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[Zidane10]

Originally Posted by ZeBird0

Have you heard about the new movie that's coming out soon? It's Avatar, a sci-fi by James Cameron. That's the dude that directed Titanic if you didn't know. Check it out!

Avatar

Are you gonna see it? Thoughts? It's coming out in December btw.

Great movie a must see in 3D, good plot and visually stimulating.

[karthak]

Originally Posted by Cub-Sama

I was really confused by them saying in th beginning of the movie how tough the Na'Vi (sp?) skin was and how they're bones were epicly strong but the bullets pierced right through them like they were human.

I thought he didn't mean that they were immune to bullets, but that they were immensely strong. Look at Jake vs. Quaritch. A Na'vi goes up against a goddamn mecha with nothing but raw strength and almost wins.

[Cub-Sama]

Originally Posted by karthak

I thought he didn't mean that they were immune to bullets, but that they were immensely strong. Look at Jake vs. Quaritch. A Na'vi goes up against a goddamn mecha with nothing but raw strength and almost wins.

But then he said "In other words they take a helluva lot more bullets to kill"

[Roger Rambo]

Originally Posted by Cub-Sama

I was really confused by them saying in th beginning of the movie how tough the Na'Vi (sp?) skin was and how they're bones were epicly strong but the bullets pierced right through them like they were human.

They didn't mention anything about the skin. Only the bones.

And super strong bones don't keep your gut from getting torn to shreds.

[Grifis]

This was epic. I appreciate the hard works involved in bringing Pandora before my eyes in realism. (It's the same feeling when I saw Miyazaki's Castle in the Sky and Valley of the Wind.) Avatar is just on another level due the grand scale and the intricate details. I'm glad it was made.

[justinstrife]

Originally Posted by karthak

I actually liked the political messages. Pro-green and anti-imperialist? Right up my alley. Loved how he had the bad guys quote the Bush administration.

Long as you don't believe those messages were doused in any kind of reality.

[karthak]

Originally Posted by justinstrife

Long as you don't believe those messages were doused in any kind of reality.

Not doused in reality? The company and mercenaries in the movie immediately made me think of Halliburton, Shell, Blackwater, and lots of other companies and private military contractors who have done really nasty shit around the world.

[roriconfan]

Originally Posted by karthak

Not doused in reality? The company and mercenaries in the movie immediately made me think of Halliburton, Shell, Blackwater, and lots of other companies and private military contractors who have done really nasty shit around the world.

Yes it does make you think of those. Only that the today's private military contractors would do things a lot more tactical and grey-ish than their futuristic counterparts.

[karthak]

Originally Posted by roriconfan

Yes it does make you think of those. Only that the today's private military contractors would do things a lot more tactical and grey-ish than their futuristic counterparts.

O'rly? I can't be the only one who's read of all those cases in Iraq of Blackwater being involved in rape and mass murder.

[roriconfan]

So... they are not realistic because they... didn't rape the aliens? What are you getting at?

[Roger Rambo]

Originally Posted by FireBorn

Spoiler:

Their motivations? Corporate guy wants money, and doesn't care about anything else. The army general wants to blow stuff up.

Spoiler:

You find it hard to believe that a corporate entity fending for itself out on the frontier with practically no regulation wouldn't do unethical things in the name of profit?

Originally Posted by FireBorn

Spoiler:

After the two propose their intent to attack the Na'vi, the scientists present a completely logical argument against it, and they are blown off with a "no, u", and a "dude, ur stupid" by evil corporate guy 001.

Spoiler:

It's obvious that Qauritch and Selfridge hadn't had a very good working relationship with Grace for a long time. And they knew she overtly wanted the Na'vi to avoid getting hurt. So they took everything she said with a grain of salt.

Of course she IS still the super genius scientist who was able to create remote controlled human/alien hybrids. So completely blowing her off was somewhat nonsensical.

Originally Posted by FireBorn

Spoiler:

But I couldn't understand why the motivations of the antagonists had to be so simple and illogical.

What kind of complicated motivation did you want them to have? Selfridge wants to destroy the ecology because a bird shit on him his first day on planet?

And how is wanting money illogical? Money/resources has been the biggest drive for almost everything throughout human history.

Originally Posted by roriconfan

So... they are not realistic because they... didn't rape the aliens? What are you getting at?

He's saying that the Mercs in the movie being trigger happy is more believable considering the reputation that organizations like Black Water gained in Iraq.

[Mesousa2877]

This reminds of the film Small Soldiers a bit.

Human Soldiers = Bad Guys
Different Species = Good Guys

Except, it's in a freaking awesome world. Put the emphasis on "freakin'".

