"John Carter" is the film "Avatar" wishes it could have been. Those familiar with my cinematic opinions know that I'm not at all a fan of the highest grossing film of all time, and while I certainly don't mean to imply that "John Carter" is without flaws, in terms of epic sci-fi action adventure stories, it wipes the floor with that far more successful film. If you like "Avatar" (and it's clear that most of the developed world did), you probably won't like "John Carter," but if you didn't, at least consider that this film is a far better version of a (somewhat) similar story.
I only bring up "Avatar" because the basic conceits of the two films are quite similar: a human finds himself on another world and is drawn into a conflict to defend its people. "John Carter" is based on the Edgar Rice Burroughs novel A Princess of Mars, the first in a series of eleven sci-fi stories that James Cameron has cited as among the inspirations for "Avatar." George Lucas has also cited them as among the inspirations for the "Star Wars" series, so if you see things here similar to those films, at least know that this story came first.
The film is book-ended with scenes of a young Burroughs (Daryl Sabara), as he investigates the estate of his uncle, John Carter (Taylor Kitsch). The film then flashes back to 1868 where we meet Carter, a Civil War veteran who, through a series of events I won't spoil, finds himself transported to Mars (or "Barsoom," as the natives call it). Due to the weaker gravitational pull and lower atmospheric density, Carter finds himself capable of super-human strength and has the ability to leap great distances, which instantly makes him a coveted weapon to the three different peoples of Mars who are engaged in a brutal civil war of their own. He first meets the Tharks, a race of nine-foot-tall, four-armed, green beings led by Tars Tarkas (Willem Dafoe in a motion capture performance). He also meets the beautiful princess Dejah Thoris (Lynn Collins), who is expected to marry the leader of her peoples' enemies, Sab Than (Dominic West), with the hope that this reconciliation will bring peace. But she may also hold the key to Carter's return home.
I said that the film is not without flaws, and that's definitely true. Unlike the extremely predictable "Avatar," "John Carter" is occasionally hard to follow, what with the seemingly endless list of funny-sounding Martian names, different religions, mystical weapons, and dueling cities. The story definitely comes into focus about halfway through, but even after the film was over I still confused the names of the two lead villains, and still don't remember the name of their city (though the fact that it moves across the Martian landscape like a giant hovercraft was pretty cool). The story itself is practically as old as storytelling (a young warrior fights to defend the honor of a princess), but there are enough wrinkles to keep it from being too predictable. There are quite a few convenient moments, particularly in the final act, and some of the dialogue is undeniably clunky. The acting occasionally veers into melodramatic, particularly on the part of Collins, and Kitsch has no shortage of scenery chewing moments. Mark Strong is yet again typecast as emotionless villain Matai Shang; he almost looks bored at having to deliver another one-note performance. He's shown flashes of excellence in earlier roles in "Body of Lies" and "RockNRolla," and was Oscar-worthy in last year's "Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy," but it really just feels like he's going through the motions here.
So that's the bad; what about the good? The good, and what makes me recommend "John Carter" unequivocally despite its flaws, is the sheer spectacle. Director Andrew Stanton makes his live-action debut with this film, following huge successes with Pixar's "Finding Nemo" and "Wall-E," and it's clear that he knows how to tell a story and deliver an immensely entertaining cinematic experience. The story may be as old as time, but as I said, the script (co-written by Stanton, Mark Andrews, and Michael Chabon), threw enough slight curve balls to keep me interested. You definitely care for these characters and what happens to them, which is a testament to the performances. Yes they're somewhat melodramatic in places, but Kitsch, and Collins in particular, do bring enough emotion that you're definitely rooting for them to end up together by the end of the film. I never know how to evaluate motion-capture performances, because it's really impossible to tell how much of the emotion in those characters comes from the actors and how much is rendered by the effects team. But Tars Tarkas is definitely a sympathetic (and quite multidimensional) character, as is fellow Thark Sola (Samantha Morton). The effects work all around is spectacular; the film had a much-reported $250 million budget, but it was definitely put to good use, as these aliens rival those from "District 9" in their realism and are really probably as well-done as the ultimate in motion capture characters, Gollum in "The Lord of the Rings." And while the effects are numerous, they never overwhelm the film, they merely serve it, as the best visual effects should do. There's also a refreshing absence of green screen work, as only a couple scenes looked like they were completely CGI environments, and Stanton is to be commended for using real sets and real locations that are eschewed by so many big-budget directors today.
There's also no shortage of spectacle and Stanton definitely has an acute visual eye for these action sequences, particularly one early in the film which involves Carter leaping through the air between several battling airships. This is also most definitely the goriest Disney film ever made, and though they get by on the "Lord of the Rings Rule" (as long as the blood isn't red, you can get a PG-13; such is the ludicrousness of the MPAA, but that's a topic for another day), but there is no shortage of blue Martian blood, along with much hacking, slashing, impaling, dismemberment, and decapitation. I refuse to see 3D versions of any film, but I've read that this one has received a particularly poor and useless post-conversion (it was shot on film with wide-angle lenses, the best format possible in my opinion but the worst for converting to 3D). So save the extra five dollars and see it in 2D.
Overall, "John Carter" is simply a big, entertaining, sci-fi spectacle. It has some flaws, but unless you get overwhelmed by the strange names and religions, you'll almost certainly have a good time. It's not particularly groundbreaking, but it has action, adventure, romance, and all sorts of alien creatures...in short, exactly what a sci-fi event film should be.
"John Carter" is rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action.
Running time: 132 minutes.
Released domestically on March 9, 2012, by Walt Disney Pictures.
3 stars out of 4.
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