The film follows John Carter (Taylor Kitsch), maverick Confederate cavalry captain at large, who finds himself teleported to Mars (or Barsoom, as the natives call it). As is expected of intergalactic heroes, he proceeds to save the planet, lead an army of alien natives, defy assorted villains and fall in love, in this case with princess Dejah Thoris (Lynn Collins), a masterful warrior in her own right.
John Carter is, undoubtedly, a beautifully created film, merging live-action with a slew of perfect CGI, ranging from arid vistas to exotic species of multiple-limbed aliens. The aesthetics of the film from its reddish hue to its outlandish costumes come across as charming to us, but may strike also those accustomed to the sleek look of modern sci-fi films as slightly over-the-top and dated.
Unfortunately, the seamless blend that Stanton achieves with his visuals is sadly lacking in the overall tone of the movie, which veers wildly from the epic to the ludicrously cartoonish, possibly a vestige of Andrew Stanton`s earlier directorial styles in animated films. Stanton seems to struggle with creating a film that has a suitably epic feel to it, and the comedic elements seem more like a cop-out than a deliberate addition to the film. The film also suffers from a predictable narrative that progresses in jolts and judders, albeit interspaced with some stellar action sequences.
Taylor Kitsch puts in a solid, charismatic performance as the titular character, jaded by the tragedies of his past, but still with vestiges of past ideals. Unfortunately, leading lady Lynn Collins while definitely easy on the eye is barely lukewarm on screen, and is too stilted to provide the chemistry with Kitsch necessary to make their onscreen interactions sizzle.
While there are occasional glimmers of brilliance on display in John Carter, the film falls short of its epic potential. On the bright side, there are already talks of a sequel in the works; perhaps Stanton`s sophomore endeavour will actualise the series` full potential.
Summary: Solid, but too patchy an effort to be truly epic.
Rating: 3.5/5 RL