James Cameron's Avatar

[Guest Coalbucket PI]

I think the 3D glasses were chosen not only because they are new technology, but because they helped conceal the transitions between real and CG

 

 

enjoyed reading your review. I selected this part because i think it's essential to the film's enjoyment. Not only did the 3d glasses help conceal the transition from real to CGI but so does the plot element of him becoming an avatar. Cameron has mastered that a lot of filmmakers have been unable to pull off is isolating and perfecting to the best of his ability a special effect technique and building plot elements around it that make the effects seem more believable. Good example is the T-1000 in T2, the plot says he was made out of liquid metal. For the time CGI techniques were were capable of creating that kind of stylized hyper real metallic look, but other materials like stone or wood probably would look like obvious fakery.

it would have been awesome if the T1000 could only turn into wooden objects like chairs and cabinets

[Guest Gary C]

LOL, Avatar causing depression...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k6y5YKFk2IE

[zazen]

I agree with everyone else, they should have ditched the music and done a better, more subtle job.

 

There's an interesting bit in this very long New Yorker article in which Cameron kindof hints that he went for an orchestral score to try and cancel out the idea that this was an action movie for men:

 

September: Cameron sat in his chair twelve hours a day, looking at effects shots—exhausted, exhilarated, the target now in his sights. “We counted, and there are fifteen shots that are not effects shots,” he said. “Then we see Sam has a pimple and—whoops—that’s an effects shot, too.” One day, he left Malibu in his favorite blue button-down and drove his everyday car, a silver Toyota Highlander hybrid, to Fox to listen to some new spots of dialogue that had been added to the film, and to hear a live orchestra perform the music that James Horner had composed for it.

 

He entered the control booth. Behind a glass partition a hundred and five musicians played along to the movie’s opening images, projected on a large screen: a first-person flying rush over misty, lush Pandora, Jake’s eye opening (duhduhduhduh), an architectural, Erector-set-like spaceship (woodwinds!), images of planets accompanied by a high sweet trumpet. Cameron nodded along.

 

At the end of the cue, Horner, who scored “Aliens” and won two Oscars for the music in “Titanic,” came into the control booth. “How did we do?” he asked Cameron anxiously. He felt nervous even being there, with just a month to go and forty minutes of music left to write.

 

“Great,” Cameron said. He was very pleased. The music, to his mind, would help correct misconceptions about “Avatar.” This was a movie with a heart, a movie for women who like romance as much as for adolescent boys. “Too much is being said about the technology of this film. Quite frankly, I don’t give a rat’s ass how a film is made. It’s an emotional story. It’s a love story. They’re not expecting that. The sci-fi/fantasy fans see the trailer and they think, Cool—battles, robots. What you really need to get to is, Oh, it’s that, too.”

 

also this bit near the start is quite interesting, how Cameron thought he was going to make a guys film and ended up with something broader:

 

“With ‘Avatar,’ I thought, Forget all these chick flicks and do a classic guys’ adventure movie, something in the Edgar Rice Burroughs mold, like John Carter of Mars—a soldier goes to Mars,” Cameron told me ... “Of course, the whole movie ends up being about women, how guys relate to their lovers, mothers—there’s a large female presence,” Cameron said. “I try to do my testosterone movie and it’s a chick flick. That’s how it is for me.”

[Hoodie]

“Too much is being said about the technology of this film. Quite frankly, I don’t give a rat’s ass how a film is made. It’s an emotional story. It’s a love story. They’re not expecting that. The sci-fi/fantasy fans see the trailer and they think, Cool—battles, robots. What you really need to get to is, Oh, it’s that, too.”

 

it's not a love story, at all. i didn't see blue cat and her boyfriend fall in love. they just decided to mate one night. it came totally out of nowhere for me. i mean, i knew they were gonna get together, but there was never any chemistry, tension... nothing. i definitely didn't like the "love story" aspect.

 

and if you rate this film on its story and not technology... it's a serious failure. cameron's out of his mind if he thinks this is anything more than "look at my cgi and 3d, fuck yeaaah"

[awepittance]

wow, 40 minutes of fresh music in only a month? that must be an insane amount of pressure.

At first when i heard Horner was going to be the composer i thought to myself that Alan Silvestri (the Abyss) and Brad Fiedel (T1, T2, true lies) would be a better choice.

