think Hungr4Ass is confusing John Carter with John Norman
― Ward Fowler, Friday, 17 February 2012 13:21 (twelve years ago) link
lol
― RudolfHitlerFtw (Hungry4Ass), Friday, 17 February 2012 13:23 (twelve years ago) link
iirc a big part of the charm of the first book is Carter being this bizarre theosophist-Highlander figure who has a long and mysterious history as an immortal warrior on Earth prior to transmigrating to Mars during a fight with Apaches ... he narrates the batshit-insane events of A Princess of Mars in a mannerly, military-memoir style ERB imagines appropriate to such a figure. This stoic first-person voice is key to the book's hallucinatory effect. I like Chabon, but I don't see how any of this translates into a screenplay.
The book is on Gutenberg btw.
― Brad C., Friday, 17 February 2012 13:29 (twelve years ago) link
lol i remember literally none of that
― desperado, rough rider (thomp), Friday, 17 February 2012 13:59 (twelve years ago) link
They should have just called the movie "Carter."
― Josh in Chicago, Friday, 17 February 2012 14:03 (twelve years ago) link
"Carter: 3-D"
Get Carter of Mars
― Brad C., Friday, 17 February 2012 14:08 (twelve years ago) link
Mars, Attacked
― Critique of Pure Moods (goole), Friday, 17 February 2012 15:23 (twelve years ago) link
Both "Mars" and "Attacked" are better names than "John Carter."
― Josh in Chicago, Friday, 17 February 2012 15:25 (twelve years ago) link
The Civil War (on Mars) (But At The Same Time, Pretty Much)
― Critique of Pure Moods (goole), Friday, 17 February 2012 15:25 (twelve years ago) link
they really should have gotten Noah Wylie to star in this
― (thinks and smiles) (DJP), Friday, 17 February 2012 15:26 (twelve years ago) link
you say that about every movie!!
― Critique of Pure Moods (goole), Friday, 17 February 2012 15:27 (twelve years ago) link
yes, but they could have started another "Predator ship"-style fanboy debate with this between "A Princess of Mars" and "ER"
― (thinks and smiles) (DJP), Friday, 17 February 2012 15:36 (twelve years ago) link
"John Carter, MD, of Mars."
― Josh in Chicago, Friday, 17 February 2012 15:42 (twelve years ago) link
John Carter the Unstoppable Mars Machine.
― ledge, Friday, 17 February 2012 15:43 (twelve years ago) link
haha
― Critique of Pure Moods (goole), Friday, 17 February 2012 15:43 (twelve years ago) link
How the fuck do you rename something "John Carter" that has the already-awesome name "Princess of Mars".
― getting good with gulags (beachville), Friday, 17 February 2012 15:57 (twelve years ago) link
apparently the reasoning was that boys dont like princesses, so they made it john carter of mars. and girls dont like planets, so they made it just john carter
― RudolfHitlerFtw (Hungry4Ass), Friday, 17 February 2012 15:58 (twelve years ago) link
they wanted to avoid the taint of mars
― Cruller, Cobbler, Poffert, Pie (latebloomer), Saturday, 18 February 2012 04:03 (twelve years ago) link
Martian taint is true. The New Yorker article said it was because that Mars Needs Moms movie was such a bomb.
― EZ Snappin, Saturday, 18 February 2012 04:16 (twelve years ago) link
I saw the trailer yesterday and among all the problems I have the aliums all look like Phantom Menace/Jar-Jar animation and it's really, really skeeving me out.
Tim Riggins of Mars! Is what the movie should be called.
― Janet Snakehole (VegemiteGrrl), Saturday, 18 February 2012 04:22 (twelve years ago) link
The title of the movie is terrible, but most titles that are just a person's name are terrible.
― WARS OF ARMAGEDDON (Karaoke Version) (Sparkle Motion), Thursday, February 16, 2012 8:10 PM (Yesterday) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink
this is otm, why did they take out the MARS part?? what are they thinking??
― the jazz zinger (s1ocki), Saturday, 18 February 2012 04:46 (twelve years ago) link
see the Mars Needs Moms tidbit.
― Simon H., Saturday, 18 February 2012 04:49 (twelve years ago) link
Mars Needs Moms was shit because it was a piece of overmade garbage that took a perfectly good Berkeley Breathed story and made it into something stupid. The involvement of mars was the least of it's problems!! God studio execs are such MORONS (#955,000)
― Janet Snakehole (VegemiteGrrl), Saturday, 18 February 2012 04:52 (twelve years ago) link
its
didn't realize people had such strong feelings about mars needs moms.
