Octopus Overlords

by **hepcat** » Thu Jul 14, 2011 4:52 pm

It's here.

I know Hentzau and I are unabashed John Carter: Warlord of Mars fans. Hopefully they won't let us down. The trailer gives me some hope they'll do a good job, even though I'm not sold on the guy playing John. Keeping it a period piece is a huge plus in my book.

by **hentzau** » Thu Jul 14, 2011 5:39 pm

I'm holding off on watching the trailer, hoping it will be in front of HP 7.2 and I can see it on the big screen. If that don't happen, I'll watch it online.

Here's an article about a visit to Pixar to see a presentation on John Carter. (And I really do wish they would have called it "A Princess of Mars".)

by **Pyperkub** » Thu Jul 14, 2011 6:26 pm

Post film 3d conversion. Blech - will look for a good 2d print.

by **Odin** » Thu Jul 14, 2011 8:20 pm

Hmmm, I'm unsure. The trailer didn't look bad, at all, but except for a brief glimpse of one green-skinned guy, I didn't see nearly enough alien-looking martians. I'm not certain which of the novels this is based on (I've read the first three), but it seemed as if fairly outlandish-looking creatures played significant roles in most of them.

by **EvilHomer3k** » Thu Jul 14, 2011 10:21 pm

Looks kind of cool. BTW, Kindle edition of what seems to be all of that series is free on Amazon.

by **hentzau** » Thu Jul 14, 2011 10:48 pm

EvilHomer3k wrote:Looks kind of cool. BTW, Kindle edition of what seems to be all of that series is free on Amazon.

I have 1st editions of the Barsoom books that I inherited from my father in law.

by **hentzau** » Fri Jul 15, 2011 12:10 am

Another article published on JC.

by **theohall** » Fri Jul 15, 2011 8:01 am

The good news is SyFy already did this with Antonio Sabato as the lead, so we won't have to worry about the dual release this time.

by **dedewhale** » Fri Jul 15, 2011 8:53 am

These were favorite books growing up as kid....I dont remember much but I cant say the trailer looked at the wonderful.

I was a kid but I thought the books had some sex and a lot of violence in them...will Disney do that?

by **hepcat** » Fri Jul 15, 2011 9:13 am

dedewhale wrote:These were favorite books growing up as kid....I dont remember much but I cant say the trailer looked at the wonderful.

I was a kid but I thought the books had some sex and a lot of violence in them...will Disney do that?

The books WERE written in the very early 1900's, so I think the sex and violence you're remembering is a lot more sexy and violent than what was actually in them. We sometimes filter stuff through the lenses we wear today. :wink:

I'm not signing off on this movie with a big thumbs up just yet. But I honestly thought this would be a disaster. From interviews the director seems very knowledgeable about the character and sincere about his desire to do justice to him.

by **MonkeyFinger** » Sat Jul 16, 2011 3:28 pm

theohall wrote:The good news is SyFy already did this with Antonio Sabato as the lead, so we won't have to worry about the dual release this time.

Antonio Sabato and Traci Lords as Dejah Thoris, jeez was that awful. Nowhere but up from there. :wink:

by **gameoverman** » Sat Jul 16, 2011 6:47 pm

This is a Disney movie but that lead actor is not very convincing as The One. Even Keanu had more gravitas I think is the word I'm looking for. This JC guy(JC hehe, I get it, the savior) looks like he was on his way to the Prince of Persia auditions and got lost.

Other than that though, I'm liking what I see from just the bleak vistas.

by **Kraken** » Sat Jul 16, 2011 10:02 pm

Like all red-blooded American teens, I used to dream of the incomparable Dejah Thoris. I don't know if any actress can measure up.

NSFW

Spoiler:

by **WYBaugh** » Sat Jul 16, 2011 10:03 pm

Thanks hep for posting this. I am a huge Burroughs fan. His books started my love of science fiction/fantasy at a young age and the Mars books rank as my favorite right up there with Pellucidar.

by **Doomboy** » Sat Jul 16, 2011 10:18 pm

Kraken wrote:Like all red-blooded American teens, I used to dream of the incomparable Dejah Thoris. I don't know if any actress can measure up.

NSFW
Spoiler:

Caroline Munro in her younger days would have been perfect. She was gorgeous in At The Earth's Core and The Golden Voyage of Sinbad. She still looks pretty great too.

I had such a big crush on her when I was a young lad.

by **JSHAW** » Sun Jul 17, 2011 11:04 pm

I've never read any of the books, but I like the trailer. Don't know a single thing about the subject matter, but it looks
well made. I'm in. :pop:

by **Default** » Sun Jul 17, 2011 11:14 pm

Doomboy wrote:
Kraken wrote:Like all red-blooded American teens, I used to dream of the incomparable Dejah Thoris. I don't know if any actress can measure up.

NSFW
Spoiler:

Caroline Munro in her younger days would have been perfect. She was gorgeous in At The Earth's Core and The Golden Voyage of Sinbad. She still looks pretty great too.

I had such a big crush on her when I was a young lad.

