I’m seriously starting to worry about the marketing approach for Andrew Stanton’s John Carter. The film was originally titled John Carter of Mars, which is its hook: Normal name, other planet. Then, presumably because a focus group told them to, Disney cut off the interesting part and we’re left with the completely bland “John Carter“. Now they’ve released the first teaser poster. Does it hint at the majestic weirdness of the alien planet Carter finds himself transported to? Nope, just lead actor Taylor Kitsch not wearing a shirt and the initials “JCM”. The “M” is meaningless because “of Mars” has been removed from the title, but more importantly, if you pass this poster in your local multiplex and have no idea about the movie, what will think about it? You could easily mistake it for an ad for men’s body spray.
None of this is a reflection of the actual quality of the film, but Disney is doing a poor job of selling what I’m certain was not a cheap movie. Hit the jump to check out the poster. The film also stars Lynn Collins, Samantha Morton, Mark Strong, Bryan Cranston, Thomas Hayden Church, and Willem Dafoe. John Carter opens March 9th.
[Update: We've been provided with the high-resolution version of the poster, which we've now included after the jump]
Here’s the official synopsis for John Carter:
From Academy Award(R)-winning filmmaker Andrew Stanton comes “John Carter”–a sweeping action-adventure set on the mysterious and exotic planet of Barsoom (Mars). “John Carter” is based on a classic novel by Edgar Rice Burroughs, whose highly imaginative adventures served as inspiration for many filmmakers, both past and present. The film tells the story of war-weary, former military captain John Carter (Taylor Kitsch), who is inexplicably transported to Mars where he becomes reluctantly embroiled in a conflict of epic proportions amongst the inhabitants of the planet, including Tars Tarkas (Willem Dafoe) and the captivating Princess Dejah Thoris (Lynn Collins). In a world on the brink of collapse, Carter rediscovers his humanity when he realizes that the survival of Barsoom and its people rests in his hands.
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Really? THAT’s a teaser? That’s crap!
terrible – looks like pseudo porn or something you’d see in a magazine trying to cell cologne (or body spray like the man said).
so far it seems to me with the title change, the march release date and now this “teaser” that disney has little faith in this flick.
I can do better with MS Paint.
Matt you hated all the new X-Men posters too and look how that turned out.
the x men movie was good but the posters were god awful
The difference is that X-Men has a built in fan base. People were going to see it because it was a new X-Men movie and the marketing department really didn’t need to do a whole lot of work. John Carter (of Mars) on the other hand is not a well known property and Disney does need to work hard to sell the idea to people.
That’s Matt’s point. You need to get people interested in something they’ve never heard of before, and this poster will not do that.
seriously people, it’s a teaser poster. it teases. are we really at a point in film blogdom where we not only get upset when marketing gives away to much, but when it doesn’t give up ENOUGH? almost a year out from release??
Matt, i think your point is valid, but certainly over-the-top. As someone with no connection to the source material, it’s just another vague teaser image intended to pique my interest. I certainly would not be more interested if it had a bunch of martians in the background, and i think a logical explanation from a marketing perspective is why not set yourself apart now when we’re being oversaturated with imagery of another sci-fi blockbuster (aliens, untested human hero, other planets) – Green Lantern.
That’s true. Disney must be in panic mode now that Green Lantern is being slated across the board and they have a film where a man from earth is transported to an distant planet and fights an intergalactic war alongside aliens coming out in March.
If Green Lantern doesn’t make much at the box office I wonder if Disney will interfere in John Carter at all?
Another poster along side it with an image of Dejah Thoris may improve curiosity, but, as has already been said, this one does look like a ‘body spray for men’ poster.
If they want GL to work, they just have to deliver a good story with a good script. Otherwise, it will be yet another Michael Bay movie.
Gambit, Silver Fox, Green Goblin and Sandman. LOL!
I’m a huge fan of the source material and have been hoping for a decent big screen interpretation for decades. As an artist I think it’s an interesting image and if everyone will pause, you’ll notice the large letter “M” dead center. In fact the only thing that turns me off is the typestyle. So let’s all take a breath and relax on this.
That’s awful.
Reminds me unfavourable of the “Gor” movies or, at best, of “300″