Avatar *Here there be spoilers*

[Kevin Thomas Riley]

Hey! I happen to like girls with guns. But some of her outfits have been... odd. But she looks great even in gauze and organe hair.

[Asso]

I googled her and you are right KTR. She is very attractive as is. But 0h how annoying. Look what they did to her for the poster:

http://www.millaj.com/pics/resident3-bluraydvd1.jpg

*sigh*

Oh... Uh... Ahem...

[justTripn]

Hey! I happen to like girls with guns. But some of her outfits have been... odd. But she looks great even in gauze and organe hair.

Wow! OK!

[enterprikayak]

I googled her and you are right KTR. She is very attractive as is. But 0h how annoying. Look what they did to her for the poster:

http://www.millaj.com/pics/resident3-bluraydvd1.jpg

*sigh*

how much of that do you think is photoshopped?

[Elessar]

Well, the Vatican has chimed in on Avatar:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100112/ap_ ... can_avatar


They object to the religious themes. It just goes to show how MMV, because little, old agnostic me saw the movie as profoundly pro-religion and pro the idea that there is a God and an afterlife, though there might be a scientific explanation for "God". But I suppose that's not enough for certain people. The Vatican apparently doesn't like that the film's version of religion isn't their version. I'm also guessing they don't like the idea that the film's "God" is portrayed in the feminine.

On a totally different note, now that you mention it JustTripin, I wonder what the evolutionary purpose of nipple-free breasts are!

1. usually for groups like the Vatican, even though it would seem to us like it should be acknowledged, it's never enough for a movie in an industry that's normally vehemently anti-religion to at least ACKNOWLEDGE God; it has to be their God.

1b. the Vatican will always jump on anything that deifies nature because it's basically a throwback to Paganism and all those naturalistic worships that monotheistic religions replaced and persecuted.

2. I think Neytiri had nipples, and here's why. Ok, so here's how I think they filmed this... the actors walked around and acted out most of the scenes, particularly those where they're standing around and the focus is dialog and interaction and small facial features... and then they CG'd on the blue and the spots and the textures like a layered suit over the actors. They could have just scaled everything up to accomplish the size, but the scenes with humans and NaVi juxtaposed were FLAWLESSLY rendered. I could probably go google somewhere how they did it and be sure, but I'm too tired, and I have a reason for that theory: the first or 2nd time seeing the movie (I've now seen it 3 times, lol), I thought I recognized Neytiri as an actress, but I couldn't place her name. I kept recognizing her mannerisms and facial ticks, though I still couldn't place it. Then suddenly, I went wait, wait, didn't they just have voice actors behind these with no physical resemblance to the NaVi character itself? Why would the NaVi resemble the actress/actor behind them? But then I realized that the Avatars resembled the actors, so it stood to reason the NaVi would too. So I look it up and? As many of you know it's Zoe Saldana (Uhura), and if you compare them, it's a spot on match. She DOES look like Neytiri, or rather Neytiri looks like her. I'm convinced because of how similar Neytiri looks and acts like Saldana does in other roles that they filmed the ACTUAL actors.

All that being said, obviously the clothing was rendered on, therefore there'd be no excuse whatsoever for a "wardrobe malfunction"... HOWEVER! As I was watching this movie for the 3rd time, in the 2nd row of a 50 tall, 75 ft wide IMAX screen, I innocently scanned the picture to take in the whole scene and I swear I saw a nipple for just a split second. Pardon the language, it may have been an aureola , but it was there.

Besides, what about the male NaVi, didn't they have nipples? Nipples, in both sexes, are an evolutionary part of caring for live young, correct? It'd be interesting to conjecture as to the species NaVi would most closely resemble. Are they mammalian?


3.

The pope explained in the message that while many experience tranquillity and peace when coming into contact with nature, a correct relationship between man and the environment should not lead to "absolutizing nature" or "considering it more important than the human person."

I just can't help myself. So apparently even if Nature makes you feel good, if opens your eyes to wonder and awe... don't forget that it's really just there to serve us and lengthen the misery of the human condition because even though a tree never slept with its best friend's wife and then bludgeoned its best friend to death with a snowglobe it gave its best friend for its best friend's birthday; humans are still the most important thing and we shouldn't forget that. In the immortal words of the RDA Supervisor played by Giovanni Ribisci, "They're just FRICKIN TREES!" Just in case it wasn't thoroughly caked on, the last sentence there was dripping with sarcasm bred of a pretty determined conviction that we're, by the numbers, an irredeemable people and that any belief system that blindly elevates us above organisms not only uninterested in, but incapable of, some of our favorite human past times like deception, greed, genocide, betrayal, and cruelty is an exercise in spiritual self-gratification that gets you nowhere but into a superficial realm of false personal comfort.

If people are fulfilled by abandoning the human world and wandering around among the trees all Beleriand and Lord of the Rings style, so be it. Who's some guy with a pointy frickin hat to tell them they're missing the point?

/rant

I guess I should clarify my message here and point out that I'm not really making this about religion. The point is, I thought the message behind Avatar was pure and altruistic and attacks on the spiritual depth of its story line are specious.

