John Carter

Totally forgettable and full of stereotypes

Edgar Rice Burroughs wrote his series of John Carter novels before space flight was more than a fancy. This movie is more adventure and romance and very little (if any) actual science. This movie is the best production of A Princess of Mars, the first story in the series, that I've seen. If you're a fan of the John Carter novels then you will probably get some enjoyment from John Carter. While there are some differences you'll meet some familiar characters and recognize quite a few relevant plot points. Not a great film, but not a bad one, either.

We sat down and watched this movie on Blu-ray yesterday evening to nicely end our little excursion day. This is a good film but it could have been (much) better. The film itself and its special effects are quite good. I would say that the special effects are very good. The airships are very cool looking. The design nicely captures the retro atmosphere of the book without looking silly. I think they made the green men too slim though. I have always pictured them as way more bulky and monstrous. I like Woola’s appearance although him moving around at “supersonic” speeds is a bit over the top.…

r96sk

2020-11-12

⭐ 7

Unfulfilled potential, still narrowly liked it. <em>'John Carter'</em> can feel underdeveloped and underwhelming, you could even argue it aimed to replicate <em>'Avatar'</em>, but there's enough there that allowed me to find a fair amount of enjoyment. Taylor Kitsch is alright, I rate him, but a more convincing lead performance was necessary in my opinion. The rest of the cast, despite some well known names, fail to deliver anything noteworthy. Willem Dafoe works as Tars Tarkas, though only due to his distinctive voice; none of his dialogue etc. stand outs. The likes Samantha Morton, Mar…

GenerationofSwine

2023-01-14

⭐ 1

Dad raised us on what he lovingly called "Pulp Trash Novels" and that carried over to adult life where they are proudly displayed along side academic books. Actually they take the top shelf. So, walking into this I was scared and unfortunately I had every right to be. Now I am fine with artistic licenses, I wasn't expecting it to be exactly like any of the books. But I was expecting it to at least follow the source material a little, something more than just the names. In short, I was expecting a John Carter movie in more than just name only. And, frankly, this didn't even feel lik…

Wuchak

2025-03-12

⭐ 7

**_Overstuffed story is entertaining Sci-Fi/adventure with good cast and spectacular visuals_** The eponymous 19th century character (Taylor Kitsch) is mysteriously projected to Mars, where he encounters a tribe of tall green creatures with four arms and a beautiful princess (Lynn Collins). He's subsequently caught in a war between left and right factions of the planet. Sab Than (Dominic West) is the leader of the red faction and wants to marry the princess while a mysterious race seems to manipulate things in the background. This is a dense and entertaining adventure/fantasy based on Ed…