This is for my film critique. I don't know, it just seems easier to do this when I've got something to start with, so here goes nothing, huh?
Claim: The theme of Avatar, while informative, is an overused one. Many of the characters are also stereotypical to the extreme and feel two-dimensional. Nevertheless, the glorious use of special effects and cinematography as well as the heart-stopping action keep the viewer interested all the way to the end.
Overall, the storyline of Avatar is gripping for the viewer; however, when you look deeper, the theme behind that story is one which has been repeated over and over many times, not only in real life, but in many facets of fiction as well. It essentially attempts to embody the idea that humans by nature are prone to sacrificing others of different races (or in this case, species) in order to gain what they want. Like the Conquistadors, who came to the "New World" for gold and killed millions of natives and like the Europeans who invaded and colonized Africa in search of riches to trade at the expense of the native people, this story is about how the natives are disregarded and murdered in order to gain what the "humans" want.
By no means does the overused theme make the story or movie itself inadequate. To the contrary, the movie itself held my attention and kept me on the edge of my seat. The world of Avatar crafted through complex visual and special effects taking thousands of hours of work made this movie come to life. There are scenes, such as the scene overlooking the Hallelujah Mountains (the floating mountains of Pandora) which are so corporeal and yet so surreal at the same time that it becomes breathtakingly easy to imagine that Pandora itself actually does exist. This is part of the magic of the movie.
It is also amazing how realistic the Avatar bodies of the characters appear. Unlike the often waxy or entirely fake appearance of aliens in other movies, such as the older Star Wars movies, the bodies of the Na'vi appear extremely realistic, as do the appearances and movements of the many other creatures found in the movie. Scars, veins, injuries and blood all appear as real as they would on any person or living creature, which would have taken hours upon hours of special effects to maintain. You can see their muscles moving, see them breathing, just like any real life animal, and they don't appear fake. For example, the Toruk (the large orange flying creature, for those of you who don't know Na'vi) had absolutely phenominal detail on its skin, from texture to scars to even the most minute of movements. The animated artistry of Avatar is mouth-watering.
The setting is also glorious. The use of color, special effects, music and sound to create mood in each scene was incredibly ingenius. In the scene at night in the forest--which does look very much like an overgrown, real forest--the use of orange fireflies, the hyena-like cackles of the "viperwolves", dramatic music and the shadows to create a tense, anxiety-inducing atmosphere had my heart racing as if it were me being stalked through the forests of Pandora. In contrast, the love scene was emphasized by the brilliant glowing colors of the exotic and creative flora brought to life by the special effects, the sweet harp tones like pure little raindrops in the background and the contrasting soft darkness giving the scene a feeling of being the "only place in the world" was a masterful way to set up a sweet, romantic aura around the hero, Jake Sully, and Neytiri.
While the beautiful visual world of Avatar and the dramatic action-packed scenes rolled up within the story are captivating, I found the storyline itself to be a bit boring and the characters to border often on the stereotypical. While the acting was well-done--the actors being able to carry out their rolls gracefully--I think some of the characters needed a bit more development in order to truly have substance. While loner-botanist and secret marshmallow Grace Augustine and dragon-lady yet wise and loving mother Mo'at were gripping characters, many others, such as the reckless hero himself, the nerdy scientist and the evil, antisocial personality disorder inflicted main antagonist all seemed a bit two-dimensional.
Quaritch, for example, has no personality other than "I hate all of the blue savages and they all should die". Nowhere in the entire movie does he show even a drop of remorse for murdering hundreds of innocents, which implies that he does not possess a conscience. He blatantly disregards the suffering of the clearly sentient native people by saying things such as "let's make this mission tight; I wanna be home for dinner" right before setting out to destroy what's left of a people he's already driven from their home. I understand the necessity of his character, but he feels extremely two-dimensional; there's nothing more to him.
On the other hand, there's Selfridge, the corporate guru who doesn't care about anyone or anything but himself and making money. The fact that he's about to kill hundreds of Na'vi for a deposit of Unobtainium in order to make money doesn't bother him in the least. As he said "The only thing the company hates more than bad press is a bad quarterly statement." He then elaborates to Jake that "We need to find a carrot, otherwise, it's gonna have to be all stick." He never feels remorse and he never questions his actions. Also, I dislike the actor playing him--Giovanni Ribisi--because he looks like he should be stupid (as Selfridge) and he's not. In fact, his role in leadership is almost equal to that of Quaritch, which I didn't think fit his appearance or initial characterization where he was depicted as a frivolous layabout putting golfballs and so dumb that he couldn't operate his own equipment.
By no means does this make the story a bad one. It merely becomes apparent, when one looks closer, that this makes the storyline itself seem unrealistic. What is the real likelihood of all the marines except Jake and Trudy following Quaritch into these evil deeds without even questioning themselves? Are all of them lacking a conscience? I understand that in our society we are often conformists who follow the leader and go with the flow to avoid confrontation, but it strikes me as odd that no one else backed out or stood up but the scientists, which, of course, brings about a whole other point.
The black-and-white line drawn between the "good guys" (also known as the Science Department) and the "bad guys" (who are the ex-Marines) is so set that it seems unreal when one looks closer. This, of course, fits perfectly with the storyline itself, but seems incredibly unlikely and unrealistic when you really think about it. Not one of the scientists in the Science Department in this movie hated the Na'vi, while only Jake and Trudy found it within themselves to not hate the "hostiles" and be ready to kill them all off for no other reason then for enjoyment or to make money. In this way, the human race is depicted in a very, very negative fashion, and I think it's important for viewers to realize that this does not mean all ex-Marines are bad and willing to murder hundreds of innocents for fun, or that the human race is inexplicably willing to commit such atrocities for the sake of getting what it wants. Is it a possibility, yes. But not everyone out there is like that.
I think that in of itself, Avatar was a great and captivating movie at first glance and really kept me focused on the action and the beautiful "other world" that Pandora created to woo the viewer. By no means was it a poor movie, but some flaws were apparent within it. The ending was a wonderful ending, by the way, but I feel like that isn't the end. My last complaint would be that I somehow doubt the RDA will run back to Earth with their tails between their legs and never return. Nevertheless, the happy ending left me feeling breathless.
Note: This was my practice round. It helps me organize my thoughts.
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