[Guest Blanket Fort Collapse]

I guess that helps give him an excuse for why the score was so fucking cheesy boring lifeless

[chim]

Not sure what I can add that others haven't already. Basically I think it's a very well crafted film. It had romance, action, was simplistic enough for young adults, the theme speaks to the video game generation, and I think the 3D glasses were chosen not only because they are new technology, but because they helped conceal the transitions between real and CG. It's sort of the perfect Hollywood blockbuster, but I didn't feel it was totally passionless. It seemed like a personal film for Cameron.

 

I remember watching Titanic and resenting Cameron for getting to me emotionally despite my better judgment. I thought the romance in that movie was ridiculous, and yet when some of the people died and Leo became a popsicle I was moved. He's a very talented filmmaker that way. I thought this film was similar. I actually teared up at five points during the film, mostly because of Zoe Saldana's acting, I thought she did a great job. But otherwise I felt it was pretty flat, even the flying scenes were a bit flat. I agree with everyone else, they should have ditched the music and done a better, more subtle job.

 

I think I'm just getting to be a sentimental old man. I wouldn't have minded getting rid of the whole military element, and having a full 3 hours of Sully and Netiri exploring Pandora, flying bats and fucking under glowing trees, they should have gone full-out for that 70's Heavy Metal psychedelic feel. But I did like the environmental message, too bad the loggers who could benefit from seeing it are too busy scraping together a living by cutting down hardwoods for Costco and Ikea.

 

Great post lump.

[Bob Dylan]

wow, 40 minutes of fresh music in only a month? that must be an insane amount of pressure.

At first when i heard Horner was going to be the composer i thought to myself that Alan Silvestri (the Abyss) and Brad Fiedel (T1, T2, true lies) would be a better choice.

 

 

That's about the norm in Hollywood, they all do it at that rate. Johnny Williams, Goldsmith back in the days would do it in half even. But hey Horner basically hacked his entire catalogue in that movie, the score is really bad. In the industry Horner has become a laughing stock by every other composer.

 

"Ta-da-da daaaah" each time there is an instant of possible tension = :fuckingfacepalm:

 

 

Silvestri's work for Cameron was back in the Abyss, he's not part of the elite composers anymore (he has mostly become a Media-Ventures/Remote-control-type borefest), and they clashed a lot on the Abyss, he won't score him anymore. In fact it's a sub-par score (Abyss) for Silvestri back in those days when he was at the top of the game. There's about only 10 minutes of memorable stuff, the rest is cheesy and boring underscoring.

 

 

Brad Feidel has stopped composing. He doesn't compose anymore, his last movie he trully scored was in 1995. So forgett'about him,.

[Silent Member]

I'm so sick and tired of these in your face orchestral action scores, I feel like punching someone whenever I hear them.

[gaarg]

I'm so sick and tired of these in your face orchestral action scores, I feel like punching someone whenever I hear them.

 

well put, that's exactly how I feel!

[Guest analogue wings]

hey james horner, ennio morricone called...

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kghJGeMYI3U

[azatoth]

just came from watching it. it was an enjoyable ride in a very well crafted world. didn't expect anything thought provoking and came out satisfied. it did what it was supposed to do, take you on an epic journey to another world. it was well paced and the action pieces were top notch. i can see why this has already grossed the 2nd most in the worldwide box offices in only a month. cameron is laughing to the bank for creating the top 2 moneymakers.

nothing bothered too much about it, although the swelling orchestra was too dominant at places, but dunno if it was the theater that had sound problems.

[Tessier Ashpool]

Just wrote to a friend of mine w/my reactions to Abattoir and figured I'd just Cntrl-V it:

 

"Ok - phew - busy-ass morning. Anyway, I really liked Avatar, but not necessarily for the reasons I was expecting. I quite enjoyed the story on its own, and the visual aspects other than the 3d itself. Although there were a few groan-worthy lines, overall I felt like the reactions of the characters were pretty realistic. Especially the protagonist, who I'd heard disparaging remarks about. Thought he played his role perfectly - military grunt with a spark of individuality/passion - his reaction to being in the Avatar for the first time and moving his feet, smacking the bioluminescent lily-pads - picking at his thong when he first puts it on - just a lot of small details that I felt lent believability to the setting.

 

This is one of those movies where (at least for me) it was what DIDN'T jump out at you that I respect. There were very few, if any, moments where I questioned the believability of what I was watching. Cameron is great at the mechanics of technology - and I mean things like the video screens integrated into the more familiar military-style console on the planes, the mech-suit things, etc. Beyond that the Na'Vi looked, for the most part, real. I mean, I'm still not sure if they used make-up or if it was CG (believe it was the latter - in which case, even more wow). The scene at the end where that hot-ass chick breaks in to where Jake Sully is in the pod - when she holds him not only does it look real (even though she's like 9 feet tall) but the emotion between them, (despite this obvious difference) brought home that sense of connection beyond race. Yeah, it's cheesy, but I'm a sucker for such things.

