John Carter is a far better film than advertised. It is good science fiction, not great (although it could have been). More enjoyable than not; it is worth a gander.
John Carter is one of the most poorly marketed films in history. The previews are absolutely terrible. Rather than revealing tidbits or providing promise they sell the film short and mis-apprehend the storyline entirely.
I am pretty certain that the promotional material was designed by a liquored up 6 year-old. Any other explanation boggles any and all comprehension. A Star Wars Episode 1 ad with a monologue by Jar Jar Binks would make more sense. The ads ward off viewers and taint the final product. It is hard to enjoy a film when your first interaction is with a comically cartoonish group of pseudo-Tusken Raiders (Sand People) gesticulating wildly.
John Carter is based on the Barsoom series by Edgar Rice Burroughs (author of the Tarzan books). The film borrows for most of the series, although it focuses primarily on the first book A Princess of Mars. Written starting at the turn of the last century, the Barsoom series is a terrific example of pulp science fiction. The books inspired scientists, film makers, authors, and more; including Carl Sagan, Ray Bradbury, and George Lucas.
The story follows John Carter (Taylor Kitsch) a civil war veteran who is whisked away to Mars (or as the locals call it Barsoom). We follow Carter’s adventures as he meets up with the locals: Green Martians, Red Martians, and Therns. We literaly watch him stumble through a strange place. He is soon thrust into the geopolitical battles of Barsoom and falls in love with Dejah Thoris (Lynn Collins), a Red Martian and a princess of Mars.
Any film derived from a book almost a century old is likely contains some depictions that are unsettling to the modern viewer.
Both the book and the film cast a bit of a parallel between the Apache and Green Martians. The parallel between aliens and Native Americans in script and screen has been marked as controversial by some and its source may in part be the Barsoom series. Although the film treats both groups with some level of respect rather than derision this element is noteable.
The Barsoom series is also noted for dripping in hyper-masculinity. Carter certainly is the machismo type. But, his character reflects a greater balance than a mere brutish man’s man action hero type and Dejah is the opposite of a wilting flower (she is both intelligent and powerful).
The film is visually stunning. Do yourself a favor and watch it in 3D. Mars is strangely believable (disbelief appropriately suspended). The cities emerge from the red rock of a landscape that is more desolate than the Arizona desert. The cities that lay in ruin, rust into the cliffs and recede into the landscape. The inhabitants of Mars, even the slightly goofy ones, are splendidly rendered.
The film has a pretty stellar cast. Besides Kitsch and Collins, we have performances by Samantha Morton, Willem Dafoe, Mark Strong, Ciaran Hinds, and Thomas Haden Church. Certainly not a shabby bunch. All of their performances are solid.
Kitsch’s performance starts out a little flat but improves as the story developes. He soon embodies some of the charm and contradiction that made him so intriguing as Tim Riggins on Friday Night Lights.
Side Note – If you have not seen Friday Night Lights drop everything and watch it. I do not care if you hate high school football, it does not matter. The show is more about life in a small Texas town than it is about football. Trust me the show is great. Netflix it. Watch it. You will not regret it.
The problem is that is an epic smashed into 2 hours. Everything feels rushed. There is little time for character or plot development. I know we are saturated with serialized films, some of which have been broken into even smaller parts (Harry Potter and Twilight spring to mind). But this story requires that treatment. Either that or it needs to be made into a television show, which in my opinion is a medium more appropriate for a book than film because it provides time for richer development.
The problem is startling because the screenplay was written by a tremendous group of writers: Oscar winner Andrew Staton, multi-award winning author Michael Chabon, and Mark Andrews. They should have known better. They need to do better.
The film is enjoyable. The cast and crew lend enough to the story to make it interesting. But, it also leaves you wanting.
PARSI VERDICT: Enjoyable. Better than the previews indicate. But lacking sufficient plot and character development.
1 thought on “John Carter [Review by Parsi]”
Comments are closed.