I saw this at a preview screening in London.I never read any of the books so only had a vague synopsis of the story just from trailers which didn't really impress me much. Well, this turned out to be quite a blast. Its an enjoyable if very cheesy Sci-fi fantasy blockbuster. It has the spirit and energy of Flash Gordon including its own outrageously nonsensical but fun premise. It isn't as cheesy as that film but there is a definite lean towards it. The story is quite a novel mix of Planet of the Apes, Conan, Red Sonja, Avatar, Star Wars and Superman (yep this is a superhero movie too). We even have a western thrown in the mix at the beginning. I was going to say there isn't anything original here but how can I? This story was published in the 19th century so from that perspective, I can now see a lot of plot influences deriving from this in later SF/fantasy films.

 

A lot of money was spent on this movie and it shows. The special effects here are pretty awesome. Not necessarily ground breaking, everything on screen has been done before but its all smoothly done at a grand scale though not quite to the scale of the Star Wars prequels Effects that stood out for me were John Carters "Hulk" like jumps, Martian sky ship battles, green martians (as good as Avatar), and a cute monster dog sidekick that almost steels the show.

 

Another major feature of the film was the cinematography. Its quite spectacular and for a barren dead desert planet, its surprisingly stunning.One of the biggest surprise for me was the 3D. Its post conversion which most often results in poorer quality than films which are filmed in 3D from the start. But an exception can be made here. This is hands down the best 3d conversion film I have seen. The 3d depth was outstanding and really shows its power in numerous landscape and action scenes. This is probably the second best 3d live action film I've seen overall (either filmed in 3d or post converted) and I am normally anti-3d when it comes to live action films. 

 

Taylor Kitsch who plays John Carter has just about enough screen presence portraying a likable anti hero with a punchy attitude and a sense of past history haunting him. Its a Han Solo type role but he plays it more brooding. There is even a Princess Leia and the age old storyline of helping a Princess to fight a war but each with their own agendas. Its all very clichéd, yet still enjoyable. 

 

As much fun as I had with this, there is no denying that there is a lot wrong with it too. I could pick on flaws and lack of logic all day long with this film some of which are smack on the head stupid and some elements I desperately wished more or better development on. The dialogue while often funny, also often dive bombs into cringe-worthiness (much like a Lucas script), the developing romance was very disjointed and sometimes embarrassing (think Anakin and Padme levels of embarrassment). 

 

The 3 way war politics was not very clear, major characters not fleshed out enough and there's a whole lot of story loopholes. Yet there is still a lot more fun to be had to override those flaws. I have a feeling that book lovers will be disappointed because I can detect a lot of back story is missing here and key characters seem very short changed on their development and motives (particularly with the green martians) which I am sure would have been fully fleshed out in the book. However, I reckon if you enjoy films like Thor and GI Joe, you'll have a great time with this. This wont be a classic or even a cult movie but it is a satisfying piece of cinema escapism. And its enough for me to want to read the books!

John Carter: Stunningly Effective

 

Author: marcvalenzuela from United States

9 March 2012

Hearing about this Disney film's story sparked my interest in seeing this right away! I finally did and overall, the characters, the setting, and the plot flowed seamlessly well together! It's like Disney's formula of "Star Wars" and "Avatar" meets "Prince of Persia: Sands of Time." 

 

So, the plot revolves around a Civil War veteran who is somehow transported to Barsoom (aka Mars), where he must help a princess and a colony succeed in a heated battle against another feuding colony.Director Andrew Stanton delivered well in this epic take of John Carter. Sure, star Taylor Kitsch seems like he's trying a little too hard as the lead guy, but it looks like he's heading toward the same path left behind by Jake Gyllenhaal for "Prince of Persia": serious character figure, yet sometimes able to show unintentional humor usually without noticing. Though not bad on either one's part! 

 

Since John Carter was conceived as a story back in 1912 by Edgar Rice Burroughs (of Tarzan fame), I have to say that this movie is certainly NOT a rip-off. A film like this deserves more credit than initially given! Epic action/adventure films like "Star Wars" and "Avatar" wouldn't exist today without these early roots! It pretty much sparked an influence on the sci-fi, action, adventure genre films that most audiences came to know decades later.