 

Oh yeah - Pandora? - friggin' awesome - goes without saying that Cameron's experience doing research in deep-sea creatures informed the flora/fauna - 98% photo-real - and, again, I feel like it's a masterful director who knows the limits of his technology. There are few if any instances where I was taken out of the experience.

 

The 3d - again, with the subtlety. It was not at all what I was expecting. In fact, it strangely felt after a while that I wasn't even aware of the 3d. Which means that it was so seamlessly integrated that it did what I think Cameron wanted it to do - become another part of the film experience rather than a layer on top. Usually when you see 3d movies you feel like you're still watching a 2d movie and there are a few items that "pop out" at you.

 

Need to watch it again - might change my opinion, but overall I liked it - wasn't blown away in the WAY I was expecting, but still overall impressed. Plus, over course, the more money it makes, the more chance the 3d will become a new paradigm."

 

Oh, and, yeah, I'm apparently a sucker for the chick-flick romanticism of films like this. I teared up a bit, unwillingly, at some of the scenes. *shrugs* Guess I'm just a wuss.

[zazen]

What were the reasons you were expecting to like it?

[encey]

avatort

[Velazquez]

Love in an avator

[Tessier Ashpool]

What were the reasons you were expecting to like it?

 

I was expecting to be blown away by the 3D and enjoy it for the technical achievement - and the awesome, "blow crap up" quotient. I wasn't expecting to be moved by the romance, certainly not by the plot - don't get me wrong, the battle scenes were indeed kickass, just didn't end up being the primary thing that moved me. The planet itself and the flora/fauna ended up being more engaging than some of the fights.

 

And, as above, the 3d was different than I expected - much more subtle but well appreciated for what Cameron's trying to do.

[Guest KY]

just came from watching it. it was an enjoyable ride in a very well crafted world. didn't expect anything thought provoking and came out satisfied. it did what it was supposed to do, take you on an epic journey to another world. it was well paced and the action pieces were top notch. i can see why this has already grossed the 2nd most in the worldwide box offices in only a month. cameron is laughing to the bank for creating the top 2 moneymakers.

 

yep

[Guest Glass Plate]

Why is every one talking about his avatar? I didn't even think he had an account on this forum.

[triachus]

Why is every one talking about his avatar? I didn't even think he had an account on this forum.

 

 

http://instantrimshot.com/

 

 

 

 

i wish i knew how to imbed the .swf in this post (if that's even possible)

[Guest KY]

Why is every one talking about his avatar? I didn't even think he had an account on this forum.

 

 

http://instantrimshot.com/

 

 

 

 

i wish i knew how to imbed the .swf in this post (if that's even possible)

lol that needs to be an avatar or sig so badly.

[triachus]

Why is every one talking about his avatar? I didn't even think he had an account on this forum.

 

 

http://instantrimshot.com/

 

 

 

 

i wish i knew how to imbed the .swf in this post (if that's even possible)

lol that needs to be an avatar or sig so badly.

 

well, someone DID have it as an avatar (i even think it was Glass Plate) but i think it's more effective as a single post

[Guest mafted]

scandalous

[Squee]

Man died after watching Avatar

 

A 42-year-old Taiwanese man with a history of high blood pressure has died of a stroke likely triggered by over-excitement from watching the blockbuster Avatar in 3D, a doctor says.

 

The man, identified only by his surname Kuo, started to feel unwell during the screening earlier this month in the northern city of Hsinchu and was taken to hospital.

 

Mr Kuo, who suffered from hypertension, was unconscious when he arrived at the Nan Men General Hospital and a scan showed that his brain was haemorrhaging, emergency room doctor Peng Chin-chih said today.

 

"It's likely that the over-excitement from watching the movie triggered his symptoms,'' the doctor said.

 

Mr Kuo died 11 days later from the brain haemorrhage, and the China Times newspaper said it was the first death linked to watching James Cameron's science-fiction epic Avatar.

 

Film blogging sites have reported complaints of headaches, dizziness, nausea and blurry eyesight from viewers of Avatar and other movies rich in 3D imagery.

 

http://www.news.com.au/entertainment/movies/man-died-after-watching-avatar/story-e6frfmvr-1225821333043

 

China really hates Avatar.

[chaosmachine]

Just saw this. Best movie since The Matrix. Amazing.