It's hard at this point to have a completely fair and unbiased review of John Carter in the wake of the bad press surrounding its budget, much maligned marketing campaign, and Andrew Stanton's intractability. But here we have the finished product, and let's try to examine it in a vacuum.
A faithful adaptation of Edgar Rice Burrough's A Princess of Mars, the film opens with a brief prologue on Mars, then zeros in on our eponymous hero (Taylor Kitsch). A Confederate Civil War veteran whose family did not survive the war, he tries his hand at prospecting for gold in Arizona where he runs afoul of the local sheriff (Bryan Cranston in a brief role). Escaping from a group of Native Americans, Johnny boy makes it to a cave which transports him to Mars, or Barsoom as the locals call it.
Due to the difference in gravity, John is soon getting some serious hang time all over the dusty, not really red, Martian landscape. He is soon interrupted by one of central casting's rejects from the Star Wars cantina, Tars Tarkas of the green, 6-limbed Tharks. Carter quickly becomes the cool kid in Tharks-ville due to his gravity defying ways and gets the attention not only of an adorable alien dog thing (Woola), but a hot princess of Mars named Dejah from Helium (Lynn Collins), a latter day Princess Leia who gets John a little hot and bothered.
Through his new lady crush, Carter becomes embroiled in the political drama of Barsoom: the Heliumites are under attack by the Red Men of Zodanga led by Sab Than (Dominic West) who is merely a pawn in the machinations of the elusive, teleport-happy Thurns (pale, robe clad shape shifters who have the Goddess on speed dial). Carter seems destined to fulfill the Moses role of delivering the Heliumites and Tharks, but he does take some convincing as getting home is his first priority.
Along the way, the audience is treated to a few epic battles including a gladiator style take down of a giant white ape. The CGI work is certainly impressive and there is beauty in the nostalgic look of this alien planet. Despite the presence of some futuristic technology on Barsoom, it has more the feel of how the future was imagined a century ago.
Nostalgia pervades the film, not only in the art direction, but the tone and themes. There are elements of Star Wars and Indiana Jones in the film's blend of the campy and the operatic. That balance can seem laughable at times, for instance, in a spliced together sequence of a distraught Carter slicing through Tharks and flashbacks to burying his wife and child.
Problematic is that, as immersive as the visuals are, we don't ever get that sense of discovery through John Carter's eyes. We don't get that first person elation of a paraplegic Marine taking his first gallop around an alien planet like in Avatar or Peter Parker taking his first leap off of a roof in Spider-man. John Carter is a wounded, guarded guy, and Taylor Kitsch struggles to give that weight to the part. It does not help that his voice occasionally drifts into California dude territory.
Andrew Stanton, Pixar behemoth behind Finding Nemo and Wall-E, is clearly a masterful storyteller elsewhere, and that is how he has approached this film: story is paramount. To this end, the plot points are well curated, with Stanton squeezing as many nuances of plot while retaining clarity. But this attention to detail prevents the movie from ever breathing and for the characters to burrow into the audience's heart.
Thankfully, John Carter does have some self-awareness and touches of Pixar's sense of humor (especially thanks to Woola who did not devolve into a Jar Jar Binks situation). It enjoys inhabiting a realm of B-movie adventure, and the film should be appreciated for the sheer fun factor and the simple pleasure of being transported to another world. But at A+ movie cost, we expect more.
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