John Carter

I’ll be honest…the horrible reviews from critics for this film really persuaded me not to see it. Typically I don’t listen to professional critics but they seem to all say the same thing and they couldn’t all be wrong….could they?

Well, I finally had the chance to rent it in hopes that perhaps I could find some shining jewel in the muck and grime of what is Disney’s biggest box office failure in recent years and you know what? I REALLY liked it. Really!

Without getting to in-depth with the story (which isn’t complex).  A man in the 1800’s ends up discovering a device off of a dead alien that transports him to Mars where he discovers that due to the gravity difference he has super strength.  Not long after that he’s captured by a primitive alien tribe that’s impressed by his abilities.    Before long he’s involved in a war between two other races, fall in love with a princess and does many many heroic deeds.  On paper, that sounds pretty run of the mill.  But the way it played out felt very much like a classic, pulp fiction style adventure.  Action scenes were fun and entertaining, characters related well to each other.  And while we never really develop an emotional connection to the characters beyond “I hope he does something else awesome”  Maybe that’s enough?  It was for me. 

Let’s take a look at a film like Star Wars.  (A New Hope) the story wasn’t very deep, but the film was fun and kept you engaged and that’s exactly how I felt about John Carter.  It was a fun adventure with over-the-top action, the kind you dreamed about as a child.  Bigger than life heroes taking on the clearly evil bad guy.  That’s what this is…a story of good vs evil and the joy of an adventure.  And with that in mind, I greatly enjoyed the film.  I think it deserves at least one watch.