DEPARTMENTS

Saturday, January 2, 2010

Avatar

I am sure that by now you have read a dozen reviews of this movie, but I feel the need to share my opinions of it. I saw the movie and loved it. What more can I really say. Well, quite a bit more but I don't want to spoil much and I'd rather try to dispell some negativity that I've seen thrown around about this movie.

First off, the movie isn't all that unfriendly for kids. I took both my six and ten year old daughters to see it and we had no really serious issues with the movie. There are a few emotional and tense moments that required a ready hand to hold for my youngest, but she got so excited at other points she was bouncing in her seat.

Visually, the movie is amazing. Cameron has outdone himself here, if you ask me. From the tech to the forest environments to the creatures that fill the world, the attention to detail is everything we have come to expect from Cameron. I really got a sense that I could take a shuttle to Pandora and interact with the sets there. The visual display is everything that I think Lucas hoped he could achieve with digital effect but didn't.

Plot-wise, the movie isn't the strongest, but it's not bad either. A lot of people have wanted to pan this movie for its plot which, though not unique is a nice classic story with some nice changes. This would not be the first good movie to use this plotline. A classic tale is a classic tale.




There is a lot of nitpicking and detail I could point out but I don't want to ruin things. The pace is good, the acting is good (not stellar, but who cares). When you see it, pay attention to the little things. Look at the displays and how Cameron uses the tech in his world. Watch the details of the world and how the interiors of the sets and machines look right. There are fire extinguishers and emergency kits inside the gyros!

Anyhow, bottom line, it was a good fun movie. I loved it as did my wife and kids. As a gamer it gave me serious geek fuel and as an artistic soule and somebody who occasional paints his minis, it gave me some good visual inspiration.

My two cents,

-Eli

9 comments:

  1. My wife and I went to see it the other day, and we both really enjoyed it. I felt like I was seeing actual real footage of another planet, everything looked so real!

    ReplyDelete
  2. I loved the alien life. There was consistency in the higher life forms and the Navi were a cool indigenous sentient species.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Haven't seen it yet, but think we may go next weekend.

    I wonder how long until we start seeing minis, official or not?

    ReplyDelete
  4. I hope it inspires somebody to at least do something in a similar style. I doubt we'll see official miniatures.

    I have been considering how to convert somethign similar to the Navi in the movie.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Saw it in 3D with my wife and 10yr old daughter yesterday. Some scarey bits, and some sad bits but the 10 yr old's verdict was, "Awwwwesome." Which pretty much matches my response. Loved the tech, loved the world, loved the scale of things. So the actually story isn't Shakespeare, so what? It was entertaining and sets my Traveller brain going 'tick, tick ...' And 3D has got seriously cool!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Seen it recently myself, and was competely blown away by the level of detail in the film. I think your comments are spot on Eli. A must see.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Glad you guys enjoyed it. I'm almost outraged by the level of wannabe intellectual BS negativity this movie is getting, especially from gamers. I think people sometimes forget how to have fun.

    ReplyDelete
  8. i enjoyed this movie, the plot was predictable, but this is a FAMILY movie not an intellectual exercise like Pulp Fiction or Jacob's Ladder

    for those who insist on grown up plots, I make this recommendation;
    bring your ipod, have a beer, relax, and enjoy the stunning visuals

    ReplyDelete
  9. Thank you Clovis,

    It seems that everyone expects everythign to be so original. But I think if they looked at some of the "greats" they would realize that what made them great was not the plot but the delivery.

    Many of the great pieces of literature and film are not original plots. Hemingway was not the first guy to write about a man and his fish.

    Shakespears was the only guy who could right quirky dialog and ironic situations. Heck half the stuff he did were histories and the only thing original about them was the way he presented them.

    A plot can be simple and good. Heck, half the guys who want to pan Avatar likely loved Star Wars which is hardly original in plot or even characterization.

    ReplyDelete

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...