Avatar

[Darth333]

Originally Posted by RedHawke

Including Me... sadly.

QFE. The 3D thing made me sick ...literally: I ended up throwing up in the washrooms after 1.5 hour...

Anyway the dialogs were...just awful. It takes more than mere visuals and animations to make a good movie IMHO.

[jawathehutt]

Watching it in 3d is like watching transformers 2. It looks cool, other than that, there's not much.
Watching it in 2d is like transformers 2 if you replaced robot fights with robot hugging. Somewhat cool because theres still huge robots, but ultimately a pretty major let down.

[Ghost]

I think it was brilliant. Sure the story was Cliche, but they did not go overboard on 3-D. Seriously.

[JesusIsGonnaOwnSatan]

Avatar was nominated for four Golden Globes: Best Film Score, and Best Film Song, winning Best Motion Picture – Drama and Best Director.


Based on the success of the movie, James Cameron has confirmed the possibility of sequels:

Originally Posted by Wikipedia

In 2006, Cameron stated that if Avatar was successful, he hoped to make two sequels to the film.[21] In response to the film's financial success, Cameron confirmed the possibility of making sequels.[20][21]

Meanwhile, despite being its most successful movie, Avatar has been mostly banned in China for fears that the movie may cause political unrest.

Originally Posted by Yahoo Movies UK

The China Film Group, which is run by the state, believes the plot of human colonists attempting to demolish an alien village for its resources steers too close to a very sensitive issue in China at the moment.

Millions of Chinese people have been evicted from their homes to make room for high rises and government infrastructure projects, reports The LA Times. Avatar's success has also angered some Chinese officials, who fear the film's popularity takes too much market share from their domestic films.

2D showings of Avatar will now be pulled from Chinese cinemas, but film fans can still see 3D showings of the sci-fi epic. However, there are so few 3D cinema screens in China, it's essentially a theatrical ban for the Golden Globe-winning movie.

So, instead of Avatar, Chinese film fans can look forward to the Chow-Yun Fat biopic of the ancient philosopher Confucius in its place.

An Asian media consultancy, Wolf Group Asia, however, insists that the decision to choose Confucius in favour of Avatar was all to do with the Chinese New Year holiday, which begins in the middle of February.

A spokesperson added, "There are certain windows in the year that are held for domestic films. We're coming up on Chinese New Year, so this can be expected."

@Golden Globes awards: Great! Hopefully it should win more at the Academy Awards!

@Sequels: I really don't know how to feel about this... On one hand itll be great that we get to see more Avatar, but its great as it is; They should just leave it.
Im feeling a big threat of lame sequel syndrome...

@China: What a surprise.
I find it interesting how some officials are angry that Avatar was taking away market share from their domestic films. Thats seems rather elitist. In any case I doubt that any of their own movies could beat Avatar in terms of awesomeness.

[El Sitherino]

The 3D was the best part, the movie was kinda bleh, but for the first time there's been a movie other than a Pixar feature that was true 3D like I was promised and not just that pop-up book looking **** where it's a flat backdrop and a couple select items on screen pop out.

[Sabretooth]

Originally Posted by JesusIsGonnaOwnSatan

@China: What a surprise.
I find it interesting how some officials are angry that Avatar was taking away market share from their domestic films. Thats seems rather elitist. In any case I doubt that any of their own movies could beat Avatar in terms of awesomeness.

Seeing as how Avatar is little more than a flexing of financial muscles, all any director needs to make their own personal Avatar phenomenon is a load of cash to shoot in 3D and market it. So all that awesomeness you see is basically a mosaic made of dollar bills.

[JesusIsGonnaOwnSatan]

Originally Posted by Sabretooth

So all that awesomeness you see is basically a mosaic made of dollar bills.

afaik avatar is the first to reach a certain level of cgi. which is why people who dont care about 3d still say the visuals were gorgeous.

[Trench]

I saw it. I liked it. I saw it again. I liked it again. I want it when it comes out on disc. End of story.

[Sabretooth]

Originally Posted by JesusIsGonnaOwnSatan

afaik avatar is the first to reach a certain level of cgi. which is why people who dont care about 3d still say the visuals were gorgeous.

CGI that was borne out of a $237 million budget. It's not like James Cameron personally designed and programmed all that CGI. Give a Chinese director that budget and I'm betting China would have movies as "awesome" as Avatar.

[VeniVidiVicous]

Everyone I know who's seen it said that it looked good but the story was the same old cliched stuff.

US Space marines killing Blue aliens that look a lot like native Americans basically.

