James Cameron's Avatar

Posted by F1ak3r on Dec. 20, 2009, 11:17 p.m.

I saw it the other day. Went to the cinema, paid R65 (!) for a ticket, and got some neat 3D glasses. Unfortunately, I had to return the glasses afterwards. They were plastic and everything… =(

Anyway, so people are saying that it's "the best movie ever made" and stuff like that. In a way, they're right. Technically, it looks amazing. The visuals are absolutely spectacular. But with a budget of $250-300 million, that's the kind of thing that should be expected demanded.

The plot, however, is far from the sorta thing you'd expect to see in "the best movie ever made". It's the age old story of a white man - I mean human - becoming a member of a Native American - I mean blue alien - tribe and fighting against his former comrades to save them.

The entire movie's message is basically that these aliens are totally better than us, and yet if ol' Jake the Wheelchair Marine2 hadn't joined them, they'd've been exterminated. Interesting message.

A good decent bit of entertainment, and technically superior to anything I've ever seen before, but not breathtakingly original. But I guess the main point of watching it is to enjoy the visuals. Just don't think to hard about:

- Why aren't the blue aliens freaked out by members of their species (very life-like replicas, at least) being remote controlled by humans? I don't know about you, but if aliens started growing humans in tanks and pretending to be them in order to ingratiate themselves with us, I'd be rather unnerved.

- (SPOILERS) So we're told that the bond between blue alien and freaky dragon thing is everlasting and very special and stuff1. Then Jake has this whole long scene where he gets his freaky dragon thing, and that's all good. BUT THEN he just abandons it in favour of a bigger freaky dragon thing later. What about the freakin' bond?

- Why didn't they think of bringing in the freaky triceratops things in themselves? Sure, they couldn't directly control them, but a bit of prodding, a bit of poking with sticks, and a bit of general provocation and agitation, and those thing's woulda been tearing through the forest, crushing everything in their path. That's what I would've done, anyway.(/SPOILERS)

- Why are the blue aliens such uppity jerks? Sure, the humans were kinda jerks too, but all the aliens wanted to do was carry on living as they always had, sticking their hair into everything and carving spears out of trees, because their culture was apparently "better" than ours. You can't tell me that none of them were the least bit curious about the visiting aliens.

As far as "aliens as a metaphor for non-white races" movies go, give me District 9 over this any day.

Also, once the movie's over, hide the plastic glasses in your pocket and make a run for it.

1 - A sky bison would be less dangerous to get, though.

2 - I wish movie people would start making main characters I like. This one starts out as a block-headed soldier guy, and ends up renouncing his humanity and becoming a nature-headed soldier blue guy.

F1ak3r

Comments

Cesar 14 years, 4 months ago

I thought the movie was bullshit.

Also

Na'vi = Navi

Blue people = Zoras

Flying mountains = City in the Sky

red banshee = City in the Sky's boss

Arrow by a female to kill antagonist = Zelda's Light Arrow in final battle of Windwaker

Ewya = Great Deku Tree

Film's antagonist had 3 "boss" stages = Zelda games' final boss

tl;dr

AVATAR IS FUCKIN ZELDA

Rez 14 years, 4 months ago

By the end of the movie, I hated the whole human race, not just white people.

Cesar 14 years, 4 months ago

Why? The aliens were being just as unreasonable and ignorant as humanity.

I'm still wondering why these guys didn't watch star wars to learn to COVER THE GODDAMN INTAKE VENTS

Rez 14 years, 4 months ago

Its because the big eyed blue people with amazing bodies are much easier to like than the crass talking sweaty humans that incessantly talk about wiping off an entire race.

Cesar 14 years, 4 months ago

I prefer the race with the amazing brain than the ones with the amazing body.

Besides, just because you hate capitalism doesn't mean you should hate all of humanity.

I for one had no sympathy for the fucking blue things, they were like people who rely on "alternative" medicine: They deny genuine help from people who want to HELP THE GODDAMN ALIENS (all previous attempts at diplomacy with education, medicine, etc was rejected) and then people are liek "aww, why are we so evil? We should've helped them, not hurt them" even though EVERY ATTEMPT TO HELP THEM ended in failure.

Rez 14 years, 4 months ago

I agree with that entirely, but I think the Na'vi had a little more reason to not trust the avatars than the people you're talking about.

Cesar 14 years, 4 months ago

That's a good point.

I guess we won't know why actions on either side were taken until we know what happened the FIRST time humans made contact with the Na'vi

tylerthemiler 14 years, 4 months ago

I thought it was interesting from a psychological perspective that moviegoers were expected to root AGAINST the human race. Even as they were pwned brutally with knives and arrows and stuff.

All in all, while the plot and believability of the characters were shaky, the sheer beauty and creativity of the creatures and environment were enough to keep my interest.

I look at it more as an advance in moviemaking techniques than a movie itself, and thought it was interesting that you never see the real face of one of the main actors of the film (the blue chick) and I think that will have a significant impact on the film industry.

F1ak3r 14 years, 4 months ago

^Yeah, that's pretty much how I see it. A tech demo.

Cesque 14 years, 4 months ago

Oh my G'od, anot'her ali'en ra'ce wi'th an APOS'TROPHE!

The film doesn't come to cinemas here until after Christmas. Which, I think, is a good reason to hate the entire human race before the film even starts.

Quote:
I look at it more as an advance in moviemaking techniques than a movie itself, and thought it was interesting that you never see the real face of one of the main actors of the film (the blue chick) and I think that will have a significant impact on the film industry.

Muslims did it.