On this episode of Movie Boarding, I’m joined by my former cohort Connor Beene, a.k.a. Bean Boy, to get abducted by Tim Burton’s wildly chaotic sci-fi satire Mars Attacks!

We dive into how aggressively overstimulating the movie is—rapid cuts, loud gags, nonstop visual noise, and that unmistakable Burton weirdness turned up to eleven. We also break down the absolutely stacked cast, which somehow feels less like a traditional ensemble and more like an endless parade of cameos, with major stars popping in just long enough to make you say, “Wait… is that—?”

Along the way, we talk about tone, satire, whether the madness actually works, and how Mars Attacks! fits into the strange corner of ’90s blockbuster filmmaking where studios let directors get very weird.

Ack ack. 🛸

Director

• Tim Burton

• Jack Nicholson – President James Dale / Art Land

• Glenn Close – First Lady Marsha Dale

• Annette Bening – Barbara Land

• Pierce Brosnan – Professor Donald Kessler

• Danny DeVito – Rude Gambler

• Martin Short – Press Secretary Jerry Ross

• Sarah Jessica Parker – Nathalie Lake

• Michael J. Fox – Jason Stone

• Rod Steiger – General Decker

• Pam Grier – Louise Williams

• Natalie Portman – Taffy Dale

• Lukas Haas – Richie Norris

• Tom Jones – Himself

• Jim Brown – Byron Williams

• Jonathan Gems (screenplay)

• Based on the Topps “Mars Attacks” trading cards created by Len Brown

Kingston Hannibal everywhere

Movie Boarding on YT#moviepod #cultclassic #timburton #90smovie #filmpodcast