Sci-Fi Avatar: The Way Of Water

[DarkKnight88]

I think the "Don't bet against Cameron" take is not only for Titanic and Avatar having everything stacked against them yet still being the biggest films of all time, but also "Don't bet against Cameron... making a sequel" with Terminator 2 and Aliens.

If it was any other director, I'd agree. But I think he particularly loves the challenge lol

And I don't think the first movie made what it did because of 3D and special effects. The story obviously touched people. Yes, it's simplistic, but so is Star Wars and E.T. ! Simplistic isn't necessarily a bad thing to reach as broad an audience as possible as long as the heart is there.

 

[Doctor Jones]

Avatar had this weird criticism about it not being original. Who cares? It doesn't matter what type of story it's telling, what matters is how its told.

I don't see how using a template as a means to an end to tell it in a new way is a detriment to a movie. You might as well say Apocalypse Now has no merit because it's not original.

 

[dark_b]

trailer leaked in 4k. but they are deleting it very fast.

 

[MadVillainy]

Avatar had this weird criticism about it not being original. Who cares? It doesn't matter what type of story it's telling, what matters is how its told.

I don't see how using a template as a means to an end to tell it in a new way is a detriment to a movie. You might as well say Apocalypse Now has no merit because it's not original.

People complain about originality but then watch MCU part 80, Fast & Furious Part 10, etc. Movie series that repeat themselves over and over and over. But then complain about Avatar. I don't even love Avatar like that but it's silly.

it's just a "cool" thing to do online

 

[MOVIELORD101]

Avatar had this weird criticism about it not being original. Who cares? It doesn't matter what type of story it's telling, what matters is how its told.

I don't see how using a template as a means to an end to tell it in a new way is a detriment to a movie. You might as well say Apocalypse Now has no merit because it's not original.

FINALLY!!!! FINALLY, for the first time in 13 years, someone other than me says this! I really feel the original movie was unfairly shat out for that snobby reason. Who gives a **** WHAT Avatar borrowed from? James Cameron did his own thing with it, and did a ton of world-building to the point where Pandora itself was practically it's own character. Say what you will about the movie, but it was unique and certainly memorable.

 

[Arachnerd]

I mean, over the years I've grown to dislike it simply because it didn't do anything interesting execution wise. I'm fine with it taking elements from other stories (most media is barely 100% original anymore, but it's not necessary a detriment), I just thought the characters were cliched and stock, and the environmental message hamfisted and handled in an unnecessarily preachy manner. Your movie can be absolute stunning, but if there's nothing else to back it up, I'm not going to particularly enjoy it. Again, cool if you guys enjoy it, but it just didn't resonate with me.

If not liking the movie for those reasons alone is a bad thing, then it just demonstrates ignoring the concept of subjectivity whenever it's convenient.

 

[Filmfreak]

I'm of the opposite direction where I thought it was very overrated when it was first released, but grew much fonder of it over the years. The fact that they stopped pushing for the awful 3D trend for all releases helped, but it's mostly due all those corporate formulaic cinematic universes, reboots and spin-offs that I started appreciating something original.

Even if the story was simplistic and the characters kind of basic, the movie still had heart. It felt like someone's actual vision. Maybe not a vision that resonates with everyone, but something that certainly had passion and original aspects in it. It's even rarer to see films like that now that cinema as a medium is constantly being diminished in favour of studios that are pushing for streaming releases and cheap content. To have a cinematic experience like that is something we see less and less over the course of years.

 

[Primal Slayer]

People expecting this to be as big as the first are either trying to set this up to fail/hating or are kinda being unreasonable.

1) Expecting every Avatar sequel to reach the financial heights of Avatar 1 is like inserting an athlete to break their points per game/match every time they lace up their shoes

2) Avatar in 2009 was a blank slate. Now it has baggage for some people.

3) The movie landscape is so different than 2009 and that will affect Avatar. Just to name a couple of things: a) there's more competition from other blockbusters b) audiences don't care that much on how good special effects are compared to in the 2000s c) people are more bullish on 3D vs it having a resurgence in 2009

I get the whole "Don't bet against Cameron" take. I feel that. But I'm just being realistic. Then again I didn't think the first movie would be as big as it would be

Will happily be proven wrong, but I doubt it

They didn't greenlight 2 sequels back2back because they expect it to make much less than the original. They didn't up the budget because they expect it to make much less than the original. It's a $250 million dollar film, its going to be expected to hit very very close to a billion just as BvS was with the same price tag. That's just being realistic.

