We’re merely a couple weeks away from the release of Disney’s John Carter and I’m willing to bet that a good deal of the general public still has no idea what this movie is about. The previous trailers and TV spots have tried in vain to sell the film as a big action-adventure pic, but none of that matters if your audience doesn’t understand why there are a bunch of CG people monsters hanging out in the desert. A fan-made trailer for the film has recently hit the web and it’s leagues better than what the Disney marketing machine has come up with. It clearly sets up the story and rightly sells the Edgar Rice Burroughs adaptation as the precursor to basically the entire sci-fi genre. From Star Wars to Avatar, Burroughs’ source material served as the inspiration for some of the world’s most beloved sci-fi stories, and finally the tale that started it all is getting a film adaptation of its own. That's how the movie should have been sold.

Despite the air of cynicism surrounding John Carter, I’m really pulling for the film to be a success. Having absolutely loved all of director Andrew Stanton’s previous work (Wall-E, Finding Nemo), I sincerely hope he delivers an entertaining, epic sci-fi adventure. Hit the jump to watch the impressive fan-made trailer. John Carter opens in 3D on March 9th.

If you missed any of our previous John Carter coverage, including set visit interviews, behind-the-scenes feauturettes, and much more, click here.

Fan-made trailer via Badass Digest:

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.