Thoughts on Avatar: Close, But Still a Swing and a Miss

Hi Everyone,

Well, today I will talk about movies again. This time, Avatar is the subject. Avatar, you may remember, was released last December with much pomp and fanfare. Much was made of its visual appeal. The film cost $250 million to make, and took four years to make (planning and development began as early as 1994). When it was released, it broke several records at the box office and was a gigantic commercial success.

I didn't necessarily want to see it in theaters, since anything which is so widely hyped tends to draw my skepticism. However, I have been eager to see it for quite some time. I heard that it promoted the sanctity of native cultures, the importance of a connection to the natural environment, and the transcendant connection of all forms of life. I also enjoy movies that involve travel to distant planets. So the prospect of a sci-fi space movie that expressed a "new age-y" message of harmony seemed like it would be right up my alley.

I got to start watching it yesterday night, friday night, on netflix. The movie is 2 hours and 42 minutes long, so my family and I watched half of it last night, and will watch the other half tonight. So here I will talk about my impression so far.

The film follows Jake Sully, a marine who is hired by a private security force working for a large mining company. The company has hired him to protect a plant they operate on Pandora, a moon in the Alpha Centauri system, much like Earth. Jake lacks the knowledge most scientists on Pandora, but possesses an iron will to overcome his troubles moving. The film implies that the Earth has been ridden with wars in the time between now and the film's future setting; since it is set in the year 2154.

Anyway, Jake is put in an avatar, the body of a na'vi, a creature who lives on Pandora. Jake controls the body of his avatar with his mind somehow. Anyway, he wanders deep into the Pandoran forest, tangles with various forms of wildlife, and meets a female of the na'vi tribe. She resents him at first, but takes him to her village. They decide, again, with considerable reluctance, to take Jake in. This is about where we left off, when Jake is learning the ways of the na'vi. In one scene on the floating mountains, the Hallelujah Mountains, they are, quite literally, showing Jake the ropes.

So far, my feelings about the movie are about what I thought they would be. I like it overall, but I do have some issues with it. First off, I find this much more believeable and identifiable than

Star Wars was. Again, this one touched on concerns much more important to me. This energy industry embodies the current corporate model of the profit above all. As the head of the industry says "The one thing the bosses hate more than bad press is a bad bottom line." I think it is a good thing that this is being brought up in a movie with as much critical and commercial success as Avatar.

That leads to my next point. It seemed that this had at least as much to do with special effects as its perceived message. There were several scenes where the na'vi talked about the connections to all life forms and the world of nature itself. The way this was presented, though, is often second behind the visual graphics and effects, which are amazing. Knowing that this is also James Cameron's creation, who also did Terminator and Titanic, it isn't a surprise that the visual appeal would be a top priority for him. However, I feel disappointed in that the film seems to be sacrificing an opportunity to reexamine life, in order to wow everyone with uber-cool special effects and rake in a fortune at the box office.

I have only seen half the film so far, though. I have heard that the end of the film consists of a grand battle between the na'vi and the humans. Again, this smacks of a concession to the formula of Hollywood. Rather than trying something different, the film seems to be reconstructing a well-worn equation with the newest graphics. That is their decision, but this is my decision to weigh in on this. But again, I have only seen part of this. I will report back here when I have seen the whole thing. See ya then!

This is the Daily Reeder, Over&out.

(You and) I Don't Have To Dream Alone

Hi Everyone,

Well, here I am to give you my first weekly post. You've probably heard about the disastrous oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. This spill is beyond the scope of what any previous spill has done. This comes right on the heels of a disappointing decision by the Obama Administration to expand some offshore oil drilling in this area, as well as off the coast of Virginia, and in some areas in Alaska. This spill is only the most visible symbol of why going halfway on these proposals do not work, but I will devote more time to this in the next post. For now, let us just hope that this will be the time when we say "enough."

Anyway, what I wanted to write about this week was this. I have been taking a theater class this semester, and I have had to go to plays for it. This Thursday, I went to attend this play. I was surprised when I entered. The actors first asked us questions to construct a brief skit, incorporating all our answers. They did this to illustrate how they created this play, Out of Thin Air.

The play was great to watch. Interacting with the actors beforehand gave it a different feeling. Usually, watching plays feels like looking through the actors through a glass wall, but this one was like watching their stories come alive. It showed the stories of all of the actors in this company.

It showed their childhoods, going through the uncertainty of their growing up, to their joy now. It didn't hit me at the time, but after the play, some of us got in a circle with the actors, and my theater professor, and talked about it. The full effect of the production hit me then. I realized that as I watched, I had connected with the characters in a way I hadn't with many people before.

It reminded me of a movie I used to watch a lot. You may have noticed the movie poster above. This movie is called Waking Life. It depicts a man who is in a dream, wakes up, and then it turns out this is a dream, and then he wakes up into another dream, and then another one. All the while, He hears about, and discusses, many philosophical, and more importantly, existential truths. I used to watch this quite regularly. It used to be a ritual for me to watch it, and allow my thinking to slowly reflect the messages contained in Waking Life.

I watched Waking Life again on Friday, and then I realized, this is a lot like the play I saw last week. The movie contained various scenes, some focusing on discussion, and others on action. One scene had a man wondering how humans can have free will when outside forces seem to be running the show, whether it be God's determination or scientific law. Another scene had the central character floating out the door, across town, to a movie theater. None of the characters are given names.

In the play, we see parts of each of the actor's lives, childhood to the present. We see moments of innocence, like a girl saying goodbye to her mother when going off to college. There are moments of peril, as one man depicted his days as a teenager in the midst of the violence in Kosovo in the '90's. There are moments of sadness, tension, and ultimately, unity and joy. The same clear, light feeling that Waking Life evokes to me, was also brought about in this play. Something else, a feeling of connection, warmth, that I got to know someone.

Let me describe it this way: I used to see plays about romance, that made me feel lonely because I don't have a girlfriend. This made me feel like the opposite of that. Happy Mother's Day, treat your Mother good today. My Mom is out of town today. I called her this morning, and I told her I was working on my blog. Happy Mother's Day, Mom. See y'all (as they may say in the South) next week!

This is the Daily Reeder, Over&out.