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  • Hey all, just changed over the backend after 15 years I figured time to give it a bit of an update, its probably gonna be a bit weird for most of you and i am sure there is a few bugs to work out but it should kinda work the same as before... hopefully :)

"I just saw Avatar" Thread

Lol, acid, huh?

We smoked a mighty large joint -- too large -- right before opening night, and frankly, I accidentally smoked too much. Those hairless dog things scared the shit out of me!...hahaha. Definitely the weed enhanced the experience, though, with this particular movie.
 
Tom L said:
Lol, acid, huh?

We smoked a mighty large joint -- too large -- right before opening night, and frankly, I accidentally smoked too much. Those hairless dog things scared the shit out of me!...hahaha. Definitely the weed enhanced the experience, though, with this particular movie.
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Okay, spill the beans, which scene did you laugh the most at??:sifone:
 
Was it the part where Sigourney Weaver's avatar looked more than a little like Princess Fiona from Shrek?
 
Ace said:
Okay, spill the beans, which scene did you laugh the most at??:sifone:
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Well I wasn't laughing, I was mesmerized. Like I said, I didn't realize the potency of that shake, so I ended up about twice as blazed as I had planned.

The first part was cool, when we meet Colonel Kickass and all that, but then when that huge tiger-like animal chased Jake Sully through the forest I was like "Whoa!" When he had to fight those hairless dogs with glowing eyes in the dark forest, I was like
2hwzh48.gif


But then Neytiri came along with those little floating Woodsprites and all was well on Pandora. :emote_hippie:

I highly recommend it.
 
Reminds me of when a buddy of mine saw "I Am Legend" in IMAX, while on shrooms. The kicker was that he was one of the only people in the theater. He said he almost died.
 
Finally saw it! Good heavens, that was fantastic!

It felt to me like I had stepped right into the pages of a classic Sci-Fi book. Such a rich, ambitious, vivid, abundantly-imagined world - instead of those horrible barren "alien rock planets that kinda look like earth" Hollywood usually saddles us with. All those authors must be going nuts and saying "FINALLY! SOMEONE WITH AN OUNCE OF IMAGINATION ACTUALLY BOTHERED TO LISTEN TO OUR DECADES OF CREATIVE OUTPUT AND DO US JUSTICE WITH A FILM!"

The story is simple - but it was probably for the best to err in that direction because there was so much else to take in at the same time.

Yes, personally I was expecting a darker more complex tale - but perhaps that's the arrogance of youth wanting to make "Art". Cameron is older and wiser and somewhere deep down he made the humble decision that it was better to put maximum effort into an inspiring, positive movie that can cause real positive change in the world and help rally the best in humanity.

Or maybe that's arrogance. Who cares. Art is power of communication and Cameron succeeded brilliantly. He and his team should sleep soundly knowing they have helped inspire the next generation.

All in all I loved this 21st century Wizard of Oz with blue zebra people. Can't wait to see it again!

BTW, I have no idea why people have problems with serious 3D dramatic films. You like seeing theatre in 3D, and opera in 3D, right? The emotional moments in this film were powerful and the 3D gave us greater insight into the actor's performances.

Bruce Allen
www.boacinema.com
 
Bruce Allen said:
BTW, I have no idea why people have problems with serious 3D dramatic films. You like seeing theatre in 3D, and opera in 3D, right? The emotional moments in this film were powerful and the 3D gave us greater insight into the actor's performances.

Bruce Allen
www.boacinema.com
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Absoloutely. The shots where Jake Soollee is talking to the video log, I actually felt like I was the webcam. Its pretty powerful stuff for dramatic narrative. I can see this being used effectively just as suggested in Ketch's 3D Rape movie.
 
One scene that just wouldn't have had nearly the same impact that I haven't heard anyone comment on was the smoke scene. I felt really drawn into the aftermath and it had an amazing volume due to all the sparks and ash. It really helped with the sense of being lost and disoriented. The 3D drew me in like the smoke went forever--the whole world turned to ash.
 
