Calling “John Carter” cookie cutter feels backwards.

“A Princess of Mars,” the source material for the movie, as well as the rest of Edgar Rice Burroughs’s “Barsoom” novels, are widely regarded as the mold that the cookie cutter was made from. But does the fact that the books were groundbreaking 100 years ago prevent the movie from being generic today?

The movie tells the story of former confederate soldier, John Carter, who finds himself mysteriously transported to Mars, called Barsoom by the native inhabitants. He discovers that, due to the lower force of gravity on the planet, he possess super human strength and leaping ability, and quickly becomes embroiled in the politics and wars of the planet. Once the story gets going, it’s extremely predictable. Anyone who is even slightly seasoned in science fiction or fantasy genres will easily predict the events.

This is partly due to the fact that the story is one of the progenitors of the science-fiction genre; being cited as a major influence of such legends as Robert A. Heinlein, Arthur C. Clarke, Ray Bradbury, James Cameron and George Lucas. Unfortunately, in an attempt to make the book better suited to the screen, the story is presented as more of a travelogue and is light on plot, with a very formulaic route.

This isn’t to say that the movie isn’t fun. The plot is just functional enough to keep the movie going from one spectacle to the next, which is where the movie’s chops lie.

The action sequences are excellent and take advantage of a lot of the opportunities the setting presents: John Carter’s jumping prowess, the four-armed Thraks, airships that fly on light, and magic death beams are all heartily incorporated into the action.

In addition, the movie is a pleasure to look at. Andrew Stanton, having honed his directorial chops at Pixar, certainly has a strong eye for CGI, and has given us a movie with crisp visuals that is very easy on the eyes. But the visuals manage to keep a bit of self-aware camp to them, feeling like the pulp sci-fi movies that “A Princess of Mars” inspired, albeit shot with a $250 million budget. The 3D is solid, and doesn’t feel tacked-on or shoehorned in, but it really isn’t something to write home about.

The actors are all there. No one really leaves any sort of impact, except perhaps Mark Strong, who manages to bring magnetism to any role he plays. Taylor Kitsch plays the title character, and he makes a compelling action hero. He does have a tendency to over act from time to time, although it fits well with the slightly campy vibe the movie gives off. I was rather surprised to discover afterwards that both Willem Dafoe and Thomas Haden Church provided voices, and it took a second watch to actually pinpoint their performances.

Despite being underwhelming at times, I found myself leaving the theater satisfied. There’s already talk of a sequel, and with 10 more books in the series, I am definitely interested to see where they go with the franchise.