Yep, read what the title says. I know that John Carter has been given a lot of bad hype lately, especially before the movie even came out, but I really think you should give it a chance. You can take my opinions with a grain of salt, of course; I'm not saying I'm some pretentious movie critic that demands my reviews be taken seriously. I loved the movie and have already signed up on Amazon to be notified when it comes out on blu-ray, so I'm a little biased. Here's why:
It's fun. I like deep, thought-provoking movies as much as the next guy (gal? ugh I hate that term) but sometimes when I go to the movies, which is rare given the fact that I have two toddlers at home and a full-time job, I just want some full-fledged escapist fantasy. John Carter fits that bill perfectly. It's got lots of awesome action sequences, if you're into that sort of thing, there's a star-crossed lovers sort of romance, and four-armed aliens. Come on! The tharks look sweet, you gotta admit. The CGI in this movie is downright fantastic and looks REAL. Anyways, you don't have to rack your brain trying to "figure it out," since the book it was based on, A Princess of Mars, was written 100 years ago. In fact, all kinds of movies and genres have stemmed from the John Carter series of books. (Avatar anyone? Ripped off the plot from the book. No wonder I didn't like that movie ...)
At the risk of sounding super girly, I wish the romance sub-pot was a little more fleshed out. In the book, it was really apparent that John Carter would do anything to be with Dejah Thoris, even if that meant living on a completely different planet. This eventually happens in the movie, of course (the guy always gets the girl, right?) but it seems John Carter is more reluctant to get involved with anything. It seemed that all of a sudden he's smooching on Dejah without much buildup or tension.
I did like the medallion idea as the means of him transporting from Earth to Barsoom. I've only read the first book of the series, so I don't know much of what happens after the events in A Princess of Mars, but his means of reaching Mars was never fully explained. And that's OK, I don't expect some scientific babble - in fact, I really don't care to read any of that sort of stuff, to be honest. It bores me. (No offense, science peeps. I just can't get into it.)
I think Taylor Kitsch did an awesome job as John Carter, and Lynn Collins was wonderful as Dejah Thoris, though she wasn't exactly who I imagined while I read the book. The costumes were sweet (better than full-on nudity like the book!!) and I liked the tattoos the "red men" of Mars had as opposed to having actual red-tinted skin. Nice touch there, even if it did deviate from the novel.
And then there is Woola. Oh Woola! I never thought I'd like an ugly space dog as much as you. You have to see him to know what I mean.
I wish more people appreciated this movie! It breaks my heart a little bit that there aren't more people into it. Maybe when it comes out on blu-ray, it will have a huge surge in popularity and become a cult movie. Here's hoping.
Now I want to draw some John Carter fan art. Perhaps you'll see some pictures here soon?
