John Carter

I did only have modest expectations of this film as the trailer reminded me a bit to much of Dune. Really surprised to find a film which had a good plot line (albeit cynics will liken it to Avatar-lite), well acted, reasonable characterisations, brilliant visuals and a surprisingly good hero figure in Taylor Kitsch. I saw the preview screening this morning - don't really care how much it cost to make - what I found was a big budget film that I really enjoyed from start to finish. My advice - don't follow the cynics and naysayers - see it for yourself. I will normally not go see 3D films (they give me a headache) but the 3D wasn't too intrusive on this one.

I actually have no idea why it didn't make any money in America. You can't predict those things. But the studio made up for that with the international Box Office results. Plus when the DVDs and Blu Rays hit the stores, I imagine there will be a win margin for the studio, so all will be good (in time).

I won't get into any 3D discussion. You actually don't really need it in any movie. Do I still watch them? Yes, I do. But kudos to directors who stand their ground and say no to it (as does Zack Snyder). But a movie is not better or worse because of the 3D (Clash of the Titans may be an exception to that rule, because it might have been quite watchable, if not for that awful 3D conversion). This movie too, is silly family fun, that has some nice aliens, some bad aliens and a hero you can root for. If you don't take it too seriously then, you might have fun watching it

Not a fantasy masterpiece but I like it - John Carter got some fantastic settings, some good action and even some funny moments. Yes, the main body of the story is rather a simple one but anyway the ride makes fun and is entertaining. I should add that I never read one of the original stories written by Edgar Rice Burroughs (note to myself: read one), so it is possible that readers and fans of the original stories, like some other reviews indicate, may be disappointed by the movie adaption.

If you haven't yet, what are you waiting for to go watch "John Carter"? Grab your kids, grab your boyfriend or girlfriend, your spouse, your parents, your friends and run to the nearest theatre where they're showing this. For you can watch "John Carter" being any age, and in any company, and have a good two-hour cinematic joyride.

It doesn't matter that it has reportedly failed at the box office (but then, failure is relative, isn't it? It all depends on how high the expectancies were raised). "John Carter" is a great movie, and I hope it will have a fruitful second life upon DVD release and in other forms. It doesn't matter that Mars doesn't hold almost any interest for human fantasy anymore as it did back in Edgar Rice Burroughs's time. It doesn't matter that the plot isn't perfect and that the movie sometimes reminds us a little too much of "Avatar", what with the interspecies romance, the seemingly hostile environment and creatures then turned into allies (or not!), the ecologic, Earth-loving message. It has lots of adventure, love, humor, and enough symbolism to get the point in just one viewing and walk out of the theatre with a smile in your face. The characters -the good guys and gals, that is- are all good-looking, well-spoken, brave, smart and funny. And the bad guys also make a good point in the story -perhaps the most intriguing, most modern message of them all. And the cast is really gold, especially the more minor characters (it has Dominic West, by God!).

In summary, please, do yourself a favor and watch "John Carter". At worst, you won't find it anything special, but I trust you won't be bored.

I LOVED this movie. I had read the books many years ago and some of the Marvel Comics series so I had images in my head of what I thought John, Dejah, Tars and Barsoom would look like...and this movie pretty much topped them all. The Tharks were better than my imagination! This is a movie for everyone. It's an adventure movie, an action movie, a science fiction movie, a fantasy movie and a romance. Please give it a chance, ignore any of the bad press and watch it for yourself. And just remember, this movie is based on books written 100 years ago by Edgar Rice Burroughs, so if you think "oh they did that in Star Wars" or wasn't something like that in (insert almost any other scifi movie)" please remember that they came AFTER John Carter not before...this movie might have been filmed later but the story was here a century ago, so those movies are drawing on John Carter's themes not the other way around. I thought the actors were brilliantly cast, they really suited my image of the characters and I loved the storyline. Yes there could have been perhaps more explanations but the gist was there and if you want to know more read the books. Give this movie a chance. Watch it more than once and you will pick up more each time you watch it. Maybe, like The Terminator, which also didn't do as well at the movies but then picked up on video, we might get to see the sequel in the near future. Are you listening Disney?