Yes the plot was a little template but that isn’t the worst thing ever. It also does some nice twists on those basic story lines that made them feel fresh. Of course, plot isn’t what generated all the hype. And the hype was well worth it.

I should mention I saw it in 3D and had a bad experience (while all my friends loved the 3D) but I was still awed.

@ Steve Real: Read Jared Diamond’s Guns, Germs & Steel for why historically Western European civilization invaded and conquered other civilizations. Homo-subspecies & homo-sapiens intra-species conflict as well as mass extinction such as mega-fauna preceded this in prehistory. Your guilt is selective to say the least. The colour of the main protagonists is an artifact based on both history & geographic location of Hollywood movie production team making the movie; it’s very innocent actually. The archetypal story works whatever colours are used but blue is also a beautiful colour too if you failed to notice? The main protagonist is a hero for his actions & gains insights from the challenges & changes he experiences and responds heroically to. He does make some mistakes, however. The reading above is a shadow of an obsession with externals or wilful misinterpretation.

Jared Diamond’s other book: Collapse is also interesting & related to some of the movie’s secondary themes (clash and/or collapse of civilizations) & very topical with the poor political will of the Copenhagen Climate Summit recently fell into. Currently all groups of humans are causing mass extintions of other biological life-forms is another theme that is alluded to.

If we think of Avatar and its ilk as white fantasies about race, what kinds of patterns do we see emerging in these fantasies?

A white man who was one of the oppressors switches sides at the last minute, assimilating into the alien culture and becoming its savior.
These are movies about white guilt. Our main white characters realize that they are complicit in a system which is destroying aliens, AKA people of color – their cultures, their habitats, and their populations.

The whites realize this when they begin to assimilate into the “alien” cultures and see things from a new perspective. To purge their overwhelming sense of guilt, they switch sides, become “race traitors,” and fight against their old comrades. But then they go beyond assimilation and become leaders of the people they once oppressed.

This is the essence of the white guilt fantasy, laid bare. It’s not just a wish to be absolved of the crimes whites have committed against people of color; it’s not just a wish to join the side of moral justice in battle. It’s a wish to lead people of color from the inside rather than from the (oppressive, white) outside.

There’s nothing wrong with a tried and true formula, though, and the CG was so freaking amazing and immersive that I want to watch the film again. It’s like the whole Pandora and Na’vi universe is completely real; you literally can’t tell it’s CG, just like Cameron promised, except for a few scenes where the whole Omaticaya tribe are present, like Jake’s first arrival at the village and when he returns as the Toruk Macto.

IMHO “Babylon 5″ was the best science fiction “space opera” series ever to air on television. I’d probably rate it as follows with regards to the best science fiction series:

1) The Prisoner
2) Doctor Who
3) Babylon 5
4) Blake’s Seven
5) Star Trek
6) Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
7) Battlestar Galactica (Ron Moore’s take, not the original)
Star Trek: The Next Generation
9) Stargate: SG-1
10) Lost

Since Babylon 5 consisted of a very intricately woven five year series arc, you needed to watch episodes in sequence, merely to understand the dynamic, often changing, relationships amongst the main characters. I remain in awe of the fact that J. Michael Straczynski wrote many of the episodes, especially those from Seasons Two to Four, in which much of the pivotal action occurs.

To top it off, James Cameron brags a lot and this makes me unable to support the film 100%, though I probobly will see it eventually. By calling it “revolutionary,” “like the first moon landings,” “a game changer” and phrases like that, I kinda hope it fails at the box office just to shut these guys up. At least George Lucas didn’t expect Star WArs I: The Phantom Menace to make a gazillion dollars. He, personally, NEVER wanted it or expected it to be a “game changer.” He made it just to finish telling his 6-film storyline, which started in 1977. Avatar will have trouble finding enough story material for ONE sequal.

Plus, George Lucas financed the prequals himself, which I think is kinda neat.

I’m big fan of Star Trek, but don’t see it necessarily better than Cameron’s work. It covers a broader spectrum of science fiction so there is more to to it. I don’t think the directing of the Star Trek TV series or films is in anyway better. The philosophical aspects of Star Trek are what keeps the franchise alive. It gives us a hopeful glimpse of a better future. One other thing that makes it appealing is that it excites the imagination like no other series has.

James Cameron’s Aliens depicted a much darker future ran by corrupt corporate overlords who place little value on human life or personal freedoms. You can’t really fault him for that. He didn’t create the franchise, he was just continuing it.

The show “Bablyon 5″ was a bit flat and dragged on at times. It has some interesting aspects but I was never a big fan of J. Michael Straczynski’s work. I did watch occasionally to pass the time. One of the better aspects was a slightly more realistic space combat model, but the combat scenes were too sparse. Most of the show is boring dialog. I also thought some of the costumes were ridiculous looking. They had serious characters dressed like clowns.

Regards,

Guy

I’m not really counting “Phantom Menace” which I thought was an artistic mistake from Lucas. I am simply counting the totality of his work. What about “Star Trek”, and especially, “Babylon 5″? At their best, they were – and still are – light years ahead of Cameron’s work.

Regards,

John