[FlareKnight]

Well I thought it was an alright movie. Obviously the movie looked great which is it's selling feature there. Though I would say after it went on for so long my eyes were a bit bothered. Not much to say on the story. It pretty much went along the lines you expected.

Overall an alright way to spend a couple of hours.

[GuidoHunter_Toki]

Originally Posted by FireBorn

Visually stunning, yeah, but good plot? Both the plot and characters were making me rage (not really), with their stupid "I'm an evil American, get me some coffee while I eat babies and nuke people's houses." Seriously, the jacked-up army general and the evil corporate dude were some of the worst, most clichéd characters I'd seen in a long time. Just completely typical evil dudes.

Sometimes a straightforward classic plot can serve a movie well. I could not see this movie working well at all in a Fight Club or Inglourious Basterds structure. At least its original intellectual property. Everything nowadays are remakes or novel/comic book adaptations. Star Wars depended on a very classical knight-in-shining-armor, damsel-in-distress kind of story. That didn't stop it from being ground-breaking. I think many people are just "too cool for school" and tend to rebel against anything accompanied by a huge amount of hype.

As for the evil military/corporate figureheads being very one-dimensional, I thought that was the point. Those consumed with greed/power are sometimes nothing but.

[justinstrife]

Originally Posted by karthak

Not doused in reality? The company and mercenaries in the movie immediately made me think of Halliburton, Shell, Blackwater, and lots of other companies and private military contractors who have done really nasty shit around the world.

Yes because Bush and his administration told them it was all okay to do such things. Or that the very people in the countries they are in, are just innocent misunderstood angels who wouldn't hurt a fly.

[Alchemist007]

Awesome movie, definitely a must see. Saw it in 3d but that's not really necessary. Definitely loved the romance
Also has bullets and dinosaurs. Something for everyone, including brief hot alien sex.

[Roger Rambo]

And suddenlly, fanart.

[Vexx]

Originally Posted by GuidoHunter_Toki

Sometimes a straightforward classic plot can serve a movie well. I could not see this movie working well at all in a Fight Club or Inglourious Basterds structure. At least its original intellectual property. Everything nowadays are remakes or novel/comic book adaptations. Star Wars depended on a very classical knight-in-shining-armor, damsel-in-distress kind of story. That didn't stop it from being ground-breaking. I think many people are just "too cool for school" and tend to rebel against anything accompanied by a huge amount of hype.

As for the evil military/corporate figureheads being very one-dimensional, I thought that was the point. Those consumed with greed/power are sometimes nothing but.

You know... as someone who actually worked on and around defense "secret squirrel" ops in the USAF/SAC, Navy/Marines, and other entities -- I can guarantee you that the characters in this film were not over the top anymore than the characters in Dr. Strangelove. I've met too many actual human beings during my Cold War period career that were this "one-dimensional".

and yes... Joseph Campbell discussed these sorts of primal archetypal stories as essential to the transmission of cultural memes -- (same story, different dressings across time and space). The Hero with a Thousand Faces, The Masks of God, etc. So lack of originality (what *is* original?) doesn't mean it isn't a "ripping good yarn".

Oh and nice bit of fan art there... (wondering how many out there are suddenly having a science fiction==alien==furry bit of disorientation ).

[awkwardanimals]

Is it weird tos ay that this is my new favorite movie? I saw it about a week ago and I loved it! The graphics and the acting were top notch and the story, although it wasn't that original, was well done

[FlareKnight]

Originally Posted by GuidoHunter_Toki

Sometimes a straightforward classic plot can serve a movie well. I could not see this movie working well at all in a Fight Club or Inglourious Basterds structure. At least its original intellectual property. Everything nowadays are remakes or novel/comic book adaptations. Star Wars depended on a very classical knight-in-shining-armor, damsel-in-distress kind of story. That didn't stop it from being ground-breaking. I think many people are just "too cool for school" and tend to rebel against anything accompanied by a huge amount of hype.

As for the evil military/corporate figureheads being very one-dimensional, I thought that was the point. Those consumed with greed/power are sometimes nothing but.

Maybe it's just about themes? I mean like you said Star Wars was hardly original in terms of the themes being presented. I think it's just about whether those themes appeal to individuals or not. Really the themes they were using for Avatar didn't really appeal to me so it was all up to the visuals (which thankfully were great) to carry it.

I'm sure there are those who heavily criticize it just because it is popular. Though at the same time there are valid reasons for criticism so can't discount all of them. In the end long as people enjoyed the movie it's fine for them to say so.