Tuesday 29 December 2009

Avatar


  • Story – largely predictable, but somehow gripping.
  • Characters – often stereotypical.
  • Dialogue – functional, occasionally corny.
  • Cinematography – utterly entrancing.
  • 3D – the best yet, by far.
  • Filmic references – Wizard of Oz, Star Wars, Dances With Wolves, Alien, Apocalypse Now, Pocahontas, Lord of the Rings.
  • Spirituality – Gaia/popularised Native American/broadly “Eastern”
  • Message – pro environmentalism, pro-science, anti-big business, anti-industrial; anti-military.
  • (Not so) Hidden Message – the myth of redemptive violence.
  • Lasting impression – an utterly engrossing romp through a brilliantly imagined, stunningly rendered, completely believable exotic world.
  • Recommendation – see it, don’t wait for the DVD, see it in the cinema, see it in 3D.

5 comments:

andy amoss said...

I very like your format, Glen.
I'll be back to you about the movie.

Glen Marshall said...

Thought I'd try being short and pithy for once. Glad you've taken the pith in a positive way.

Geoff Colmer said...

Saw it last night - a long film but enthralling and hugely enjoyable!

Bob said...

Excellent summary, completely agree. Must be seen in a cinema. And how long will it be before 3D of this quality becomes the normal form of film? I took the glasses off for a little while, and was amazed at how flat everything seemed!

Unknown said...

Agree with all your comments apart from the first one. Story predictable but gripping. Right on the first count but its sheer predictability and reliance on cliches meant the gripping part passed me by. Indeed I was trying to supress laughter at all the cliches he tried to cram into the film. E.g. helicoptor pilot "I didn't sign up for this shit". Yep, he really did put that in the film along with many many others.