As a fan of all things Edgar Rice Burroughs, I looked forward to the release of "John Carter of Mars" with great anticipation (becoming worried and confused when Disney dropped the "of Mars"). While not perfect, it was a much better film than most realize.
I saw a midnight showing on the Thursday before opening night (I called a few friends, but only my cousin Jim was game). We saw it at Cineplex Cinemas on the Queensway, having dinner at Montana's beforehand (quite appropriately).
While a really enjoyable film, Taylor Kitsch was miscast as John Carter (which needed somebody like Henry Cavill to carry the role). On the other hand, Lynn Collins was excellent as Dejah Thoris (they should have renamed it "A Princess of Mars").
Disney's abysmal marketing campaign makes more sense, when one realizes that the studio acquired the Star Wars franchise while "John Carter" was in production, thereby losing all interest in the century-old tale that inspired Star Wars in the first place.
The details are captured in Michael Sellers' excellent book "John Carter and the Gods of Hollywood". Sellers also created some awe-inspiring fan trailers for the movie, (very much worth watching, in case you haven't seen them).
For my kids, who were underwhelmed with the original Star Wars trilogy, "John Carter" is their Star Wars. They've seen the movie several times, and my son still has a "John Carter" poster in his room. Hopefully, one day we'll be able to go back to Barsoom.
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