John Carter

It's a wonderfully positive and magnificent affair, unfortunately with a very poor script and dramaturgy. I can only give it an average rating for a few things that will be deeply embeded in memory: the visual effects (a mix of Avatar and Star Wars), the adventurous music, and the mythology to some extent. Don't expect any great performances, because there aren't be any. Taylor Kitsch is one of the most plankish actors in Hollywood, but it's unbelievable to say that occasionally he is also likeable. I don't understand those 250 million and I understand that the return is meager. It's a classic popcorn movie through and through, but without transcendence, proper catharsis, groundbreaking ideas, or political incorrectness. And that's generally not in fashion today. In the 90s, though, it would have been a hit. (06/18/2012)

A princess (from Mars) and I have been catapulted into a world inhabited by little green men, where they shoot with ray-guns and they have funny-looking dogs. Exactly as I had imagined. John Carter is pure pulp fiction, the type I grew up on (I read two books from the Carter series). Maybe it leans more toward being a fairytale, but the important thing is that the story is nicely predictable, easy to follow and entertaining. It was one of the first of its genre and finds it really difficult to come up with something original, but Stanton did a good job anyway. I didn’t have much trust in Taylor Kitsche before seeing this movie, but he surprised me, as did Lynn Collins and the greenies. The monsters didn’t have that Star Wars stamp on them and they certainly are no substitute but stand alone in their own right. Carter is passable as a piece of history. What a nice wedding it was. (03/19/2012)

Two stars for the technical aspect, otherwise, awfully dull. It kept me interested for about 45 minutes, then it lost me. An unlikeable hunk jumps around in Mars surrounded by four-armed green creatures, there’s the expected fateful encounter… and I don’t give a toss… If it was at least funny in any way! But no, just sterile boredom. Millions of dollars wasted and one of the most pointless blockbusters in recent years. (05/18/2012)

John Carter may be brimming with breathtaking audiovisual effects and lavish production design, but on the other hand, there is a fairly bland story (to what extent this is the fault of E. R. Burroughs, I really don't know), which is marred by a lot of clichéd dialogue and a few completely deaf spots. Andrew Stanton is much more suited to directing animated films that stand very tall within their genre (Finding Nemo, WALL-E). The lead actor, Taylor Kitsch, also doesn't have that much potential to grab the audience's attention - which (in my opinion) was mostly taken care of by Mark Strong (and that cute "dog"). In short, a film that is solid in terms of form, but not so much in terms of content. (03/08/2013)

Not surprising in terms of plot, but still a visually stunning fairy tale with great music, an unsympathetic main character and quite pleasant humor. I don't know if it's worth writing about all the things John Carter rips off or does not rip off, because its plot is simply told using familiar, time-honored techniques that, let's face it, we've come to expect from sci-fi/fantasy. Among the best scenes are the first steps on Mars and the whole next part, in which Carter meets Tharky and which has the atmosphere of Lawrence of Arabia (seriously!), I liked the spectacular battle interspersed with flashbacks, and the ending just as much. All in all, in my opinion, Andrew Stanton's first feature film fared much better than his colleague Bird, whose Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol was very disappointing. (11/15/2012)