Avatar!

[artist_in_a_box]

personaly i wasnt very impressed by the 3D, maybe it was because i hadnt seen the 2D so cant compare but it didnt really wow me, only noticed it one or two times. Although they didnt deliberatly rub your face in it like they sometimes do by throwing an object at the camera or something daft, which i respect cos i hate when films have to remind u like that, always found it a bit patronising.
I think i may make the decision to see it again now just to compare...

[Toke1985]

Problems with avatar is why the fuck does the creatures have 6 legs looks stupid and why does the navi then dont have 6 legs?? And why is Sigourney weaver's avatar so butt fucking ugly and why is the lion tiger creature so over designed but besides that it is a good movie and the graphic looks amazing.
And like Artist_in_a_box said the is not that impressive in 3D and I only seen it in 3D.

sorry Cameron don't hype your movie if you don't make it perfect.

[Bellsey]

some interesting views there, but personally I thought the 3D was simply stunning, no other word for it.

Truefully, I had been sceptical of whether Cameron could deliver the 3D, but I fortunate to see a 33min preview at the beginning of December and I was blown away. There are some sequences and shots that are simply breathtaking and some of the animation and facial work is some of the best I have seen. And there are many other points as well that I could mention.

Throughout the history of movies and visual effects, there are times when a movie or movies come along and push up to the next level, they raise the bar, set a standard, and make a point. They take processes and technology and prove that if you handle it and manage it in the right way, you will get great results. And I think Avatar is one of those movies. I'm not saying its perfect, it's hard to find a movie that is, but Cameron has delivered big time with Avatar.

[Toke1985]

I will say that the CG is amazing really like it. nothing there that made me mad but the part of seeing it in 3D for a bigger price per ticket i don't really know if its worth it. but yeah i would say it is the first time i seen so much CG and i did not think about that it was CG like in the new star wars movies where you just get pissed because it looks so more fake even compared to the first star wars with all poppets :-) But surely it have move the border of Cg in movies but as for a movie and story i don't think it delivers any new stuff or views.

[Bellsey]

Originally Posted by Toke1985

But surely it have move the border of Cg in movies but as for a movie and story i don't think it delivers any new stuff or views.

I wasn't referring to the story and characters, etc, that's a whole seperate thread really.

[Cryrid]

Problems with avatar is why the fuck does the creatures have 6 legs looks stupid and why does the navi then dont have 6 legs??

It's an alien planet. It would be a bit mundane if most of the larger animals were quadruped like their equivalents on earth (I thought their 'horses' looked rather bad ass).

[Toke1985]

Originally Posted by Cryrid

It's an alien planet. It would be a bit mundane if most of the larger animals were quadruped like their equivalents on earth (I thought their 'horses' looked rather bad ass).

Yeah but why does the navi dont have 4 arms and 2 legs would just make more beliveble. like in real nature like we are a part of some evolution??

[Cryrid]

Yeah but why does the navi dont have 4 arms and 2 legs would just make more beliveble. like in real nature like we are a part of some evolution??

The Na'vi didn't seem to resemble the other hexapods in a lot of ways (only one pair of eyes, seem to breath through their mouth/nose, bipedal, opposable thumbs). I can't see a reason why the natural selection of whatever family/animal they're from has to give them 6 limbs just because another species has them.

[artist_in_a_box]

Im willing to grant a bit of artists licence to the humanoid design of the navi, i guess it was so they could mocap easier.
With the way they designed everything else with more limbs and eyes than usual i get the idea that they tried really hard to make us realise it was a new world throwing visible differences in our face.
I especially didnt like the fact that you can pick out the real world counterparts of each animal on screen which shows that they didnt really work too much on top of the original personality of the creatures. When comparing this to the extent of design that went into the physical look of the animals its a bit unbalanced creatively which makes me think that they put more emphasis in it looking otherworldy and not being otherworldy, sort of like home from home, so it looks different enough to be interesting and alienly exotic (coining that term) but similar enough so that we read it without too much thought, which gives us more time to think about the story. if it looks a bit like a horse and sounds a bit like a horse then its a horse, who cares if its greenish red right?
Really i guess this makes things seem a bit shallow as in truth you could scrap the sci fi and make this cowboys and indians without any hassle and its not too different from running with wolves or last samurai (at a push), these aesthetic differences are only there to reinforce that it is alienbut at least on the surface they are nicely made and look fantastic so im not complaining.

Wether or not anything is overdesigned and such is down to personal taste, though some of the designs are a bit busy it is realised very nicely, i actually think the cat/dog thing that neytiri rides is made well as it looks like the ultimate killing machine which when he rides it reinforces the fact that she is queen of her people and in a way Pandora itself, similarly with jake when he rides the Toruk, showing he has mastered the king of beasts thus he is king.

While many of these references and icons in the film can be seen as cheesy by many (including myself at times)i am the first to admit that in this case at least i couldnt care less lol, i really think avatar is th closest to perfect film i have ever seen and is easily one of my favourites, the only thing i dont like is thatit had to end, ould watch ten hours of it and not be bored.


Sorry for mega post lol.

[Cryrid]

Im willing to grant a bit of artists licence to the humanoid design of the navi, i guess it was so they could mocap easier.

I figure it makes Mocap easier, makes the whole concept of Avatars easier (which is like mocap in a way... might be hard for a human to mentally control an extra pair of arms if we've never had them), and the more human they are the easier it is for the audience to relate to them. To be honest I'd question their desire to wear clothes sooner than I would their number of limbs (its always the humanoids that seem to feel shame).

sort of like home from home, so it looks different enough to be interesting and alienly exotic (coining that term) but similar enough so that we read it without too much thought, which gives us more time to think about the story.

I think that's their goal really. They need to feel new and exoctic, but familiar enough for us to be able to relate it to something we know exists (might be similar to how you have to mix in a little truth to make a good lie believable). Make the creates more familiar, and they'll somehow seem more real. Especially to the people in the audience who aren't generally big on SciFi/fantasy, and the kids who probably wouldn't get the reasoning or pseudo-science behind any attempt at explaining them. If they see something that looks like a mix between a Rhino and a 40ft Elephant with a hammerhead (be it in Avatar or something like Warcraft), having it ram things is going to be the only thing that really feels right.