― the jazz zinger (s1ocki), Saturday, 18 February 2012 04:56 (twelve years ago) link
people = me
I just really liked that Berkeley Breathed book. :(
― Janet Snakehole (VegemiteGrrl), Saturday, 18 February 2012 05:05 (twelve years ago) link
Mars Needs Vegemite
― Ned Raggett, Saturday, 18 February 2012 05:09 (twelve years ago) link
I should just stay on the IA thread...
― Janet Snakehole (VegemiteGrrl), Saturday, 18 February 2012 05:10 (twelve years ago) link
( <3 Ned )
― Janet Snakehole (VegemiteGrrl), Saturday, 18 February 2012 05:11 (twelve years ago) link
― EZ Snappin, Saturday, 18 February 2012 04:16 (1 hour ago) Permalink
that's nuts. people really think an unrelated kid movie's flopping would affect this one?
― Cruller, Cobbler, Poffert, Pie (latebloomer), Saturday, 18 February 2012 05:27 (twelve years ago) link
I only know the books tangentially (League of Extraordinary Gentlemen) but this looks GREAT.
― Sick Mouthy (Scik Mouthy), Saturday, 18 February 2012 08:27 (twelve years ago) link
Maybe I'm the only one, but I'm genuinely looking forward to this and thoroughly expect to enjoy it. I re-read Princess Of Mars the other day to prepare and damn, it's great.
― Aunt Acid and the Gaviscons (aldo), Saturday, 18 February 2012 10:00 (twelve years ago) link
Other than the alien animation, the rest of it does look pretty fantastic.
― getting good with gulags (beachville), Saturday, 18 February 2012 13:16 (twelve years ago) link
all i ever notice of the commercials for this are a sandy vista and a scruffy warrior guy, which makes me go "is this prince of persia? didn't that already come out?"
― ban opinions (reddening), Saturday, 18 February 2012 14:14 (twelve years ago) link
this should have been called JOHN CARTER PRINCESS OF MARS imho
― the jazz zinger (s1ocki), Saturday, 18 February 2012 15:31 (twelve years ago) link
JOHN CARTER OF MARS: A PRINCESS OF MARS: THE LEGEND OF JOHN CARTER (OF MARS)
― ban opinions (reddening), Saturday, 18 February 2012 15:51 (twelve years ago) link
PRINCESS JOHN CARTER OF MARS
― Janet Snakehole (VegemiteGrrl), Saturday, 18 February 2012 17:31 (twelve years ago) link
JOHN CARTER: TURN OFF THE MARS
― A Full Torgo Apparition (Phil D.), Saturday, 18 February 2012 18:57 (twelve years ago) link
Y'ALL READY FOR MARS?
― Janet Snakehole (VegemiteGrrl), Saturday, 18 February 2012 19:00 (twelve years ago) link
A MARS A DAY HELPS YOU WORK, REST AND SLAY
― Aunt Acid and the Gaviscons (aldo), Saturday, 18 February 2012 19:06 (twelve years ago) link
ahaha
― Janet Snakehole (VegemiteGrrl), Saturday, 18 February 2012 19:12 (twelve years ago) link
ha
― the jazz zinger (s1ocki), Saturday, 18 February 2012 19:14 (twelve years ago) link
http://cf.badassdigest.com/_uploads/images/16650/ghosts-featured1__span.jpg
― Josh in Chicago, Saturday, 18 February 2012 19:21 (twelve years ago) link
buzzkill
― Janet Snakehole (VegemiteGrrl), Saturday, 18 February 2012 19:26 (twelve years ago) link
And the knives really start coming out:
http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2012/02/21/john-carter-disney-s-quarter-billion-dollar-movie-fiasco.html
― Ned Raggett, Tuesday, 21 February 2012 15:37 (twelve years ago) link
3 pages of industry insider gossip about kerfuffle among the money men? Will hold out for the reviews. Still, $400 million is a heckuvalot.
― watercooler challenge (ledge), Tuesday, 21 February 2012 15:43 (twelve years ago) link
Martian taint is true.
one for the out of context thread
― (thinks and smiles) (DJP), Tuesday, 21 February 2012 15:46 (twelve years ago) link
Hey, they said "Titanic" would flop! They said "Avatar" would flop! Don't ever count out Cameron!
― Josh in Chicago, Tuesday, 21 February 2012 15:50 (twelve years ago) link
Oh, wait, this isn't Cameron?!
VG will have your scalp or something.
― Ned Raggett, Friday, 12 December 2014 23:09 (nine years ago) link
killfile
― difficult-difficult lemon-difficult (VegemiteGrrl), Saturday, 13 December 2014 00:16 (nine years ago) link
why is this still on my bookmarks??
― Frobisher, Saturday, 13 December 2014 00:26 (nine years ago) link
It's from the books I suppose but the ending of this is pretty good, plot-wise.
