John Carter (Taylor Kitsch), who is inexplicably transported to mysterious and exotic planet Mars, becomes embroiled in a conflict of epic proportions and discovers that the survival of the planet and its people rests in his hands.
Every now and then comes a film that attracts so much negative publicity, that bad buzz preempts bad reviews as the industry inadvertently manufactures contest for the world to train their guns on a particular movie, and fire at will. 'Gigli' was one of those films, not a great movie by any stretch of the imagination, but by no means as bad as some people made it out be. 'John Carter of Mars' is another; saddled with a long production schedule, re-shoots and studio fumbling: 'Disney' changed the title from the exciting 'John Carter of Mars'--some piffle about Mars being too sci-fi and sci-fi being a marketing turn off, to the altogether bland and nondescript 'John Carter' (because we'll all come in droves to watch that, apparently).
As it stands, 'John Carter' is one of the biggest box office flops of all time, losing most of its $240 million budget. But is it a bad movie? Not at all. 'John Carter', based on the Edgar Rice Burroughs 1917 novel 'A Princess of Mars', sees disillusioned American civil war veteran John Carter (Taylor Kitsch) transported to the planet of Barsoom (i.e. Mars). Mysteriously gifted the strength of ten men and able to leap long distances in a single bound, he's taken in by Green Martian tribe; The Tharks, becomes embroiled in another civil war between the human Red and White Martians, falls for Red princess Dejah Thoris (Lynn Collins) and embarks upon the adventure of a lifetime. Sound familiar? It should, because Burroughs book inspired everything from 'Superman' to 'Star Wars', and yet despite this fact, director Andrew Stanton ('Wall-E', 'Finding Nemo') still creates a vibrant and relevant world that parallels the strife Carter thought he'd escaped from on Earth. The allusions to the conflict between European settlers (i.e. white Martians) and Native Americans (i.e. red Martians) are self-evident, and accurately reflect both the time in which the novel was written and problems that persist to this day.
The cast are all on top form; Kitsch and Collins, who first worked together in 'X-Men Origins: Wolverine', make a good on screen couple whilst Mark Strong lends some gravitas to shadowy puppet master Matai Shang. The tusked, four handed Tharks are brilliantly realized CG creations, Willem Dafoe and Samantha Morton's voice work comes highly recommended, Morton in particular creates a fully realized, sympathetic character in Sola. The film successfully counterbalances its sometimes convoluted, interplanetary romance elements with a welcome dose of humor e.g. Thark leader Tars Tarkas (Dafoe) continuously referring to John Carter, who hails from the state of Virginia, as "Virginia".
'John Carter of Mars' is an entertaining throwback to classic sci-fi adventures like 'Flash Gordon' and 'Forbidden Planet', nothing like the train wreck they're making it out to be: A good movie, definitely worth watching.
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Sci-fi adventure based on the novel 'A Princess of Mars' by Edgar Rice Burroughs which follows American Civil War veteran John Carter (Taylor Kitsch) who finds himself on Mars. John wakes up on the barren planet, known to its occupants as Barsoom, and soon learns it is on the brink of war. He makes friends with Green Martian Tars Tarkas (Willem Dafoe) and falls for humanoid princess Dejah Thoris (Lynn Collins), a Red Martian he saves from a hostile Tharks tribe. With his strength and fighting skills enhanced because of the lower level of gravity, he leads the Martians in a war against their long-time enemy, the Zodanga state, and attempts to save them from extinction when their air supply shuts down. Dominic West, Mark Strong, Bryan Cranston and Ciarán Hinds co-star.
Please note this is a region 2 DVD and will require a region 2 (Europe) or region Free DVD Player in order to play. Edgar Rice Burroughs' classic tale of interplanetary adventure arrives on the big screen in this sweeping sci-fi spectacle marking the live-action debut of Oscar-winning director Andrew Stanton (FINDING NEMO, WALL-E). Civil War veteran John Carter (Taylor Kitsch) was still haunted by the violence he witnessed on the battlefield when he inexplicably awoke on the distant planet of Barsoom (Mars). Upon learning that the inhabitants of Barsoom are bracing for a major conflict and that war appears inevitable, John summons the courage to be the hero the Martians have been hoping for.
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