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I wish they had done these novels GoT style. High quality serial story for cable or Netflix etc. The turn of the century (20th century, that is...) voicing of the story makes the wonders of Burroughs imagination even more remarkable.
It saddened me to see how they warped the story to fit within the constraints of the cinema format. Ah well.
kSp
Follow Ups:
Agreed. It feels like there was far too much creative license taken with the "Therns".
And the movie goes to some length to explain the method of "transport" between Jasoom and Barsoom. Burroughs did not go to such trouble.
In the novel Burroughs describes at length the various societies of the differing peoples of Barsoom. We get to know the Tharks in glorious green detail. The movie doesn't have time to do that but does display the essential bits that describe them.
The movie hit plot points from the novel for its scene changes. That part is familiar. But the context leading into these events has been altered. On the whole I can accept that. Movie making has its requirements and is not, it would seem, the same as book writing.
My copy of the Blu-Ray arrived. ($5.00 2nd hand) On the whole it is a well made movie. The main characters are all very compelling. Taylor Kitsch is adequate as a Captain Carter. Lynn Collins is very suitable as Deja Thorus. The villains are adequately villainous. Dominic West, who plays Sab Than, the enemy Jeddak of Zodanga is appropriately barbaric and treacherous.
In a lot of ways Dominic West reminds me of Stephen Boyd. I suspect he'll be playing more 'heavies' in movies to come. (as did Boyd)
In some ways this movie is somewhat reminiscent of Star Wars 1. (the 1st prequel). I think the movie makers wanted to get a similar feel to their movie. To me this somehow feels false.
I can imagine brief-case toting "suits" explaining to the movie makers how the movie needs to appeal to the target age demographic. Corporate psychologists involved too.
I think I agree that perhaps the big screen isn't the best venue. I could envision it on the small screen as an animated series, particularly if one of the Japanese Manga houses were to take it on as a project. The 2nd Ghost in the Shell movie, "Innocence", might serve as an example of the level of visual artistry that might be applied.
If the Korean animator Peter Chung were to take on the project as he did with his Alexander the Great series, (Reign the Conqueror) there could be some promise.
Or, perhaps even better, Hollywood could leave the Barsoom novels completely alone. Those who wish to read them would not have their mental images of Burroughs' richly described stories messed with.
-Steve
Ps: After having read the first and second novels, I am now reading the 3rd novel "Warlord of Mars". Another page turner that further describes the world of Barsoom. A very enjoyable distraction.
For some unknown reason I have avoided reading anything by E.R. Burroughs until just recently. I don't know why. Maybe because the material was from another time I thought that I wouldn't bother with it. But then a couple of weeks ago I was in a HPB and perusing the Sci-Fi titles when I chanced upon the one and only Burroughs novel in the Store. "The Master Mind of Mars". Novel #6 in the Barsoom series. Some will say this is one of the weaker titles to choose but on the whole not bad.Being my introduction to the writing style of Burroughs I quickly noticed that this was going to be a quick read. The story is almost entirely told as a 1st person narrative, but with just enough dialogue to support the interactions between characters. Burroughs descriptive prose is wonderful. Not verbose. Wording is lean and just enough to nicely describe what is needed. Stays on focus and moves quickly from one scene to the next. Always in motion. A page turner.
After consuming this I decided to look for another title I could read right away. I found one on line. (see link below) His first Barsoom novel; A Princess of Mars. Excellent! I printed this out onto letter-size using my laser-jet in duplex so I could quickly bind it as a book and read it from my night table.
Loved the story. More E.R. Burroughs focused and quick moving narrative.
This, I understand, is the book that the 2012 Disney movie is taken from.It has been some time since I viewed the movie. I saw it on-demand when it came out on video. Now after reading the book I can see that some of the books main plot points are used in the movie, and some aren't but replaced with other events from different novels in the Barsoom series.
I have a copy of the Blu-Ray coming. I found a used copy online for $5.00. I know the movie will let me down after having read the book. And this will be mainly because the director and writers chose to only be partially faithful to the first novel.
Other things worth noting.
After reading the first novel; (A Princess of Mars) I can relate much of the characters and scenery described within it to what George Lucas put up on the large screen back in the seventies and eighties. The landscapes. The beasts. It might be said that George Lucas derived much from E.R. Burroughs. but Burroughs was writing his material for all readers. Lucas, it seems, was making his movies for a younger audience.Anyway, I'll get back to this thread after having seen the movie once again. Meantime I'll look for another novel in the series to read. Those are fun.
-Steve
Edits: 07/01/14
I too love the pacing of the story. The narrative voice of John Carter is the common thread through all the stories, as he is the story teller and the main protagonist for the first three books. I think his voice initially seems stilted, as early 20th century writers were wont to do, but quickly fades behind the strength of the narrative, which is amazingly imaginative for the day and set the tone for all future space operas. You may come across more direct evidence of the influence of ERB on the subsequent works of George Lucas in such words as "sith", which is a hornet like monster the size of a bull. The stingers are coated with poison and are used to tip spears carried by warriors of Kaol. Only this spear, smeared with sith poison, can kill a sith, and only when plunged through its heart!
Anyways, other little gems await. I really loved the books. If I could somehow see the movie as a "based-upon" experience, then maybe... but really, read the series and then watch the movie again - it's just ... a missed opportunity I think.
Bob
For sure, no one else did. This one helped me realize that I had no future as a movie critic.
But it was a love story at its core. I'm a sucker for good guys winning. Besides, the babe was hot.
While certainly not great cinema it had a good "feel" to it. I'd like to see it again just for grins but its run on the pay channels apparently has ended. It'll show up on TNT soon with about 45 minutes of blaringly loud commercials incorporated randomly.
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"E burres stigano"
I really liked Enders Game movie as well until I read the books. I dunno. Sometimes it seems that the studios are trying to fit a square peg in a round hole with these adaptations.
Another example of a really messed up adaptation: The Golden Compass. Lord of the Rings was kind of messed up, but not too bad. The Hobbit might be entertaining, but the story in the movie is like, wuzzup??
In contrast, Harry Potter and Hunger Games were really good adaptations. I just think that when the adaptation warps the story so much that it hardly resembles the original story, it should cause one to question whether the cinema format is the correct application of the medium.
Take Game of Thrones for example. Can you imagine if they tried to fit the story into a single movie (even the first book into a movie??).
Another example. Dune. Movie was completely screwed up, but the SciFi miniseries got a lot closer to the original spirit of the book.
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