Avatar: Snooty Reviewers Need to Relax.

Avatar


Hmm. After much debate and consideration within the confines of my own mind, I decided to review Avatar. After reading my umteenth review of cynical critiques raising their "high-brow" diction and brushing their continual sarcasm towards Avatar declaring it a movie that is wrought with unoriginal thought and nothing more than a shiny rock found on the floor of the ocean I have decided that for once in the history of mankind, it isn't the general public with the bad opinion, but the elitists. The movie reviewers who have stuck with the drudgery of watching every film that comes out and have to give an opinion about have gained major flaws. The problem with this, is their surely is a disconnect after the years of mundane dramas, and contrived and cliched stories. They have clearly begun to lose sight of the excitement of something new, as the Breakfast club quote goes "as we grow up, our Heart Dies" and I'm afraid, their hearts have long since been talked about in obituaries along with Ebenezer Scrooge and Doomsday's. I'm sorry, but I've seen Star Wars before, it's known as Kung Fu and it was a drama in the 70's, or any Samurai film before that combined with minor elements from Star Trek. Nothing new, just new in the telling of contrived and cliche plots. Combined with the sub-par acting in the movie, seriously, I'm a die-hard fan, but watching those movies, through all intensive purposes is watching bad acting. Harrison Ford's first real performance was just that, a first attempt, and a bad one. Coupled with Carrie Fisher's overacting and Mark Hamill's lack of emotion in the first movie (He shouldn't have emotions by Jedi) the movie would never have made a good review in this day and age, no not with all of these unimaginative critics, incapable of remembering times when they felt truly great to watch a movie.

So I begin my review with this, I'm 20. I'm half the age of 70% of all reviewers out there, and that's not including Ebert, which would justifiably bring that average way above that. In my 20 years of existence, we've had fantastic movies appear and disappear out of our scope. Jurassic Park, The Lost World, Serenity, Fight Club, Donnie Darko, the Matrix, 12 Monkey's, The Lion King, Titanic, Saving Private Ryan... the list goes on for a while, but what we haven't had, is our Star Wars. Our generation lacked the movie that changed and revolutionized everything. Our generation has had great science fiction movies that have impacted an industry, but thus far we've only been on the receiving end of the proof that George Lucas himself has lost that zest that made him a good writer when he was a grad student, ready to face the world with his ideas. It was during that time that he produced Star Wars. A movie that still contains a nice warm place in my childhood, not because the story is particularly great, heck it's just Flash Gordon meets King Arthur meets Kung Fu, but because it was fascinating and jaw-dropping. It pulls you into a universe that isn't our own, a place where we can go wherever we want so long as we could find a scruffy looking nerf-herder to take us there. But don't forget the looming dictatorship that will find and kill you, not with just lasers, but with an omnipotent synergy that flows only through gifted individuals, a force that can kill you with an abuse of the emotions of hate. The struggles of Luke to control his emotions when he truly needs them. In the end of the series it's Darth Vadar's love for Luke that ends the conflict, a definite no-no for Jedi's. This universe, this partition of our minds, is exactly what that generation needed. It inspired so many. Think about all the Star Wars nerds in High School, then think about how much those movies (if, you grew up with them of course, which many of in this generation actually haven't) affected you as the current adults of today. The answer should be pretty greatly, hell, the movie had lines months after it's debut, much like Avatar. So I guess, I must begin constructing other arguments to attempt a literary review of Avatar, my first obviously having been that Avatar is our generations Star Wars. The second is the acting coupled with the script and storytelling, the third the music, and the fourth is the immersion - the experience that is