Oh man.

by **hepcat** » Mon Jul 18, 2011 12:15 pm

Doomboy wrote:Caroline Munro in her younger days would have been perfect.

Don't bring up Munro during the day. It's too much for most red blooded males to handle. :wub:

I think I actually reached puberty while watching Starcrash...

by **AWS260** » Wed Oct 12, 2011 11:46 am

The current issue of The New Yorker has a lengthy feature on Andrew Stanton, the director of John Carter, with lots of insight into the film's development (subscription required). It's interesting to see how he's adapting the highly iterative Pixar process to the development of a live action film.

by **hepcat** » Thu Feb 16, 2012 3:53 pm

Even if the film is a complete disaster, I have to give them credit for using the movie to get kids to read the books.

But honestly, the more I see of it, the more I get excited. It's looking like a labor of love from the director and that's always a good thing.

by **coopasonic** » Thu Feb 16, 2012 4:00 pm

hepcat wrote:Even if the film is a complete disaster, I have to give them credit for using the movie to get kids to read the books.

But honestly, the more I see of it, the more I get excited. It's looking like a labor of love from the director and that's always a good thing.

A Princess of Mars is no way to convince children to read. I love reading and have been doing it for about 35 years and I can't read that book. I tried.

by **AWS260** » Thu Feb 16, 2012 4:00 pm

hepcat wrote:It's looking like a labor of love from the director and that's always a good thing.

Two words: Sky Captain.

by **hepcat** » Thu Feb 16, 2012 4:02 pm

AWS260 wrote:
hepcat wrote:It's looking like a labor of love from the director and that's usually a good thing.

Two words: Sky Captain.

by **JSHAW** » Fri Feb 17, 2012 10:45 pm

Having seen more trailers on this one I'm thinking John Carter is going to bomb, big time epic fail bomb, losing alot of money
for the studio backing it. It's starting to look like 99.9% CGI, which get's old real fast for me.

I'm having doubts about going to see it in the theater. Might just wait for dvd or cable. Depends on rotten tomato reviews.

by **Buatha** » Sat Feb 18, 2012 12:03 am

It bothered me that my two kids, 7 and 5.5, who enjoyed seeing Captain America with me had no interest in going to see this with me. I was all like, "Hey, kids, do you want to go see that movie with Daddy?" My daughter just deadpanned a "No, not really." Ouch.

by **KKBlue** » Sat Feb 18, 2012 8:42 am

Taylor Kitsch is a good actor, I hope he does your John right. He seems to have his ego in check, a good work ethic and maturity (from the interviews and articles I've read). Us girls like Taylor so be prepared to have lots of us in the theater. He is a man who knows how to wear long dirty hair and talk to us with his eyes!

by **hepcat** » Sat Feb 18, 2012 2:21 pm

coopasonic wrote:
hepcat wrote:Even if the film is a complete disaster, I have to give them credit for using the movie to get kids to read the books.

But honestly, the more I see of it, the more I get excited. It's looking like a labor of love from the director and that's always a good thing.

A Princess of Mars is no way to convince children to read. I love reading and have been doing it for about 35 years and I can't read that book. I tried.

Don't blame the book. I read it as a kid and loved it so much I went out and devoured the rest of the series in short order. It's been in print for almost 100 years so it must have had other fans. It may not be your cup of tea, but fortunately everyone is different. I hope this movie inspires a new generation of kids to discover the novels.

by **Odin** » Sat Feb 18, 2012 3:05 pm

hepcat wrote:Don't blame the book. I read it as a kid and loved it so much I went out and devoured the rest of the series in short order. It's been in print for almost 100 years so it must have had other fans. It may not be your cup of tea, but fortunately everyone is different. I hope this movie inspires a new generation of kids to discover the novels.

I thought I had posted pretty much exactly this the other day, but I suspect I ran off to an appointment partway through and canceled the post. Anyway, yeah, this series has been a favorite with kids (and adults) for nearly a century - an influential work of fiction and sci-fi that's well-regarded by writers and readers alike. It's fun, it's not too cerebral to be inaccessible, it's family-friendly (even though everybody spends a lot of time running around nearly-naked, it seems) - you can't ask for much more than that. It won't have universal appeal, but telling somebody not to introduce kids to Princess of Mars would be like telling them not to bother with Harry Potter. The odds are strongly in favor of them liking it.

by **Daehawk** » Sat Feb 18, 2012 3:40 pm

Looks like a movie Id go see. Maybe it can attain a cult status at the least.

BTW just how do a civil war guy get to Mars? And are his abilities due to Mar's lower gravity? Come to think of it how did any human get there?

by **hepcat** » Sat Feb 18, 2012 3:52 pm

Daehawk wrote:Looks like a movie Id go see. Maybe it can attain a cult status at the least.

BTW just how do a civil war guy get to Mars? And are his abilities due to Mar's lower gravity? Come to think of it how did any human get there?

