Director: Andrew Stanton
Writer: Andrew Stanton, Mark Andrews, Michael Chabon (Screenplay) Edgar Rice Burroughs (Story)
Starring: Taylor Kitsch, Lynn Collins, Samantha Morton, Willem Dafoe, Thomas Haden Church, Mark Strong, Ciaran Hinds, Dominic West, James Purefoy, Bryan Cranston
Plot: Transported to Barsoom, a Civil War vet discovers a barren planet seemingly inhabited by 12-foot tall barbarians. Finding himself prisoner of these creatures, he escapes, only to encounter Woola and a princess in desperate need of a savior.
There may be spoilers the rest of the review
Verdict: Very Enjoyable
Story: John Carter starts by giving us the backstory of Barsoom known to us as Mars where a peaceful life is turned upside down. We move to 1880s where John Carter (Kitsch) is avoiding by captured but leaving his story to his nephew Edgar Burroughs (Sabara). In his story John tells how he was transported to Barsoom while avoiding his time in the army.
John finds himself captured by Tars Tarkas (Dafoe) and his barbarians as he finds himself in the middle of a war where Matai Shang (Strong) is leading Sab Than (West) in a quest to take over the planet. Sab has made a deal to marry the princess Dejah (Collins) to create peace between the opposing sides.
John Carter must lead the fight against Sab Than to save the princess and free the people of Barsoom from his terror bringing peace back to the planet once more.
John Carter is a film that I avoided for years having only heard negative things about it but now I have gotten around to watching it I found myself enjoying this one. I will say there are good and bad things about this story so we will start with the good. I liked how the story reflected the Earth story with Mars, we had a reluctant hero that learnt to stand up for himself proving he isn’t the coward the Earth through he was. On the bad side we do spend slightly too long building up to the transportation to Mars, we also do spend too much looking at the jumping ability Carter has. I did find the final twist very smart and fitting for the film ready for any sequel too. This is a very good story that can be enjoyed.
Actor Review
Taylor Kitsch: John Carter is from 1860s, he doesn’t want to get involved in the war going on in America only to find himself transported to Mars where his ability to jump and fight put him in the middle of a war on Mars. He must lead the people in a fight for peace. Taylor proves he is a good actor with this role that could have been a lot more successful.
Lynn Collins: Dejah Thoris is the princess of Mars, she is forced to wed the evil tyrant taking over the planet but when she meets John Carter she learns that he could be the one to save her and her people. Lynn is good in this role without being too original in character.
Samantha Morton: Sola is the daughter of Tars, she has been disgraced by her species her only chance to redeem herself if to help John Carter on his mission to create peace on the planet. Samantha is good in this role even if we would have like to have seen more from the character.
Willem Dafoe: Tars Tarkas is the leader of the barbarians that first find John Carter, he believes John Carter has something different about him and uses him to help with his leadership even if it leaves him against his kind. Willem gives us the performance we have all come to know from the actor.
Support Cast: John Carter has a huge supporting cast that all give good performances when it comes to the final story.
Director Review: Andrew Stanton – Andrew gives us a good sci-fi action film that is all enjoyable without being too difficult to watch.
Action: John Carter has good action sequences throughout with most being massive battle scenes.
Adventure: John Carter puts our character John Carter on an adventure of a lifetime.
Fantasy: John Carter brings us into a fantasy world on Mars.
Sci-Fi: John Carter takes us to Mars and has an impossible travel idea for the sci-fi side of the story.
Settings: John Carter creates a beautiful looking setting for the story to take place in on Mars.
Special Effects: John Carter has great effects to create the mixes of species involved in the story on Mars.
Suggestion: John Carter is one that should actually be tried by all. (Try It)
Best Part: Mars side of the story.
Worst Part: What is with all the jumping?
Believability: No
Chances of Tears: No
Chances of Sequel: It could have one but poor Box Office returns means we won’t get one.
Post Credits Scene: No
Oscar Chances: No
Budget: $263 Million
Runtime: 2 Hours 12 Minutes
Tagline: Lost in Our World. Found in Another.
Overall: Enjoyable sci-fi adventure that comes off fresh
Rating