In the DVD commentary they talk about it becoming a thing on the level of Superman or Bond. The pathos, I almost feel bad for the probably really quite rich people who were indulged in this folly.
― *there's (Noel Emits), Wednesday, 13 February 2019 11:24 (five years ago) link
Memmmmmories etc
https://www.thewrap.com/john-carter-movie-history-why-it-failed/
Ten years, crazy. Still half convinced that this not being a success is why Disney bought Lucasfilm later that year.
― Ned Raggett, Thursday, 10 March 2022 00:20 (two years ago) link
That's quite an in-depth article for... this movie. I think Collins not being sure which version of the princess to play is indicative of the major problem I found with the movie: characters were not well-defined at all
― Vinnie, Thursday, 10 March 2022 01:30 (two years ago) link
this movie killed the FNL dude's career, didn't it?
― akm, Thursday, 10 March 2022 01:40 (two years ago) link
A combination of this and True Detective season 2. Both of which are better than people say.
― but also fuck you (unperson), Thursday, 10 March 2022 02:17 (two years ago) link
It was based on a beloved and highly influential property
lol....beloved and influential to who exactly?
― call all destroyer, Thursday, 10 March 2022 02:40 (two years ago) link
people who read & enjoyed it?
― terminators of endearment (VegemiteGrrl), Thursday, 10 March 2022 02:44 (two years ago) link
i'm questioning the characterization of the property as some kind of sure thing to bank a movie on. i had literally never heard of it until this came out despite existing in plenty of circles where sci-fi and fantasy fiction were regularly discussed for all of my teens and 20s.
― call all destroyer, Thursday, 10 March 2022 02:48 (two years ago) link
i don't know how wide an audience they have in 2022 but burroughs's mars books are some of the most influential in SF, even if the influence tended to trickle down through other stuff -- bradbury, heinlein, flash gordon, star wars.
― (The Other) J.D. (J.D.), Thursday, 10 March 2022 03:18 (two years ago) link
Cameron cited it as an inspiration for Avatar, and I don't doubt it inspired others. But yeah, it was certainly no bankable property ten years ago or now - too old, largely forgotten
― Vinnie, Thursday, 10 March 2022 03:23 (two years ago) link
yeah "this thing inspired this other thing that you like" is not really how IP attracts audiences
― call all destroyer, Thursday, 10 March 2022 03:27 (two years ago) link
The Del Rey paperbacks were how I first heard about them, and they came out...late 70s I think?
― Ned Raggett, Thursday, 10 March 2022 04:44 (two years ago) link
i feel like princess of mars is sort of out of fashion, partially because Edgar Rice Burroughs is also out of fashion right now (lotta racist shit in the original Tarzan), but both properties were hugely popular in their time. I remember being kinda surprised when the movie came out, though, even having been aware of the books and having read a couple a long time ago. they were in print for a long time. probably still are.
― ian, Thursday, 10 March 2022 04:46 (two years ago) link
in terms of influence... they are not the very first examples of what is now called "portal fantasy", but they are early, predating the chronicles of Narnia by decades. there's definitely plenty of writing in this genre, and the idea has been used over and over again from alice in wonderland (pre-princess of mars) to stargate: atlantis to whatever.
― ian, Thursday, 10 March 2022 05:04 (two years ago) link
my reaction to this coming out was kind of like... this is a movie for old men who listen to old time radio dramas and collect Amazing Stories and Weird Tales from before the 2nd world war.
still never seen it.
― ian, Thursday, 10 March 2022 05:06 (two years ago) link
i still think it was a much better movie than conventional wisdom acts like it was
― terminators of endearment (VegemiteGrrl), Thursday, 10 March 2022 05:20 (two years ago) link
I'd agree, pretty much stand by everything upthread. It ain't perfect but it's often really entertaining.
― Ned Raggett, Thursday, 10 March 2022 05:22 (two years ago) link
Reread the first three Mars books after seeing the movie (great in IMAX), and thought the movie did a great job of capturing the spirit while tightening the plot. Besides the Star Wars prequels, was the first movie I've seen people actively dogpile on to hate, without having seen it. At least, it was the first movie I was invested in seeing, so disheartening watching it shredded. Would have appreciated a second movie.
As a kid, also loved the Green Star books by Lin Carter, which is a straight rip of the concept.
― the body of a spider... (scampering alpaca), Thursday, 10 March 2022 14:09 (two years ago) link
(lotta racist shit in the original Tarzan),
― ian, Thursday, March 10, 2022 4:46 AM (ten hours ago) bookmarkflaglink
Surely the whole concept of the white aristocratic lord of the jungle is inherently racist from the get-go. Quite apart from the depiction of the natives outside of that.
― Stevolende, Thursday, 10 March 2022 14:53 (two years ago) link