I would suggest you read the books for the answers.

p.s. this isn't a documentary. :wink:

by **Holman** » Sat Feb 18, 2012 5:11 pm

Buatha wrote:It bothered me that my two kids, 7 and 5.5, who enjoyed seeing Captain America with me had no interest in going to see this with me. I was all like, "Hey, kids, do you want to go see that movie with Daddy?" My daughter just deadpanned a "No, not really." Ouch.

I hear that usually happens somewhere between 7.12 and 7.31. Welcome your new pre-pre-tweenager!

by DD* » Sat Feb 18, 2012 11:38 pm

hepcat wrote:
coopasonic wrote:
hepcat wrote:Even if the film is a complete disaster, I have to give them credit for using the movie to get kids to read the books.

But honestly, the more I see of it, the more I get excited. It's looking like a labor of love from the director and that's always a good thing.

A Princess of Mars is no way to convince children to read. I love reading and have been doing it for about 35 years and I can't read that book. I tried.

Don't blame the book. I read it as a kid and loved it so much I went out and devoured the rest of the series in short order. It's been in print for almost 100 years so it must have had other fans. It may not be your cup of tea, but fortunately everyone is different. I hope this movie inspires a new generation of kids to discover the novels.

The John Carter series was my introduction to science fiction - love love love it!!!

by **Kraken** » Sun Feb 19, 2012 12:47 am

DD* wrote:
hepcat wrote:
coopasonic wrote:
hepcat wrote:Even if the film is a complete disaster, I have to give them credit for using the movie to get kids to read the books.

But honestly, the more I see of it, the more I get excited. It's looking like a labor of love from the director and that's always a good thing.

A Princess of Mars is no way to convince children to read. I love reading and have been doing it for about 35 years and I can't read that book. I tried.

Don't blame the book. I read it as a kid and loved it so much I went out and devoured the rest of the series in short order. It's been in print for almost 100 years so it must have had other fans. It may not be your cup of tea, but fortunately everyone is different. I hope this movie inspires a new generation of kids to discover the novels.

The John Carter series was my introduction to science fiction - love love love it!!!

Almost true for me, too. My first sf book was Heinlein's Have Spacesuit, Will Travel from my junior high school library. But A Princess of Mars was the first sf book I ever bought -- the SF Book Club edition with the Frazetta jacket.

by **hepcat** » Sun Feb 19, 2012 12:57 am

Man, I loved the science fiction book club when I was a kid. Heinlein, Bradbury, Asimov, Pohl and Herbert. Discovered them all through it.

by **Daehawk** » Sun Feb 19, 2012 12:58 am

I read the Tom Swift series as a kid.

by **Odin** » Sun Feb 19, 2012 1:31 am

hepcat wrote:Man, I loved the science fiction book club when I was a kid. Heinlein, Bradbury, Asimov, Pohl and Herbert. Discovered them all through it.

I really should have been in that at some point. Not really sure why I wasn't, except that I had a used bookstore just down the street where I pretty much bought whatever I wanted (and graduated to real bookstores by the time I was a young teen). Still, I'd have discovered a lot of really good stuff a lot sooner if I'd had a book club choosing them for me.

by **Kraken** » Sun Feb 19, 2012 3:34 am

Odin wrote:
hepcat wrote:Man, I loved the science fiction book club when I was a kid. Heinlein, Bradbury, Asimov, Pohl and Herbert. Discovered them all through it.

I really should have been in that at some point. Not really sure why I wasn't, except that I had a used bookstore just down the street where I pretty much bought whatever I wanted (and graduated to real bookstores by the time I was a young teen). Still, I'd have discovered a lot of really good stuff a lot sooner if I'd had a book club choosing them for me.

I used to write my name, the date that I read the book, and what I paid for it on the front endpaper. So I know that I paid $1.49 for the hardcover Princess of Mars in July 1969. Yup, I still have the book. :lol:

by **Odin** » Sun Feb 19, 2012 8:57 am

Kraken wrote:
Odin wrote:
hepcat wrote:Man, I loved the science fiction book club when I was a kid. Heinlein, Bradbury, Asimov, Pohl and Herbert. Discovered them all through it.

I really should have been in that at some point. Not really sure why I wasn't, except that I had a used bookstore just down the street where I pretty much bought whatever I wanted (and graduated to real bookstores by the time I was a young teen). Still, I'd have discovered a lot of really good stuff a lot sooner if I'd had a book club choosing them for me.

I used to write my name, the date that I read the book, and what I paid for it on the front endpaper. So I know that I paid $1.49 for the hardcover Princess of Mars in July 1969. Yup, I still have the book.

So you were always like this, even as a little kid. Fascinating!

by **Kraken** » Sun Feb 19, 2012 1:06 pm

Well, I was 13 then, so not exactly a little kid. But I was always compulsive, if that's what you mean.

by **Odin** » Sun Feb 19, 2012 8:15 pm

Kraken wrote:Well, I was 13 then, so not exactly a little kid. But I was always compulsive, if that's what you mean.

Yeah, that was it. And 13 is plenty little when you're looking back on it from decades later.

Or even just looking at my kids, the oldest of whom is almost that age now.

Octopus Overlords

Who is online