Just a Thought -- John Carter of Mars

The current blockbuster action movie, John Carter, has a lot of people confused and a few more people worried. The movie, you see, is actually based on a series of science fiction novels written about one hundred years ago by Edgar Rice Burroughs—yes, that Edgar Rice Burroughs, more famous as the author of another series that has often been brought to the silver screen, Tarzan.  The confusion about the current John Carter movie seems to lie with the producers’ decision to remove “of Mars” from the title. I have read that this was to distance the film from other recent flops containing the word Mars, such as Mars Needs Moms, but it also serves to confuse people who only know the name John Carter as Noah Wyle’s character on the TV show E.R.!  Meanwhile, the original book series has a large and very passionate fanbase (among whose number I count myself!) who are concerned that the movie will do a disservice to their beloved characters. I have yet to see the movie myself, but I have been re-reading the books over the last year or so and getting as swept up in them now as I did when I was twelve. Despite having been written so long ago, they hold up very well and hold appeal for a wide age group.  If you’re wondering what all the John Carter buzz is really about, take a look at the source!

• A Princess of Mars
• The Gods of Mars
• The Warlord of Mars