I'm pretty sure I've read this entire thread in about 3-4 different sittings and I haven't noticed it mentioned before. Has anybody here read through the screenplay that was recently released by Cameron (other than the one person who read it during production)?

http://www.foxscreenings.com/media/pdf/JamesCameronAVATAR.pdf

Gives the story a bit more depth and its definitely a bit darker in many area's. According to David Stripinis on the VFX Podcast there was an actual 4hr cut of the movie which he was slightly disappointed to see cut down to 160min. I'm wondering if Cameron will release a directors cut on BluRay.......Can't wait!
 
I'd very much like to see an extended cut of the film. My hunch after seeing it was that there was likely a lot cut out. My hope is that there is more development for Jake's transformation, and more depth for his character and his inner needs and motives.

Last night at the Globes Cameron said Avatar was a means to show how we are all connected with each other and the earth. I got that from the film, but felt it could have been told through a much more powerful story. But again, I did very much enjoy the film and appreciate what it will likely do for cinema.
 
Just thought of one weakness in his message. In the film the Humans aren't connected to the Na'vi in any real form. Would have been nice for the Humans to get a little 'unintended loss' themselves.

If "everyone is connected" how were the corporate mercs connected to the Na'vi?
 
Gavin Greenwalt said:
Just thought of one weakness in his message. In the film the Humans aren't connected to the Na'vi in any real form. Would have been nice for the Humans to get a little 'unintended loss' themselves.

If "everyone is connected" how were the corporate mercs connected to the Na'vi?
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I think that was the point. Na'vi and Pandora represent a healthy balanced whole.

If the humans could connect they wouldn't come from a dead planet to Pandora to suck non-renewable energy sources. Just as they can't see even few steps ahead, they don't see the connection either, so they cannot connect to something made invisible by their ego.
 
Well if one really was to be an absolutist, then the Humans attack on Pandora was part of the natural balance as well. Somewhere along the line, it was nessecary for Pandora or that particular tribe to experience that destruction, thus inevitably forming the difficult to understand but nevertheless essential tapestry of balance that the Na'vi hold so dear.

I see destruction and environmental catastrophe all around us, in our own world, and cannot help but feel that this is our natural course..a predestined course free of any real volition and purpose other than restoring the balance to our natural order of a life built upon the inequitable foundations of borrowed money, blood and earth.
 
3 viewings so far. First in 2d. Second in imax 3d. Third in 2d again. I must say that the 2d version is my favorite. I prefer to scan the canvas and choose what to look at. I don't like the 3d layered effect. It feels synthetic and forces me to look where I might not want to. I'm glad I saw the 3d version, as it was "neat" to see the effect, but in the end, my preference is 2d. I'm all for that "neat" experience with future movies in 3d, but I'm pretty sure that I will always prefer the 2d version.
 
I finally watched Avatar the other day. I saw the 3D version. There was one or two shots that didn't quite work stereoscopically (For me personally at least) such as Jake waking up and exiting into that long corridor. But generally the 3D worked very, very well and I didn't leave feeling even slightly nauseous. I certainly felt the 3D helped take the movie to another level visually. As someone else pointed out, the smoke and ash scene's were particularly stunning.

The spectacle of Avatar is undeniable. From the viewpoint of sheer technical achievement it has undoubtedly pushed boundaries further. For this alone the film is certainly an achievement and deserves its success.

As a story it lacked many things for me. The characters were all too familiar. Too stereotypical. There was no real surprises whatsoever. There could have been so much more done with Jake and likewise the Na'Vi close to him. The storyline was also too familiar and didn't really represent the intricacies of a democratic civilization from the human point of view, again so much more could have been done. The planet was incredibly imagined, with obvious influences from Cameron's deep sea adventures! But at the same time for me the place, just like the movie in whole, lacked mythos. It isn't a film or a world that really makes me want to jump into the screen, not in the same way, for example, the original Starwars environments did. I'm sure there are others who would dissagree with this and each to their own (This is just my humble opinion afterall!).

The directing was generally good, though some of the use of voice over was unnecessary and a little cheap.

As a film it ticked the right boxes. But the only box it literally tore up is the special effects spectacular one!

I saw an interview with James Cameron the other day discussing possible sequels to make it into a trilogy. I'd be surprised if it didn't happen. But at the same time I can't imagine a coherent and compelling story occurring. Just in the same way the Matrix trilogy lost much of it's emphasis after the first film.

In short just good... Could've been great.

Paul
 
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