Tyrants!
I was lucky enough to get into an advanced screening of John Carter last night in Century City, CA. Despite being a huge sci-fi fan, my knowledge of the John Carter/Barsoom book series is limited at best. However, I do know that its author Edgar Rice Burroughs is the forefather of the modern science fiction genre. Everyone from Frank Herbert to George Lucas and on has drawn inspiration from his works. And coincidentally, this film is being released on the centennial of John Carter's first literary appearance in 1912.
Seeing the first teaser trailer six months ago got me excited about the movie and its scope, especially since Taylor Kitsch (from Friday Night Lights, one of my favorite shows) was the lead, though I immediately heard from a number of sources that the movie was crap and expected to tank.
Regardless, I still wanted to give John Carter a chance. And I’m very glad I did.
Review:
We meet a John Carter who is a former Confederate soldier been broken by the Civil War and huge personal losses hinted at in flashbacks. 3 years after the South surrendered to the North, all Carter wants is to find gold out West and run away from his pain. Unfortunately, a contingent of US Army soldiers led by the always awesome Brian Cranston, find Carter and tries to force him into helping deal with the Apaches raiding settlements out West. Of course, Carter wants nothing to do with anyone’s conflict. This leads to a rather hilarious sequence of Carter trying to repeatedly escape the Army soldiers, only to get more heavily restrained each time he’s recaptured.
Carter of course escapes properly this time, stealing Cranston's horse and now having to run from both the Army and the Apaches. Carter is able to hide out in a mysterious cave that seems to spook the Apaches chasing him. But after tangling with an odd looking human (more on that later), Carter is transported to Mars, or Barsoom as the locals call it. At this point Carter has no clue that he’s no longer on Earth.
The first thing Carter notices is because of Mars’ lower gravity, his strength and leaping ability have been greatly increased. He then finds himself drawn into the conflict between the various species on Mars, the human-like Red Men and the gigantic, four-armed Tharks. The latter species clearly clues Carter in that this isn't the old Southwest anymore.
Two factions of the Red Men, the cities of Zodanga and Helium are at war. And Zodanga, led by the evil Sab Than (The Wire alum Dominic West) is winning thanks to a powerful solar weapon that is laying waste to the Helium forces. But its appears that Than is merely a puppet of a much more sinister foe known as Matai Shang, played by the ubiquitous but always welcome Mark Strong. And in what is clearly not a coincidence, Shang looks like a twin of the odd-looking humanoid that Carter tangled with on Earth.
Dejah Thoris (the lovely and talented Lynn Collins), princess of Helium and a scientist of Helium’s Royal Academy, has been attempting to find a way to level the playing field through science. But when that fails, she is being forced to marry Sab Than by her father the Jeddak or king of Helium (Ciaran Hinds) in order to save Helium from annihilation.
Meanwhile, Carter is found by a tribe of Tharks led by Tars Tarkus (voiced by Willem Dafoe). Carter and Tarkus’ relationship starts of rocky, especially with Carter's desire to just get home and collect his gold treasure. But it is the beginning of a legendary friendship between Carter and Tarkus.
Carter soon finds himself rescuing Dejah as she tries to flee her impending marriage to Sab Than. Dejah, after witnessing John Carter’s powers and prowess in battle, wants him to help her defeat Sab Than and his forces. Just like with the US Army forces on Earth, Carter wants nothing to do with anyone’s conflict. But as he gets to know Barsoom and its various cultures, regaining his humanity and finding love in Dejah Thoris, Carter chooses to save Barsoom from what could be extinction.
The ending of the film leaves it open to potential sequels, should there be a desire for more John Carter films.
What worked:
I’ll try and keep this as spoiler-free as possible.
All these Pixar directors are really hitting it out of the park in their live-action debuts. Andrew Stanton really did a great job in his portrayal of Barsoom. The cities for both lead factions of the Red Men Martians had distinct looks that separated the two cultures.
Utah as Barsoom looked amazing. I am really glad that they choose a real environment over massive green screens. Utah gave Barsoom a texture and realism that has been missing from other sci-fi films like the Star Wars prequels.
It was an extremely smart decision to not bludgeon the audience over the head with too much exposition at once. Obviously the audience knew a bit more than the title character, but we found out more about Barsoom and its cultures as Carter did. What also worked for me were the film's more comedic aspects, which played well with the crowd I watched with.
Of course, there are the little things that make world building so fun. For instance, all Martians, Thark or Red Man, have blue blood. And Tharks hatch out of eggs, but propsective mothers fight over new hatchlings because parentage is kept a secret. This last point becomes part of a pretty cool B-plot for the Tharks.
Taylor Kitsch did a good job as John Carter. Granted, Kitsch was rather uneven in the beginning of the film, but as it progressed he really did get more comfortable in the role. All in all, a good casting choice and hopefully a launching pad for Kitsch’s film career.
But the standout belonged to Lynn Collins as Dejah Thoris, giving probably the strongest acting performance in the film. She played Dejah Thoris as smart, assertive, a bad-ass warrior princess, and a perfect match for Kitsch’s Carter. Plus, it was an X-Men Origins: Wolverine reunion for those two. Ha! I read articles about while Andrew Stanton was very faithful to A Princess of Mars, the source material the movie was based on, he revamped Dejah Thoris to be more than just the typical damsel in distress. Smart move on Stanton's part.
Then there was the Woola, a Thark pet and Carter’s loyal sidekick during the film. The Woola was the Martian equivalent of Uggie the dog from The Artist, which was a good thing. He ended up saving Carter more than once. I expect many a Woola plush toy to be sold in the future.
The B-plots within the Tharks tribe including a power struggle for leadership between Tarkus and the savage Tal Hajus (voice unrecognizably by Thomas Haden Church) and Tarkus’ shamed daughter Solas (voiced by British actress Samantha Morton). All those plots never dragged down the film and gave more depth to the Thark characters.
Mark Strong’s Matai Shang proved to be a great foil for John Carter. His demeanor and motivations were cold and calculating. Barsoom was just another target of his species’ machinations and John Carter was an aberration that needed to be removed.
What didn’t work:
Honestly, I could have done without any 3D. The film was converted after filming and it actually made certain parts of the film look bad, like when Carter was standing next to the 15-foot-tall CGI Tharks.
Certain scenes in the middle were a bit cheesy and dull. Plus, the romance between Dejah and Carter felt rather forced.
Also, Sab Than did feel rather clichéd in his villainy, but as noted earlier in my review, he was just a puppet for Matai Shang’s greater schemes.
Conclusion:
Overall, John Carter was a fun ride. It was flawed, but entertaining. Sci-Fi fans will love the world-building. Kids will love the Tharks and definitely the Woola. But even non-sci-fi fans will find something to love in this film. Check it out, but not in 3D mind you.
A ten minute sneak peek is below if you need further convincing.