Post by cinestertheater on Mar 8, 2010 6:07:27 GMT -5
(If you would rather watch than read Click Here to watch the video version)
Let me get the obvious out of the way first: "Avatar" looks great.
Its CGI visual-effects are arguably the best ever seen in film, and "Avatar" is now going to be the movie to beat when it comes to realistic computer animation. However, no matter how stunning visual effects are, it doesn't change the fact that they're visual effects; they look realistic, but not real, and if you're anything like me they're going to lose their luster about an hour into this two-and-a-half hour sfx fun-fest. If you're a stickler for great visual effects, then Avatar should have you messing your underwear faster than IBS patient at the Laxative-Trampolining championships, but once you've wiped away the frosting, how well does the cake underneath hold up?
I'll get the compliments out of the way first, if only because compliments aren't funny and nobody cares about critics when they're saying something nice. James Cameron has envisioned a stunning, interesting world, full of vibrant colors and fascinating flora and fauna. Pandora looks like Fern Gully, Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory, and the paintings of Salvador Dali had a baby after a night of tequila-fueled exploration of their sexuality. The world is so dynamic that its practically a character in itself, and certainly a more interesting one than any of the *actual* characters that take part in the story... but we'll get to that in a minute.
Pandora is home to the Na'Vi, a humanoid race of blue cat people who live in a tribal-culture that emphasizes spirituality and unity with nature. Unfortunately for them, their home also happens to sit on top of an enormous deposit of "Unobtanium", an incredibly valuable ore desired by humanity. The story begins with humans already fairly well established on Pandora, with a team of scientists/missionaries attempting to understand Na'Vi culture. Because Pandora's atmosphere is toxic to humans, the only way they can meet with the Na'Vi is through use of Avatars, bio-engineered Na'Vi bodies piloted via remote control by a human consciousness. The scientists, led by Sigourney Weaver, want to understand the rich wonders of Pandora and seek a peaceful coexistence. Unfortunately, the military, led by the evil Colonel Quaritch (a shoot-first, ask-questions-later hardcase that would probably be a good guy in any other sci-fi movie), thinks the Na'Vi are savages who should simply be run out of the forest so that the Unobtanium can be taken by force.
Enter the hero, Jake Sully, a paraplegic marine who's asked to fill in as an Avatar pilot after his twin brother dies. Sully's loyalties are predictably divided, as his dedication to the marines (not to mention a healthy desire to have his legs back) is tested by his growing love of the Na'Vi way of life. As Sully becomes an accepted member of the tribe and falls in love with the Na'Vi princess Pocahantus (okay, that's not really her name), he realizes that he must risk everything to protect them from his short-sighted human employers.
There's absolutely nothing new or challenging about this plot; indeed, like everyone in the entire world has already noticed, it's basically a xerox of the "Dances With Wolves" script with CGI cat-smurfs standing in for the noble Sioux Indians. The story is so on-rails, with absolutely nothing in the way of unexpected twists, that it feels like it should have little red and blue plastic guns attached to the front and cost me 25 cents a play. There's not necessarily anything wrong with that- after all, there's not really anything new or challenging about the plot to "GI Joe", and that still managed to be one of the best movies to come out in 2009- but given that people are already tossing out the words "amazing" and "epic" to describe this movie, it left me feeling a little disappointed.
My major beef with "Avatar" is its message. As someone who takes all his behavior-cues from action and sci-fi movies, I understand that "Avatar" was only trying to help by pointing out how mankind's thuggish, short-sighted greed and materialism will invariably lead to its destruction. Granted, that's probably true, but I'm also enough of a contrarian to find the Na'Vi's tree-hugging hippy-bullpoopie annoying. The movie would like you to believe that they live on a ruthless world where only the hard survive and the weak are poopie out like so much half-digested bits of corn, but it's a lie. Why's Pandora so scary, movie? Because it has predators? Africa has predators too... and it also has food-shortages and malaria. The Na'Vi have the luxury of not needing things like technology or science, and it sends the message that this simpler, living-in-tune-with-nature kind of life is truly the better way to live.
Except that's bullpoopie, since it's really that very lack of attention to science and technology that has the Na'Vi cowering in trees while humanity's doom-tanks roll across the landscape barbecuing everything in their path and salting the ground behind them. Saying a prayer over the body of an animal you just killed as a way to assuage your own sense of guilt over your part in the food-chain might be extremely satisfying on a personal level, but I'm given cause to wonder how many of the Na'Vi are painfully torn apart by jungle predators or have their bodies wracked with exotic tropical diseases because they've been too busy hugging trees to invent rifles or penicillin.
