"John Carter" review by Chris

In 1912 Edger Rice Burroughs released a book called "A Princess of Mars." From it sprouted a series of adventure books taking place on Mars and following the life of John Carter, a Civil War vet from Earth who had been transported to Mars. Edger's stories helped form the science fiction genre and pieces of his stories can still be seen in modern works. Disney has decided that it’s prime time to restore Edger's tales to glory with their new film "John Carter."

During John Carter’s (Taylor Kitsch) hunt for gold, he becomes magically whisked to Mars. He quickly learns its lower gravity grants him superhuman agility and strength, and this draws the attention of the four-armed natives. They help him learn their language and teach him of Barsoom, which is their name for Mars. This begins the first of the film’s small handful of flaws: there’s an absurd amount of terminology to keep track of. Moreover, the film presents each new term like it‘s important, while only about a third of it actually is. Despite this, it's easy to follow the film — just don't expect to remember every name and term your first viewing.

The pacing of the film also suffers from some dated methods. Many points in the film are slow and add nothing to the atmosphere or story. These moments aren't frequent and can be ignored, but the film could have benefited from speedier pacing to help the action. The sci-fi elements also suffer from feeling outdated and overused, even though the John Carter books are actually the progenitors to these kinds of expansive worlds. The elements that have been seen before in other films have their origin in the Barsoom books.

"John Carter" is a grand adventure. Taylor Kitsch captures the everyman, making him an easily liked and relatable character. His history as a soldier, along with the Mars environment makes his fights believable, and a highlight of the film. Despite his super strength, there's still an established fear that he may lose the next battle. The more John learns about Mars, the more it seems he may never get home, and that Mars is destined to fall into an endless war.

The visuals are stunning, and the environments are magically unique without being unrealistic. The flying technology has a simple beauty that captures the eye as the ships soar on light waves. The battles are choreographed brilliantly, and every blow feels powerful but dangerously risky, like the character himself.

"John Carter" is not a perfect film, but its flaws are small, and they shouldn't stop anyone from enjoying it. Suspend your disbelief, and get ready to enjoy a great space adventure that helped to found the genre of science fiction.

4 "Martians" out of Five

Written by Chris
Edited by Aaron