 

[Filmfreak]

They also didn't have a global pandemic, cinema crisis and the rise of streaming in mind when they were greenlighting them. Even so, its chances to make a billion and/or be the biggest film of the year are very high.

 

[Scarlet Spider]

Alot of people resent it because of it's success. That's just the reality of it. Success breeds jealousy.

I have no problem with people who didn't like it. There are alot of popular things I don't enjoy either.

What I don't understand is, If you didn't like the first one, why are you interested in the sequels? I can assure you, you won't like those either.

 

[Deck Rickard]

Avatar had this weird criticism about it not being original. Who cares? It doesn't matter what type of story it's telling, what matters is how its told.

I don't see how using a template as a means to an end to tell it in a new way is a detriment to a movie. You might as well say Apocalypse Now has no merit because it's not original.

That’s true but it also matters how you tell the story. How I weigh familiar stories against previous versions or similar story types is whether the latest one brings something new to the table or if it just executes particularly well on a number of factors (acting, dialogue, character interactions, motivations, etc.). The best recent example, I would say, is The Northman. It’s the basic Hamlet story arc (which makes sense since it’s based on the legend that inspired the play) but the execution is damn near perfect and it still manages to produce some genuine surprises.

In Avatar’s case, I would say it was “fine” but nothing really outstanding or innovative from a story standpoint. In terms of acting, I would say Lang and Saldana stood out, while Worthington and most of the others are suitable but nothing special. It’s really the visuals that put the movie over the top, and I would argue that some of those aren’t as great as people make them out to be. The blue aliens themselves look awesome and real in some shots and in others look like Gumby and a walking stick had a lovechild. Now, I will say that Pandora itself and the wildlife look amazing, and the 3D in the movie is stellar. Avatar is about the ONLY movie that did it well during the 3D craze over a decade ago.

 

[Kane52630]

 

[MadVillainy]

They didn't greenlight 2 sequels back2back because they expect it to make much less than the original. They didn't up the budget because they expect it to make much less than the original. It's a $250 million dollar film, its going to be expected to hit very very close to a billion just as BvS was with the same price tag. That's just being realistic.

That's not what I said

I didn't say it would make a billion or that that is an unrealistic goal. I said it wouldn't make as much as Avatar 1 ($2+ bill) and that that's not a realistic goal. Not saying it's impossible but not a sure thing.

Like I said, it's like expecting Lebron to score at least 61 points every time he checks into a game or C. Ronaldo to score 5+ points every game he plays.

 

[MadVillainy]

What I don't understand is, If you didn't like the first one, why are you interested in the sequels? I can assure you, you won't like those either.

People are weird. Look at the people who hate Fast and Furious, the Bayformers films, etc. but still watch all of and constantly talk about them.

 

[Dave McFly]

that looks AMAZING!

 

[MOVIELORD101]

Uh, why are we posting bootleg videos before the proper actual release? You guys are gonna get in trouble for that.

 

[I'm Old Greg]

The sequel looks beautiful I’m excited to see this in 3D.

People who complain about the story have no idea about Disney and Fox trying to buy the rights to AVATAR from each other back when it was Cameron’s next film.

FOX Passed on AVATAR because the script was to brutal and dark to allow Cameron the budget he needed to film it.

So Cameron offered AVATAR to Disney and they wanted it.

FOX ended up rushing back to Cameron when Dinsey made their offer.

The original script had suicide, death of a princess, and Navi children being killed. Which was taken out of the final shooting script.

Cameron realized he had to make AVATAR for all ages to see, from children to the elderly in order for it to be accepted by the public which it was by becoming the number one film.

 

[Kane52630]

 

[C. Lee]

Uh, why are we posting bootleg videos before the proper actual release? You guys are gonna get in trouble for that.

I saw that trailer Thursday night at the theater when I went to DOCTOR STRANGE.....if it's been shown at the theater it's ok to show on here.

 

[Scarlet Spider]

I love this.

The audiences reaction to the teaser was electric.

 

[Doctor Jones]

Great trailer. Loved the images and the music. Curious about Stephen Lang and that human (kid?) the Na'Vi have with them. Reminds me of Tarzan.

 

[Blade Hoarder]

Damn. The water effects and the wet texture looks amazing.

 

[Kane52630]

 

[#root]

Everything having to do with the water looks gorgeous. And they definitely seem to be holding back with the visuals so I’m excited to see what else they have in store. Curious to see how the dead characters from the last one are back.

Edit: I’m also curious what role the white kid with locs is going to play. Seems like he’s keeping up fairly well with the Na’vi kids.

 

[Prison Mike]

My theater was pretty silent when the Avatar trailer come on during DS2.