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I just got back from the 3D version of Avatar. Wajahat Ali pre-review is pretty spot-on as to accuracy, what to look for, what not to look for. So I won't cover those grounds. My son and I did enjoy it. It's hard not too, even for a movie, without the previews, that runs 2 hours and 40 minutes long: the visual effects, especially in 3D, are the most outstanding I've ever seen. You are, simply put, "in the movie". It is easy to get lost there. As Ali noted, because it is a Cameron film, dialog, plot and other elements that make a movie are excruciatingly simplified and overly predictable. This doesn't make the movie bad, per se. One doesn't go to an action film *necessarily* for the rapier wit and Shakespearian repertoire. This was an action film, plush ultra-special effects, so 2 out of 3 isn't bad. S P O I L E R S B E L O W (be warned). For those familiar with other movies of this kind of "Going native" movie, my first guess as to Dancing With Wolves is accurate: the character plot line is almost identical. Even down to the Native American sounding (and even looking and even Hollywood Indian fighting style) sympathetic Aliens being victimized by the obviously a-moral Capitalist Imperialist Aggressors. Movies and sci-fi novels/writers that Cameron and his writing staff "used" for ideas include...well... a lot.,,, # First anytime you have Sigourney Weaver in a movie, you think of the great blue-coller sci-fi movie "Alien". Even the corporate dweeb apologist counter-part from it's sequel in "Aliens", to take part in the battle of moral ideas, is there, albeit a different actor. Same character, really. # For those familiar with Ann McCaftery's "Dragon Riders of Pern" (any of the series) there is a direct 'rip off' from this series in small ways that will seem obvious and in your face to those who've read the novels. # For those familiar with Robert Heinlain's "Starship Troopers", the battle armor from the novels (and no, it wasn't used in the grade B movie version so don't think you know what I'm talking about unless you've actually read the book) is identical. To that I might add that the the Sigourney Weaver/Teamster robot-Caterpillar forklift scene in "Aliens" is back but the fork-lift is now standardized military hardware to go with the "Starship Troopers" battle-armor. Kind of a synthesis of both. # If you are familiar with the wonderful Sci-Fi writer John Varley (of Demon, Titan and Wizzard or The Gaea Trilogy fame) the writers obviously borrowed a little tid-bit from one of his novels (the title escapes me now) of the semi-erotic nature of the Alien's tails and the uses it has (and no, its not what you are thinking). There is no doubt as Ali implied that this is a kind of "Tree-hugger" (wait until you see these trees however!) film where there exists no ethical ambiguity and good is good and bad is bad. See it for the special effects, it's worth it for this alone. David ________________________________________________ Send list submissions to: [email protected] Set your options at: http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