One of the main criticisms has been dialogue. Clearly, this isn't Shakespeare, Citizen Kane, or Mr. Smith Goes to Washington. In a day and age where long-winded monologues are contrived and cheesy, it surprises me that Avatar has received so much flack. Last quarter I was in an visual literacy class riddled with the snooty artsy types and we were shown a clip of Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, which is on my list of good movies that everyone should watch. The number one criticism in the class? It was "cheesy," "no one talks like that," "the acting was Laughable." Ha, one of the greatest literary scripts of all time "cheesy?" To our generation? Absolutely. This does not mean that it retracts from the value of the script, it is great. Beautifully written and almost flawless. But to a generation that is so encapsulated in the now, a generation exposed to realism, people talking about every emotion instead of acting it, which is a common trend up until the late 70's when film captured action and expressions much better. To those of you older, and more "distinguished" I laugh in your direction. I love those movies. Casablanca, It's a Wonderful Life, It's a Mad Mad Mad World, these are good movies, with good scripts. But we've actually evolved since than and have begun producing realism beyond those movies. We've begun to produce movies that rely less on what can be said with human word, and more with the body language. You know, how things really work? When was the last time you let loose and explained to someone you disdained in a verbally eloquent dialogue? Probably never. Nope, since you were a kid you let people know how it is you felt through your actions. A roll of the eyes, the look of fear when a bully is about to be punch you, the look of excitement in the bully's eyes as he's about to punch. Those are real, raw emotions. One of my favorite movies the Breakfast Club, which definitely relied on emotion more than speeches. It was a good movie without the flowery language. Consider the original Indiana Jones. Yeah, there was great dialogue from some of the villains, but after every fight seen, watch Harrison Ford's redeeming performance from that of Star Wars. The look of tiredness and relief. The look of excitement when he finds Marion, it's why the new one wasn't particularly good. Harrison Ford is to old to convey those emotions, and George Luca's didn't think to add any of those emotions, relying too heavily on action. Now consider Avatar. How much time do we spend with just the characters, in the down moments when you are not soaring over cliffs or excited over explosions, but watching them react to the environment. Granted, most of those scenes are purely CGI, but it most certainly doesn't remove the emotion. What needs to be said when he is running with a childish grin, touching every plant, watching with excitement as they glow to the pressure from his hand. Which one of us wouldn't resort to a childlike state in that environment? No need for unnecessary dialogue, no need for contrived speeches, just pure emotional absorption. Our empathy kicks in and we feel the excitement. It's why there are so many purposeful shots of characters faces. Each actor does a phenomenal job of conveying their roles, even Stephen Lang who is supposed to be stone cold. Another Harrison Ford example, is Blade Runner, the Directors cut. For anyone who hasn't seen the original, this movie may come off as hard to understand at first mainly because the narration is completely removed, but it is still understandable. It is also a fantastic story told mainly through actions. The Director's cut is hailed as the best version, and it is the version with the least amount of dialogue, almost completely minimal, the story being told through action sequences. It is why James Cameron's script simply isn't bad. I actually read it, and upon doing so I confirmed my suspicions, that the movie wasn't mean to be a literary powerhouse, but an emotional one. It reads more like a science fiction novel, third person narrative that describes what characters feel and implied back story, which is all conveyed beautifully in the movie. Aside from the large number of scenes obviously cut from the movie, it is clear that his script does it's job, and the actor's performances are a telling of this nature. This just begins to scratch the surface of how good a storyteller James Cameron is. Like Star Wars, which was just a reworking of ancient tales of beyond powerful evil forces taking over coupled with samurai fights and western style gun fights... except in SPACE, James Cameron is a reworking of a very old and true tale. A lot of people, namely a government teacher I had in High School... Yes, I'm calling you out... are frustrated with the "White Man's Guilt" complex illustrated in the film. First off, I want to list the cultures that dominated other cultures for centuries with little care for the indigenous, starting with the Babylonians, the Egyptians, the Greeks, the Persians, the Chinese, the Koreans, The Mongolians, the Russians, The Romans, the Franks, the Brits (more than several times in History) and the United States. I mean ever major civilization has done these actions. It is a timeless tale of deeply ingrained human greed which is driven by our biological need to compete. The difference is, this story is a compilation of each of those (more reflective of our past, but less than you think as I will explain in a second) except... in SPACE. Hmm, why then wasn't Star Wars criticized for it's reworking of an even older tale of good and evil for simply changing the setting? I mean Star Trek was just a retelling of rugged explorers, much like the Odyssey and the cattle trains of early America, and it's only difference was the inclusion of space. Ha, I laugh at the ignorance of most reviewers. But there is a greater theme than that, which is by far more overbearing the the guilt of human greed, and it's that of love. The capacity to love nature is realized by Jake (Sam Worthington's character) who comes from a planet where that emotion has clearly been lost in the drudgery, that my friends is the true meaning of the movie. He gains a love of life, Nature, a love of a person who is deeply connected with that through - yes - some faux-mysticism but at least empathetic for her environment and those around her. I feel most reviewers miss that theme, because the second a blockbuster rolls around people are all to quick to be ready to tear it down, only praising the trashy indie films that are for some reason the last resort of art in movies claiming that movies made with mass production couldn't possibly be made with literary themes and are meant to do nothing more than tickle our ocular sensations. The fact that the theme of love went over almost every reviewers head makes them, in an ironic twist, the ones who don't understand. Many say it comes of tree-huggerish, and the connection with nature is too funky for them, but they still miss the point. They still don't see that we do live in a world that tends to only be in front of our glowing little monitors, which is why Avatar has even more elements. It is only through that television screen that we are shown what beauty is and can be, and lets face it, it is. Having seen many national landmarks and natural wonders, things that exist on Pandora certainly exist in reality, just not grown to such a scale. One of Cameron's obvious intentions was that he wanted to immerse us into a world of beauty and inspire us to do more than just sit in front of our computer screens. Another deeper layer was the technology itself, but I will discuss that at the end. Lastly the movies villainous regime, isn't a government, but a company. As a person who loves capitalism, I will say this, who else has more potential for corruption than a corporation? It's an obvious villain, but not one so heavily used until Avatar. Not one so powerful capping it's true potential for greed. It's a fair warning sign to us capitalists to be weary of our intentions and actions. So to recap, this movie conveyed raw emotion in a script that was lacking lengthy dialogue because it is OBVIOUSLY unnecessary and would be cheesy; the movie's themes are important and original, it's a tale retold in the depths of space and unexplored environments; and reviewers clearly missed the mark on the love.

