mars attacks ! 
 ( 1996 ) - c : jack nicholson , glenn close , annette bening , martin short , danny devito , rod steiger , pierce brosnan , sarah jessica parker , michael j . fox , jim brown , pam grier , joe don baker , natalie portman , christina applegate , lisa marie , tom jones . 
this is director tim burton's finest film to date . 
many will compare this tale of martians who invade earth to independence day , but even though the stories are similar , they really are two distinctly different films . 
however as a whole , mars attacks is much more entertaining than id4 , and i loved id4 . 
you really have to be in the right frame of mind to enjoy this film . 
it is completely wacked-out and unlike anything you've ever seen . 
once the silly tone of the film is set , it's easy to just sit back and throw logic out the window because logic and comedy just don't mix . 
the plot is simple : martians invade the earth . 
but it's different than any other invasion film . 
usually it's the evil aliens versus the heroic humans . 
this time however , it's the goofy aliens versus the equally goofy humans . 
the martians , who are all computer generated , are just about the funniest things i've seen in a long time . 
they look funny , they move funny , and their " language " is hilarious . 
and about the special effects . 
the effects in mars attacks ! 
are just about the most flawless ones i've seen to date . 
the computer animation of the martians combined with the goofy personalities they are given makes them seem 100% real . 
there are just a couple of scenes that don't work , mainly those involving sarah jessica parker and pierce brosnan on board an alien ship . 
also , glenn close overacts tremendously in her ( thankfully ) very limited screen time , so much so that i actually applauded silently when her character meets her demise . 
but there are many big laughs in the film , as i said , if you are in the right mood . 
could it have been funnier ? 
certainly . 
was it funny enough ? 
yes . 
was i entertained ? 
absolutely . 
on a personal note , i'd like to thank whomever cast rod steiger ( my favorite actor ) in the film as war-crazy general decker . 
finally , after many very small parts in direct to video garbage and minor tv roles , steiger is back on the big screen in a real movie that many people will see . 
while he's not given the type of role that you can give a real " performance " in , he does the job well and has some good lines of dialogue . 
the preview audience i saw the film with really seemed to enjoy him .