEW! Ack! Ack! Aesthetic (10:50) - This like-minded piece focuses more on Mars Attacks' production design and effects with brief supportive interview clips featuring several of the previous participants as well as associate producer Mark S. Miller, production designer Wynn Thomas, VFX supervisor James Mitchell, and sound designer Randy Thom, who all speak about the hundreds of individual effects shots and other challenges while showing off a few original props. This is another fun but mostly surface-level retrospective and, given the breadth of the supporting cast, it's a shame that some of them didn't join in on the fun too.

Mars Attacks! 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

The mischievous Martians in Tim Burton's Mars Attacks literally almost light the world on fire several times, and it's a shame that the film itself didn't do the same in theaters during the 1996 holiday season. (This really should have been a summer release, right?) Either way, it remains a pretty good time at the movies if you approach it as spectacle over story, as the subversive humor and intentionally campy atmosphere still play well enough 30 years later. Its potency may have even increased a little thanks to Warner Bros.' welcome new 4K UHD edition, which sports outstanding A/V merits and a few short but enjoyable new featurettes. More bonus features and a remastered Blu-ray copy of the film would've put this over the top, but it's still firmly Recommended to fans and first-timers alike.