Avatar

[Joey]

What a bummer XD

[Perry]

Don't want to give too much away, but did anybody else think that the story was like the Colonists and Native Americans? I just got that feeling while watching it.

[Jackolantern]

Yeah, a lot of reviewers have said that as well. I still don't really hold that against it. The characters and story are solid, even if not 100% original. The world is extremely original and makes up for it, though.

[Loopy]

Don't want to give too much away, but did anybody else think that the story was like the Colonists and Native Americans? I just got that feeling while watching it.

---POTENTIAL SPOILERS!---

I've seen it referred to as "Dances with Aliens" too, many times. Cameron has said he worked on the story for like 15-20 years, to which I've seen people respond that they think he started writing it, right after he watched Dances with Wolves in the theater...hehe.

Personally I thought the story was pretty weak. It's too similar to Dances with Wolves, The Last Samurai, and/or the Pocahontas story or any of the other 5 million movies of 'ignorant guy with selfish motive brought in to do bad guy job but has a change of heart'. I also thought the acting was fairly weak in a lot of areas. The general was a big one, but the lead actor in some parts too. Most bothersome where the female helicopter pilot who had a terrible script, and the other avatar/scientist who just wasn't a very good actor.

The whole 'noble savage' cliche is another element that has been done and done and done and done and overdone time and again.

On top of the repeat from other story lines, and the beating of deadhorse cliches into the ground with a sledge hammer, I'm a huge soundtrack fan. James Horner scored this, and what did he do? He scored it by selecting pieces from other films he's already scored. The main reoccuring 'good guy' theme in Avatar is from Glory, and the main 'bad guy' theme is from Enemy at the Gates... so that was a major disappointment too. So this movie is basically recycled plot, with recycled cliches, with recycled music.

However, the technical achievements with this film are unsurpassed, and they make up for the shortcomings, repeated stories, and tired cliches. This is really a movie that changes the way that movies are made.

[hallsofvallhalla]

omg that fail pic is hilarious!

[D3luxe]

That pic made me laugh so hard.

Everyone is correct that Avatar isn't the most unique story, or the most enticing plot. To me, it's just the entirely new world. All of the movies like that of our age have been on Earth, (aka pocahontas, Dances with Wolves, etc), but to actually create a drastic new environment is what made the movie for me.

I thought the acting was pretty good, to be honest. Nothing stood out at me to be off-kilter or unnecessary/bad.


Yes, the story has been done over and over. Hasn't the majority of the movies out? It's not necessarily the story being done over and over, it's HOW it's presented. In this case, I believe it was presented very well.

[hallsofvallhalla]

if you ever wanna read a smack to the face re-do read Dennis L. Mkcerrnan's Iron Tower Trilogy. Its a close to duplicate of Lord Of the Rings. The hobbits are called warrows, evil mage, mines that a human, dwarf, elf, and warrows have to go through thats full of creatures, ect..

Excellent books, loved them from start to finish but man rip off of Tolkien.

[Perry]

Yeah, a lot of reviewers have said that as well. I still don't really hold that against it. The characters and story are solid, even if not 100% original. The world is extremely original and makes up for it, though.

Everyone is correct that Avatar isn't the most unique story, or the most enticing plot. To me, it's just the entirely new world. All of the movies like that of our age have been on Earth, (aka pocahontas, Dances with Wolves, etc), but to actually create a drastic new environment is what made the movie for me.

I thought the acting was pretty good, to be honest. Nothing stood out at me to be off-kilter or unnecessary/bad.

Yes, the story has been done over and over. Hasn't the majority of the movies out? It's not necessarily the story being done over and over, it's HOW it's presented. In this case, I believe it was presented very well.

I agree with. I am not saying the movie was bad just not completely original and what made it for me was also the exciting new world.

[OldRod]

if you ever wanna read a smack to the face re-do read Dennis L. Mkcerrnan's Iron Tower Trilogy. Its a close to duplicate of Lord Of the Rings. The hobbits are called warrows, evil mage, mines that a human, dwarf, elf, and warrows have to go through thats full of creatures, ect..

Excellent books, loved them from start to finish but man rip off of Tolkien.

I read that years ago - picked up the series in a used bookstore because the cover art looked pretty cool. Read it and thought "wow, this seems familiar"

[Jackolantern]

You also have to keep in mind that there are under 20 different stories that Hollywood keeps using over and over with different specifics. This is well documented. Star Wars was nothing but a "Hero's Journey" story, which has been written and filmed hundreds of times. There are fiction experts who can explain these story structures and how they have been done over and over much better than I can, though.

When you take that into account, almost no story is truly original when it is broken down into its core elements. However, as has already been said, the world is what makes Avatar so amazing.