[JesusIsGonnaOwnSatan]

Originally Posted by Sabretooth

CGI that was borne out of a $237 million budget. It's not like James Cameron personally designed and programmed all that CGI. Give a Chinese director that budget and I'm betting China would have movies as "awesome" as Avatar.

Take a moment and compare American movies with movies made in China. American movies are enjoyed by people all around the world. Even the ones that don't become super record breaking blockbuster hits. They are basically made for everyone. As such, you can find fans of your favorite smaller scale hollywood movie all over the globe, in all sorts of different countries.

China, on the other hand, makes movies for China (and the Chinese community abroad). Chinese movies are not general knowledge. Ask a random guy off the street to name two Chinese movies and chances are you will probably met with silence. Same thing with their other popular culture.

The thing with China is they're so insular. They make their movies, and keep it within their walls. Heck, China could have had movies 10 times more graphical than Avatar 5 years ago, and no one would even know.

When they keep to themselves like this, undoubtedly the whole country would develop on a different tangent. Especially the movie industry: they would be fully geared to Chinese culture with Chinese nuances that only Chinese people would get. So if you give 200 million dollars worth of special effects and cgi to a typical Chinese director making a typical Chinese film (which would typically be geared to only China, and in Avatar's case would be a typical Chinese cliche done over a thousand times), you'd get a film that the Chinese would think is the most freaking awesome thing since chopsticks, but when you show it to the rest of the world, they're basic reaction will be "lolwut?"

...And with a subjective term such as 'awesomeness', the most we can go on is the widespread understanding that exists in the general majority.



But you know what's the weird thing? It shouldnt be like that. China makes up 20 freaking percent of the world's population by themselves. 1.3 Billion people; They should be influencing the world and the 'general understanding' more than America ever did. Mandarin should be rivaling English in its widespread use. It should be London, Paris, New York, Beijing. People should be knowing about Chinese culture, and not be making fun of China as much.

But they don't.
Mandarin is the most spoken language, but all the speakers are Chinese. Beijing isn't on the fashion list, and
if you ask any snotnosed kid, he'll rattle off at least 5 different 'Chinaman' jokes off the bat.

Compare this with another Asian country, infinitely smaller in size and population: Japan.
Japan, despite it's size, exerts a gargantuan amount of influence in the world, with them pumping out Manga and stuff like there aint no tomorrow. You can find wapanese girls popping peace signs and toting Hello Kitty everything and Japanophile guys fapping to Anime in a lot of different countries around the world.

Everyone loves Japan; the technology, the food..., even their freaking awesome ancient tyrannical warlords.

Its because they're not so reclusive and/or elitist. They communicate both ways with the rest of the world, and everyone involved has benefited from it.

I have a suspicion that phenomena is a reflection of China's attitude about everyone else. I have heard stories from people who have been to China of how 'white people'/westerners are generally looked down upon (which is somewhat lulzy - getting a taste of their own medicine). It appears that in China, its all about China: stuff the rest of the world. It makes you wonder just what they're doing behind all those walls and censorship...
The general consensus is that China will generally 'take over' sometime or another. If thats what theyre trying to do, then Japan is doing a hell of a lot better than they are, and looking cooler while they do it too.

All Japan needs to do is trigger the subliminal messaging they hid in all that Anime and Manga that they covertly fed to the ignorant West for so many years, and whammo: theyve got an instant personal army that can annihilate the Allies suddenly and without warning, only after which the fools will realize that WWII only ever ended right then, with their defeat!



...

[Sabretooth]

I- wat. o_O

For the argument that American movies are for a global audience, it works out quite easily. America's national language is English, which is shared by Britain and Britain-occupied territories, and also understood by numerous other countries. This naturally extends the reach of American movies to beyond their national boundaries. To add to that, I once again present the tried and true argument of dollar bills: America had a gargantuan economy prior to and post World War II. This cash goes not only in the make-up and special effects, but the marketing and showbiz. The cash goes into selling the movie in more markets, taking up translation costs and other expenses. They can afford these expenses precisely because they have the cash, and because they already have a reliable market base.

On to the matter of language, the spread of English today is solely the work of Great Britain. English conquests occupied much of the world prior to World War I, and their legacy remains in most countries since. Mandarin isn't so widespread because China's reach never really went far beyond its mainland (witty Taiwan remark haha). The same can be said for Russian, or Hindi, or Tagalog. Not so much with Spanish, or Portuguese or French - languages spread by colonial expansion.