Next is the music. I will say, of the the things this movie has, the music is definitely the weakest. But that is not to say that it is still not phenomenal. James Horner has provided the perfect back layer to the film. The opening notes alone at the beginning of the movie are just enough to inspire a story of such depth, an epic of such magnitude. The later scenes of destruction (Not giving stuff away for those that have not experienced it) are given such great characteristically deep resonating notes that it is almost impossible to not feel emotion for those affected in the scene. The music that backs each scene I like to call "exploration scenes" is riddled with childlike wonderment and amazement. Being a huge fan of Movie Soundtracks, and classical orchestral pieces, Avatar most certainly delivers the emotions home with subtle violin rifts and tribal drumming.

Finally, the experience. One of the most important aspects is that of the concept of the Avatar and the 3D theme. So far, I have only read one reviewer who picked this out as a concept, and it is certainly one of the most important themes. Much like Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead's theme of play within a play, and 30 Rocks a TV show within a TV show, we have an immersive experience within an immersive experience. Did anyone else catch that? While Jake Sully is transported into the body of his Avatar, we too are transported temporarily into the most beautifully constructed man-made environment. Every tree, every blade of glass, each strand of hair more visible and enticing than the last. If you still think that this movie had a lacking story, then you most certainly cannot for the life of you knock it's immersion factor. Never before has a story been so grossly realistic looking, never have environments been so close to reality that we can almost feel the gas trickling in when the Ships cargo bay doors open. The literary aspects of the film have never been conveyed better than as if you actually felt like you were there, on Pandora experiencing everything the characters do, excited as they are to see everything for the first time. It's the experience that justifies this movie most of all. It's story IS great, contrary to popular criticisms, and it is truly a once in a lifetime experience. I believe that the world has spoken, for once teaching High-Brow critiques it's ok to be wrong. Cameron deserves the money, and the people have spoken, making the film the highest grossing film of all time (when inflation is not adjusted), and most certainly the most well attended movie of all time. It is why it's been immensely popular, and will continue to be. It's a shame 3D tv's are expensive. So for those of you who haven't seen it, pay to see it in 3D, and form you're own opinion. Walk into this movie with a mind that isn't judgmental, because that mindset can make ANY movie bad (which is what I fear happened to Avatar, the hype killed it for the reviewers, who in turn also hated movies that are actually good due to all the aforementioned issues in the first paragraph), instead watch it ready to experience something great. It shouldn't be until after you watch it, that you should acknowledge some of the cliche lines and archetypal characters, I mean, the movie isn't perfect, but is damn near close.