Here's an example of Na'Vi medicine: when the human good-guys betray their military bosses and escape into the jungle, they bring wounded Sigourney Weaver before the Na'Vi shaman, begging for help. The shaman's approach to healing a gunshot wound to the stomach is to cover Sigourney Weaver in lettuce, and then have all the Na'Vi gather around a magic tree and sing their hearts out like its Christmas Day in Whoville. Guess how well that works!
But at the end of the day, that's not much of a complaint; the military in "Avatar" are the black hats, spending the movie being evil enough to ultimately make you cheer when Mother Nature finally shoves a pine-cone up their asses, while the Na'Vi are enough of an underdog that you find yourself hoping they'll go the distance with Apollo Creed in the big boxing match at the end... of... actually, I think that's something else.
Will Avatar stand the test of time? Honestly, I don't think so. It represents the next step in visual effects, and some of the visuals are admittedly breathtaking, but its a movie that's ultimately running on a gimmick. It's a cartoon... granted, a very polished cartoon with a $500 Million price tag, but a cartoon nonetheless. Effects aside, the movie winds up feeling very average: predictable plot that we've seen before (and, frankly, was done better in "The Last Samurai", even in spite of Tom Cruise), competent acting but no real stand-out performances, and action scenes that, while very pretty to look at, really don't give us anything unique. Keep in mind that, as awesome as "Avatar" looks now, it's only a matter of time before we look back on it as dated. Give us five years of effects like this, and we'll be able to look back on "Avatar" and see all the cracks in its veneer. It's not a bad movie by any means, but it's no "Star Wars" either. Hell, it's not even a "Terminator 2".
All that said, I'd still recommend "Avatar". If nothing else, we'll always look back on it as the first of its kind, a stunning preview at some of the breathtaking things that movies will be capable of once this kind of technology is paired with a story that's actually original and compelling. If nothing else, I can guarantee you'll be impressed by what you see... but when it comes to what you'll hear, think, and feel... well... maybe you should see "Sherlock Holmes" instead.
Read about the effect Avatar has had on the mentally unstable in my article: Na'kin and Suicide
Let me get the obvious out of the way first: "Avatar" looks great.
Its CGI visual-effects are arguably the best ever seen in film, and "Avatar" is now going to be the movie to beat when it comes to realistic computer animation. However, no matter how stunning visual effects are, it doesn't change the fact that they're visual effects; they look realistic, but not real, and if you're anything like me they're going to lose their luster about an hour into this two-and-a-half hour sfx fun-fest. If you're a stickler for great visual effects, then Avatar should have you messing your underwear faster than IBS patient at the Laxative-Trampolining championships, but once you've wiped away the frosting, how well does the cake underneath hold up?
I'll get the compliments out of the way first, if only because compliments aren't funny and nobody cares about critics when they're saying something nice. James Cameron has envisioned a stunning, interesting world, full of vibrant colors and fascinating flora and fauna. Pandora looks like Fern Gully, Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory, and the paintings of Salvador Dali had a baby after a night of tequila-fueled exploration of their sexuality. The world is so dynamic that its practically a character in itself, and certainly a more interesting one than any of the *actual* characters that take part in the story... but we'll get to that in a minute.
Pandora is home to the Na'Vi, a humanoid race of blue cat people who live in a tribal-culture that emphasizes spirituality and unity with nature. Unfortunately for them, their home also happens to sit on top of an enormous deposit of "Unobtanium", an incredibly valuable ore desired by humanity. The story begins with humans already fairly well established on Pandora, with a team of scientists/missionaries attempting to understand Na'Vi culture. Because Pandora's atmosphere is toxic to humans, the only way they can meet with the Na'Vi is through use of Avatars, bio-engineered Na'Vi bodies piloted via remote control by a human consciousness. The scientists, led by Sigourney Weaver, want to understand the rich wonders of Pandora and seek a peaceful coexistence. Unfortunately, the military, led by the evil Colonel Quaritch (a shoot-first, ask-questions-later hardcase that would probably be a good guy in any other sci-fi movie), thinks the Na'Vi are savages who should simply be run out of the forest so that the Unobtanium can be taken by force.
