IFDB Review: John Carter of Mars:

I watched this movie cold - never having seen it before. However, I read the entire Mars series as a kid, so I thought it would be fun to see what Hollywood did with it. By the time John Carter met Dejah Thoris, I could tell why the movie never received much acclaim. Poor acting, cheesy dialogue, Tharks that remind me of Jar Jar Binks, and too much effort to be cute. A particularly bad movie, that I believe no edit could fix, at least for what I would look for in a tribute to Edgar Rice Burroughs. My nine year old son enjoyed it though, so there is a audience.Technically a sound edit though. I was not able to tell when and what might have been cut. It seemed disjointed at times (like the jump to the first flier battle and the red man getting the power weapon). I would have preferred a slower intro to Mars, leave the flier scene until later if possible. All in all visually entertaining at least.The only reason I do not recommend the edit is because I do not recommend the movie in general to anyone who wants to preserve the integrity and seriousness of the books. If you didn't read the books, the movie is probably worth a family watch with popcorn on a lazy Friday night.

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