Avatar (2009)

[Ursa major]

Originally Posted by pyan

Perhaps they could put out an alternative "therapy ending", in which the Na'vi lose, and the planet is turned into one enormous strip-mined dustbowl...

There's always someone who wants a happy ending....

[pyan]

Originally Posted by Moonbat

BTL - Better than life. It's from Red Dwarf, a virtual world that is everything you would ever dream of.

And here was I thinking it was a sandwich with more tomato than lettuce, but more bacon than either...

There's some news on possible sequels...

According to a recent LA Times Hero Complex interview, which occurred on Avatar’s opening night, Cameron is considering exploring the other moons surrounding the gas-giant planet Polyphemus, which Pandora orbits. This confirms an earlier rumor by Market Saw, and it gives us an idea about the increased scope of the Avatar universe.

More Avatar Sequel News

[J-WO]

I can kind of see where these people are coming from. I've had similar (if no way near-intense) feelings every time I've finished reading a novel set in the Culture and then have to go to a low paid job for eight hours. Real life, for the main, is quite simply arse. And the people in charge of it have little furrowed brows and squat on cash bonuses while children starve in countries no one recalls the names of.

But one should get angry, not suicidal. Sf should make people want to change things, never wallow in their own bellybutton.

[gully_foyle]

Originally Posted by WizardofOwls

the plot is like Fern Gully meets Dune!!!

Can't say I've seen Fern Gully even though it is based on the place where I grew up (so someone told me).

But I have seen and read Dune and couldn't help but notice the minor similarities. One was about a young man on the side of the big mining concerns who goes native, falls in love with the daughter of the native's leader, and manages to control the planet's ecosphere in the final battle with the baddies. And the other one was the same.

But the ripped off story line plays second fiddle to the amazing effects and visuals in this movie. It was pure eye candy. 4/5 from old (Fern Tree) Gully.

[pyan]

Well, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association liked it enough to give it two Golden Globes - Best Director for James Cameron, and Best Film Drama ...

Blockbuster sci-fi epic Avatar has been named best film drama at the Golden Globe awards, boosting its chances of further glory at the Oscars in March.

Its director James Cameron was also honoured at the event, held at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Los Angeles.

BBC News - Glory for Avatar at Golden Globes

[Moonbat]

It's hardly the best drama though is it!
I mean as far as the story line goes it is a bit light on drama, I'm not saying it shouldn't win best director as it is amazing to look at but I don't think it deserves best drama.
Last count I read it was upto $1.6 billion, so only $200 million left to earn until he beats his own biggest earner in Titanic. Come on you Na'vi

Anyone know what the ' in Na'vi does to the pronuciation? does it do anything, I'm calling it the same as I would if it were Navi, should it just have a pause in like Na Vi?

[Thadlerian]

Originally Posted by Moonbat

Anyone know what the ' in Na'vi does to the pronuciation? does it do anything, I'm calling it the same as I would if it were Navi, should it just have a pause in like Na Vi?

Does it have to do anything? Everybody knows that apostrophes are compulsory in alien-sounding Fantasy naming conventions.

[Anthony G Williams]

'The Hurt Locker' was favoured to win. Two curious connections between the films: they both feature an awkward US soldier as the hero, and the directors used to be married to each other. Apart from that, they are as different as two films could be. 'The Hurt Locker', concerning the work of a bomb-disposal team in Iraq, is grimly realistic and very intense, a far better drama with much superior characterisation. Yet the Golden Globe judges have opted for pure, simplistic, escapist fantasy instead. I wonder what that says about the mood in the USA?

[Moonbat]

Everybody knows that apostrophes are compulsory in alien-sounding Fantasy naming conventions.

But if it doesn't make it sound any different and only looks more alien then how can it make it more alien-sounding, it should be alien-looking.

I read that Cameron actually used Na'vi the language in his acceptance speech

and as for Hurt locker, that is one of the most over rated films I have seen this past year. Not nearly as good as people make it out to be. Not as good as the director's last effort; Point Break, now that was a film. Actually Hurt locker smacked of alot more nationalism than Avatar. The British soldiers are useless compared to the bomb disposal soldiers of America, the good guys have to save the child and the evil Iraqi's blow up children!

[Rodders]

I think it's great news for Cameron, although i haven't seen the film i would imagine that the award would have been more for technical excellence. One thing's for sure, everyone's going to want to get on the bandwagon and like it or lump it SF and F will be right up there. There will be a lot of poor rubbish, but there will also be some gems. Great news for Science Fiction i reckon.

[Moonbat]

We've already had Gamer and Surrogates dealing with the same SF scenario; inhabiting/controlling other bodies. Both of these came out before Avatar but were definitely put into production after. So wiould you say that these two films have alreayd been part of the Avatar banddwagon, is hollywood that sinmple that they copy each other's movies in an attempt to cash in on the big movies sucess?

[clovis-man]

Originally Posted by Rodders

I think it's great news for Cameron, although i haven't seen the film i would imagine that the award would have been more for technical excellence.

Although it's commonplace for films receiving a "best picture" award to also have the director receive top honors, it seems odd for such a CGI dominated movie to have its director win. If this is a valid accolade, then it seems that he should have at least received a nomination in 1986 for Aliens or in 1991 for Terminator 2. But he didn't. Not for the Academy Awards either. Maybe I need to go see Avatar again and not fixate on derivative influences.

[Thadlerian]

Originally Posted by clovis-man

Maybe I need to go see Avatar again and not fixate on derivative influences.

I think that's a very good idea. I hope many others will do the same. As soon as I looked beyond the "Dances with Wolves rip-off" part of the plot, I found the character story (Jake Sully's story) to be very well made, and refreshingly deep for a Hollywood blockbuster.

[woodsman]

Originally Posted by pyan

Perhaps they could put out an alternative "therapy ending", in which the Na'vi lose, and the planet is turned into one enormous strip-mined dustbowl...

See this is what I wanted.

I thought the film was some sort of commentary/judgement on the rape of earth through resource exploitation etc.

If this was the point, I can't help but feel a dramatic ending where they failed to save the goddess would have been more shocking.

Then again I'm not a fan of happy endings, especially not ones that you can see a mile off.

I enjoyed seeing the film, great visuals etc. but I didn't walk out feeling that it had made any real impact upon me personally.

[Jimmy Magnusson]

I saw it for the third time tonight, and most of the criticism I had after the second viewing (loved the first showing, which was in 3D) kinda disappeared. What a great movie. I especially like Neteyri and the Colonel (Quadrich).