Enter the hero, Jake Sully, a paraplegic marine who's asked to fill in as an Avatar pilot after his twin brother dies. Sully's loyalties are predictably divided, as his dedication to the marines (not to mention a healthy desire to have his legs back) is tested by his growing love of the Na'Vi way of life. As Sully becomes an accepted member of the tribe and falls in love with the Na'Vi princess Pocahantus (okay, that's not really her name), he realizes that he must risk everything to protect them from his short-sighted human employers.
There's absolutely nothing new or challenging about this plot; indeed, like everyone in the entire world has already noticed, it's basically a xerox of the "Dances With Wolves" script with CGI cat-smurfs standing in for the noble Sioux Indians. The story is so on-rails, with absolutely nothing in the way of unexpected twists, that it feels like it should have little red and blue plastic guns attached to the front and cost me 25 cents a play. There's not necessarily anything wrong with that- after all, there's not really anything new or challenging about the plot to "GI Joe", and that still managed to be one of the best movies to come out in 2009- but given that people are already tossing out the words "amazing" and "epic" to describe this movie, it left me feeling a little disappointed.
My major beef with "Avatar" is its message. As someone who takes all his behavior-cues from action and sci-fi movies, I understand that "Avatar" was only trying to help by pointing out how mankind's thuggish, short-sighted greed and materialism will invariably lead to its destruction. Granted, that's probably true, but I'm also enough of a contrarian to find the Na'Vi's tree-hugging hippy-bullpoopie annoying. The movie would like you to believe that they live on a ruthless world where only the hard survive and the weak are poopie out like so much half-digested bits of corn, but it's a lie. Why's Pandora so scary, movie? Because it has predators? Africa has predators too... and it also has food-shortages and malaria. The Na'Vi have the luxury of not needing things like technology or science, and it sends the message that this simpler, living-in-tune-with-nature kind of life is truly the better way to live.
Except that's bullpoopie, since it's really that very lack of attention to science and technology that has the Na'Vi cowering in trees while humanity's doom-tanks roll across the landscape barbecuing everything in their path and salting the ground behind them. Saying a prayer over the body of an animal you just killed as a way to assuage your own sense of guilt over your part in the food-chain might be extremely satisfying on a personal level, but I'm given cause to wonder how many of the Na'Vi are painfully torn apart by jungle predators or have their bodies wracked with exotic tropical diseases because they've been too busy hugging trees to invent rifles or penicillin.
Here's an example of Na'Vi medicine: when the human good-guys betray their military bosses and escape into the jungle, they bring wounded Sigourney Weaver before the Na'Vi shaman, begging for help. The shaman's approach to healing a gunshot wound to the stomach is to cover Sigourney Weaver in lettuce, and then have all the Na'Vi gather around a magic tree and sing their hearts out like its Christmas Day in Whoville. Guess how well that works!
But at the end of the day, that's not much of a complaint; the military in "Avatar" are the black hats, spending the movie being evil enough to ultimately make you cheer when Mother Nature finally shoves a pine-cone up their asses, while the Na'Vi are enough of an underdog that you find yourself hoping they'll go the distance with Apollo Creed in the big boxing match at the end... of... actually, I think that's something else.
Will Avatar stand the test of time? Honestly, I don't think so. It represents the next step in visual effects, and some of the visuals are admittedly breathtaking, but its a movie that's ultimately running on a gimmick. It's a cartoon... granted, a very polished cartoon with a $500 Million price tag, but a cartoon nonetheless. Effects aside, the movie winds up feeling very average: predictable plot that we've seen before (and, frankly, was done better in "The Last Samurai", even in spite of Tom Cruise), competent acting but no real stand-out performances, and action scenes that, while very pretty to look at, really don't give us anything unique. Keep in mind that, as awesome as "Avatar" looks now, it's only a matter of time before we look back on it as dated. Give us five years of effects like this, and we'll be able to look back on "Avatar" and see all the cracks in its veneer. It's not a bad movie by any means, but it's no "Star Wars" either. Hell, it's not even a "Terminator 2".
All that said, I'd still recommend "Avatar". If nothing else, we'll always look back on it as the first of its kind, a stunning preview at some of the breathtaking things that movies will be capable of once this kind of technology is paired with a story that's actually original and compelling. If nothing else, I can guarantee you'll be impressed by what you see... but when it comes to what you'll hear, think, and feel... well... maybe you should see "Sherlock Holmes" instead.
Read about the effect Avatar has had on the mentally unstable in my article: Na'kin and Suicide