 

It looks like Stanton's following exactly what his fellow Pixar colleague Brad Bird had done with Tom Cruise in "Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol," stepping up as director for once in live-action! Not bad for their first time.

 

By my standards, "must-see" films are getting to be rather rare. This one is by all means a MUST-SEE for everyone who loves science fiction and/or super heroes! Long before Superman, there was John Carter. Many have very likely forgotten what a resourceful and imaginative writer Edgar Rice Burroughs was. Most people only know he authored the original TARZAN.

The movie JOHN CARTER is based on Burroughs' novel, A PRINCESS OF MARS, and his 1911 vision of an advanced civilization on Mars is truly astonishing. Upon seeing this, the first question you will likely ask is, "How is it no one has filmed this fantastic, mind-blowing, eye-popping, compelling sci-fi adventure saga before?" Well, there have been a few faint attempts but the true realization of John Carter's magnificent adventures waited patiently for the masterful CGI wizardry of director Andrew Stanton and the 2012 resources of Disney/Pixar. Amazingly, Mr. Stanton shot this heavily CGI-based epic on film!

 

 According to the director, he did so simply to see what it was like to make a movie like this on film before film is gone. The experience apparently has made him a fan of the classic motion picture medium and I imagine we will hear more from him on why. Of course I'm not going to give anything away. Suffice it to say that, thankfully, JOHN CARTER is a complete film experience: a suspenseful, dazzling story -- efficiently and superbly told -- with dramatic and unforgettable visuals -- and compelling, moving performances. Lynn Collins is particularly brilliant and beguiling as the exotic and dynamic Martian princess. Throughout the film the detail is extraordinary and the pacing is right on the mark, relentlessly drawing you forward into the wonder of this newly discovered, challenging, turbulent world.

What a magnificent adventure saga! Let's put it this way: if you liked Sinbad, you will LOVE John Carter. Thanks to a sure-handed director, an inspired cast, and state of the art technical people, it's a fulfilling experience that I predict will remain with you always -- especially if you are among the young! JOHN CARTER is the ultimate exotic adventure; a masterpiece of cinematic action and pacing.

 

International Film Music Critics Association Awards 2013 : musique d'un film de

science-fiction/horreur pour Michael Giacchino

 

 

Le 2 mars 2012, Disney annonce une exposition consacrée au film John Carter

du 9 mars au 19 avril 2012 au El Capitan Theatre.

Le film est dédié à la mémoire de Steve Jobs

 

Site officiel:

http://www.disney.fr/john-carter/ 

Mensonges d’État, (Body of Lies en version originale), est un film américain réalisé par Ridley Scott, sorti en 2008, avec Leonardo DiCaprio et Russell Crowe. Le film est adapté du roman Body of Lies de David Ignatius, un journaliste du Washington Post.

 

 

External Reviews

(Partiel because trop longue liste)

 

 

Ancien journaliste blessé pendant la guerre d'Irak, Roger Ferris est recruté par la CIA pour traquer un terroriste basé en Jordanie. Afin d’infiltrer son réseau, Ferris devra s’assurer le soutien du très roué vétéran de la CIA Ed Hoffman et du chef des renseignements jordaniens peut-être trop serviable pour être honnête. Bien que ces deux-là soient censés être ses alliés, Ferris s’interroge : jusqu’où peut-il leur faire confiance sans mettre toute son opération – et sa vie – en danger ?

Titre : Mensonges d'état

Titre original : Body of Lies

Réalisation : Ridley Scott

Scénario : William Monahan et 

David Ignatius

Musique : Marc Streitenfeld

Photographie : Alexander Witt

Montage : Pietro Scalia

Décors : Arthur Max et Marco Trentini

Costumes : Janty Yates

Production : Ridley Scott, Michael Costigan, 

Donald De Line, Charles J.D. Schlissel

Société de distribution : Warner Bros.

Budget : 70 000 000 $

Pays d'origine :  États-Unis

Langue : anglais, arabe

Format : Couleurs - 2,35:1 - SDDS - 35 mm

Genre : Espionnage

Durée : 128 minutes

Date de sortie :

10 octobre 2008  - 

5 novembre 2008 

Box-office :

Monde : 115 097 286 $

États-Unis : 39 394 666 $

France : 881 052 entrées