And finally, Japan's popularity is not a result of them pandering to Western interests. They just happened to have the right loot at the right time. US-Japan ties already got close after World War II, with the American occupation and assistance of post-War Japan. Japan's rapid rise as an industrial, modernised and developed nation brought about changes within its cultural and social conscience that paralleled, but did not mirror that of the West. It should be noted that Japan was the only Asian country at the time to be so modernised.

The reason Japan is so popular in the West is because they share cultural recognition. Urban, developed and industrial audiences appreciate battling mechs and post-apocalyptic landscapes more than illiterate, poor and befuddled rural audiences, who constituted most of China and India at the time.

And you aren't with the right crowd if you can't get them to name just two Chinese films right off the bat.

[Endorenna]

My mom and I just went and saw Avatar in 3-D. I absolutely loved it. Somehow, the people who made it managed to put great acting, amazing visuals, and a decent, emotional story in one movie.

This may be the first movie my family gets in Blu-ray.

I just wish my sister could see it on the big screen. By the time she can go to a theater again, it'll be gone. >_< Nothing compares to the camera sweeping over a magnificent landscape on a screen as big as a theater's. :/

[Te Darasuum Mandalor]

I heard James Cameron had the idea since 1972 but had to wait until the effects was high-tech.

[Rogue Nine]

Originally Posted by Mrcharlton

I heard James Cameron had the idea since 1972 but had to wait until the effects was high-tech.

Try 1994.

[Rabish Bini]

Quite probably the most overrated movie in the history of mankind. The story was crap, the charcters were crap and the overrall story and everything has been done to death. 3D is crap, I'd much rather watch a movie in 2D, and the special effects were overboard.

Some people view this movie as the "best ever", which I find sickening and grossle over-exaggerated. But that's just me.

[Q]

Originally Posted by Rabish Bini

Quite probably the most overrated movie in the history of mankind.

Nope. That honor still goes to Titanic.

[Te Darasuum Mandalor]

Titanic was still pretty darn good though, even if it was overated!

[Endorenna]

Originally Posted by Rabish Bini

Quite probably the most overrated movie in the history of mankind. The story was crap, the charcters were crap and the overrall story and everything has been done to death. 3D is crap, I'd much rather watch a movie in 2D, and the special effects were overboard.

Some people view this movie as the "best ever", which I find sickening and grossle over-exaggerated. But that's just me.

Well, I do have the advantage of having never seen any of the other movies that have done this story. It's not the best ever, but it's pretty darn good, IMO.

To each his own.

[True_Avery]

Originally Posted by Evil Q

Nope. That honor still goes to Titanic.

Passion of the Christ.

[Rabish Bini]

Originally Posted by Evil Q

Nope. That honor still goes to Titanic.

Touche

Originally Posted by Endorenna

Well, I do have the advantage of having never seen any of the other movies that have done this story. It's not the best ever, but it's pretty darn good, IMO.

To each his own.

It was OK to watch once, but it's not watchable a second time, IMO

Originally Posted by True_Avery

Passion of the Christ.

The Godfather *runs*

[True_Avery]

Originally Posted by Rabish Bini

The Godfather *runs*

Never seen it. I understand the punishment is to be beaten to death by a mob of fans.

Still, Passion of the Christ.

[Endorenna]

Originally Posted by True_Avery

Passion of the Christ.

Agreed. C'mon, it didn't even get the story right. They could've done something weird, like...I dunno...read the Bible when making a movie about something documented in the Bible...

Never seen The Godfather, so I can't comment on it. Also haven't seen Titanic, so I can't comment on that either.

[Kuuki]

Originally Posted by Lynk Former

For some reason I'm thinking it's best I not watch this movie until the hype-train has left the station and everyone forgot it was here.

Kinda like what I did with 300.

+1

[Q]

Originally Posted by True_Avery

Passion of the Christ.

The Piano.

[True_Avery]

Originally Posted by Evil Q

The Piano.

Citizen Cane

[Q]

Originally Posted by True_Avery

Passion of the Christ.

Originally Posted by Endorenna

Agreed. C'mon, it didn't even get the story right. They could've done something weird, like...I dunno...read the Bible when making a movie about something documented in the Bible...

It had way too much Catholic tradition (read: non-scriptural embellishment) for my tastes, too. The Catholics loved it, though.

Originally Posted by Rabish Bini

The Godfather *runs*

Originally Posted by True_Avery

Never seen it. I understand the punishment is to be beaten to death by a mob of fans.

Originally Posted by Endorenna

Never seen The Godfather, so I can't comment on it.

Get thee to Blockbuster. Both of you.

Originally Posted by True_Avery

Citizen Cane

The Crying Game.