****
One Addendum, one of the more popular criticisms is that it takes a "white man" to save these helpless people. No, that is wrong. People miss the point. It is not pretentious, nor is it accurate. Consider if you will for one moment that is just a matter of perspective. Jake Sully is born into the tribe of Na'vi therefore becoming one, making this less racial and cultural, and more spiritual. Being Na'vi is meant to be more of a state of mind, otherwise, Cameron wouldn't have invented the idea of Avatar's in the first place. He could just have easily bred Avatars without needing to be controlled or easier, just raise them to believe the things that we humans wanted them to believe. The answer is obvious, the Avatar was meant to show that their beliefs and way of life was an enlightened state of being, a metaphorical transformation that transcends race. The Na'vi know that he is human, yet they eventually let him in after he has realized their way of life. That being said, who better to fight against a bunch of marines than a marine? He would obviously be the best candidate, much like the Last Samurai. It was a connection of equality, most certainly not superiority.

Real Ramblings.

What can I say, it's been over a year since I have even glanced at this, thinking it was lost to the internet expanses. Well, a LOT has changed in my life, not that those of you who read this blog would have any notion or sense as to what has happened previously seeing as how, well, there are no other real blog posts, but for those of you that know me personally and care to find out about me you will be glad to find... hopefully... that I am alive and well. Still struggling to keep the grades and my major... but a little more settled and relaxed with life. I want to use this medium to just express my inner ramblings, my sets of thoughts and expressive ideas that don't have a home. I don't know what I want to be when I grow up, and since when I grow up is very near to this moment in time it's become a rather alarming issue. The closest I can ground myself is that I want 2 things most of all (career-wise). I want to be very smart, and I want to be very creative. I feel the marks of geniuses are those that can contribute to humanity without sounding pretentious. By being smart I mean I wish to work in a field that requires considerable amounts of intelligences (which is a word ironically enough I struggled to spell), such as a doctor, or NASA technician. However, since this job would be largely boring and probably mundane after a few years, I want to have a hobby most likely involving writing. I want to write, and hopefully direct videogames. Games that pop into the madness of the universe and tell stories of heroism and excitement. I figure the experiences in some scientific field will help me get the perfect abilities required of writing such intricate plot lines. However, from this I have also aroused two major issues: Getting into such an advanced field could keep me there, stuck forever working for dollars in a respectable job; and the second more obvious issue, getting there in the first place. I've come to face the facts. I'm no longer at that stage in life where procrastinating and relying on my own knowledge gets me far. For simple GE's, it works, but for classes that I care about and are challenging, it's impossible to keep up with these habits. I need to become more focused. I need to become more consistent with that focus. I started this quarter off well and I can already feel the laziness settling in. I am better than that though, I know I can be. I need to continue keeping up with my work even if it means cutting out distractions. This doesn't mean I need to cut out distractions completely, it just means that I need to balance them better. Just because I go to class and take notes and pay attention certainly does not mean I am ready for midterms. I need to consider the examples in class and picture them in my head. I need to understand how things work, and not rely on cramming the night before.

Huh. That's a lot of mental jargon if you ask me. Those were a lot of statements that were complete non sequiturs.

Anyway, to begin my path into both areas of life, the creative and scientific, I have started to do creative writing and music as outposts. I started the piano (by start I mean, learned 2 scales on Sunday) and still play guitar. I want to revisit the cello as well. But when it comes to writing, I have hundreds of things written out. Stuff that is not so great and doesn't deserve the light of day, and stuff that needs to be expanded upon. Stories that I need to tell. Well, I will get to this later, 7 o'clock work tomorrow, and class till 3. Night world!