That title is taken from one of the few genuinely funny in jokes in this film.
PLOT (or lack thereof): a fictionalized version of Bruce Campbell, embittered by his failed acting career that left him relegated to making lousy B-films for much of his life and his failed marriage, has become an intolerable jackass out of resentment for the bad luck his life dealt him. When an overly enthusiastic young fan of his, one so enthusiastic that he doesn't seem to realize that most of Bruce's films are bad and can't properly hook up with a girl due to his constant use of Bruce's jokes from his films, accidentally takes part in unleashing an ancient monster spirit, he kidnaps Campbell and brings him to his small out of the way town and enlists him to fight off the monster, believing that his extensive career of fighting monsters on film makes him the right man for the job. Bruce, thinking this is some kind of hoax set up for him by his agent (Ted Raimi) as a birthday present, decides to play along thinking it'll be fun, completely unaware that he's about to face the real thing.
I definitely get what the film is going for - self parody. The whole film is basically Bruce making fun of himself and his lackluster career. But that doesn't make it funny. "Mars Attacks!" was an obvious spoof of low grade 'Us vs. Them' sci-fi B movies, but that didn't make it very funny either. A few decent jokes and in-jokes and the beautiful Grace Thorsen are overwhelmed by a lengthy list of jokes that just fall flat, even some of Bruce's die-hard fans admit that. Now I'm not a die-hard Bruce fan, but I enjoyed him in the Evil Dead films and the short lived TV western Brisco County Jr. (which is what introduced me to him), and have a decent knowledge of his less than inspiring career (Bruce was the original choice to play Peyton Westlake/Darkman in Raimi's original "Darkman" film but the studio wouldn't back the film with him as the lead, so Liam Neeson got the job, and Bruce ended up having a cameo at the end as the final mask or "Schemp") rented this figuring it might be fun. Unfortunately, this just never came together.
Better luck next time, Bruce.
PLOT (or lack thereof): a fictionalized version of Bruce Campbell, embittered by his failed acting career that left him relegated to making lousy B-films for much of his life and his failed marriage, has become an intolerable jackass out of resentment for the bad luck his life dealt him. When an overly enthusiastic young fan of his, one so enthusiastic that he doesn't seem to realize that most of Bruce's films are bad and can't properly hook up with a girl due to his constant use of Bruce's jokes from his films, accidentally takes part in unleashing an ancient monster spirit, he kidnaps Campbell and brings him to his small out of the way town and enlists him to fight off the monster, believing that his extensive career of fighting monsters on film makes him the right man for the job. Bruce, thinking this is some kind of hoax set up for him by his agent (Ted Raimi) as a birthday present, decides to play along thinking it'll be fun, completely unaware that he's about to face the real thing.
I definitely get what the film is going for - self parody. The whole film is basically Bruce making fun of himself and his lackluster career. But that doesn't make it funny. "Mars Attacks!" was an obvious spoof of low grade 'Us vs. Them' sci-fi B movies, but that didn't make it very funny either. A few decent jokes and in-jokes and the beautiful Grace Thorsen are overwhelmed by a lengthy list of jokes that just fall flat, even some of Bruce's die-hard fans admit that. Now I'm not a die-hard Bruce fan, but I enjoyed him in the Evil Dead films and the short lived TV western Brisco County Jr. (which is what introduced me to him), and have a decent knowledge of his less than inspiring career (Bruce was the original choice to play Peyton Westlake/Darkman in Raimi's original "Darkman" film but the studio wouldn't back the film with him as the lead, so Liam Neeson got the job, and Bruce ended up having a cameo at the end as the final mask or "Schemp") rented this figuring it might be fun. Unfortunately, this just never came together.
Better luck next time, Bruce.