[justTripn]

Zoe Saldana (Uhura)! How did I not know that? My boys were saying she seemed so familiar and one of them guessed Jada Pickett Smith, but she's too old.

As for the do the Navari have nipples question, I'm pretty sure if they do for a moment, it was an accident. I don't think they are supposed to be mammals. In fact, to me that would severely undermine the wonderful efforts of the producers/writers to make this story scientifically plausible. Check out the Navari men. Look at the other animals, like the Pandorian cats, with whom the Navari shared some physiological traits (the pschic attatchment cords). None of them had nipples.

I agree with what Elessar said, that it is petty to pick at this movie from a moral perspective. It was a pretty good movie from that perspective. I think we can all agree that blowing up someone's home to get at the goods you need is bad, for instance. I think we can all agree that it has happened repeatedly throughout history. There are also many instances of people "switching sides," learning to identify with a ethnicity or a cause not originally their own. The fact that the hero manages to catch the biggest baddest bird and swoop in at the last minute to save the day is kind of lame, but HEY! It was a pretty good story and how can a writer resist having the protagonist (who the audience most identifies with) swoop in at the last minute and save the day? That's how 99% of stories go. The only way to get around this is to tell a completely different kind of story: a story that start and ends with the "others" and doesn't involve any of "our kind." Like recently I saw a movie about the Ghengis Khan tole from Ghengis Khan's point of view. You know who saves the Mongols? The Mongols! But those stories are somewhat unusual because of the very tempting story-telling device to throw someone like us (the audience) into a strange world where we both (protagonist and audience) have to find our way. I only realized how prevalent this story-telling device was when I say a Thai movie that was like "The Killing Fields" except a white person never appeared in the whole movie. It was just about Cambodians (although even there, come to think about it, the Thai soldier were the saviors of the day). But it woke me up to the odd convention, that a story doesn't usually even get told unless we can insert an North American or European into it as the story teller as the protagonist (and usually the hero).

AND! HEY! THE whole premise of this movie was "AVATAR." Someone inserted into a foreign world using an avatar, so this movie HAS to be told through the eyes of a newcomer from our world.

[Ludmila]

I watched Avatar yesterday in IMAX. It was a nice experience. There were no heads of the neighbours before me. The details were huge. I even looked at nipples and saw them at men.
But my first watch this movie left the lingering impression of the awe. Now I was only pleased from watching the thrilling movie but not it was something noncomparable. I am looking forward to the sequel.
It was strange because I can rewatch usually some movie that I loved many times with the ascending content.
Dis, did you watch it the second time as you planned? What were your new perceptions?
I suppose that Elessar loved this movie a lot in his entire visitations.

[Elessar]

I watched Avatar yesterday in IMAX. It was a nice experience. There were no heads of the neighbours before me. The details were huge. I even looked at nipples and saw them at men.
But my first watch this movie left the lingering impression of the awe. Now I was only pleased from watching the thrilling movie but not it was something noncomparable. I am looking forward to the sequel.
It was strange because I can rewatch usually some movie that I loved many times with the ascending content.
Dis, did you watch it the second time as you planned? What were your new perceptions?
I suppose that Elessar loved this movie a lot in his entire visitations.

Ditto. I loved it a lot the 2nd and 3rd times but for different reasons a bit, kind of like you said.

[Distracted]

I watched Avatar yesterday in IMAX. It was a nice experience. There were no heads of the neighbours before me. The details were huge. I even looked at nipples and saw them at men.
But my first watch this movie left the lingering impression of the awe. Now I was only pleased from watching the thrilling movie but not it was something noncomparable. I am looking forward to the sequel.
It was strange because I can rewatch usually some movie that I loved many times with the ascending content.
Dis, did you watch it the second time as you planned? What were your new perceptions?
I suppose that Elessar loved this movie a lot in his entire visitations.

I did watch it again, but with my parents. My dad is going deaf and won't admit it so my mom spent most of the movie repeating dialogue to him. It was okay, but I was too worried about making sure my dad understood what was going on to really enjoy it the second time. And the first time wonder wasn't there. So no, I didn't really see anything new to comment on.

[Aikiweezie]

I haven't seen Avatar yet, but I am sure that one of the first things I will be paying attention to is the presence or absence of nipples. This is my second post of the day and so far both are about mammary glands.

Weird.

[Ludmila]

I did watch it again, but with my parents. My dad is going deaf and won't admit it so my mom spent most of the movie repeating dialogue to him. It was okay, but I was too worried about making sure my dad understood what was going on to really enjoy it the second time. And the first time wonder wasn't there.

I am sorry for your dad. I was also not alone on movie. I invited my acquaintance. It is found out that she did not watch any 3D-movies before. Maybe I was slightly worried about her impressions. But I suppose that there is every likelihood that my too big expectations spoiled my second watching.

I bought the book "Avatar: the field guide to Pandora" by Maria Wilhelm and Dirk Mathison and started to read it in metro. They explained the origin of floating rocks (mountains Alleluia) by the special properties of unobtainium.

if there are no genitals and the tendrils are nervous tissue, where are the gametes and how do they make babies? Are the "ultimate intimacy" and reproduction separate activities? That might make their home life interesting, don't you think? If one has a lifelong bond with one partner but breeding is like... "Hey. You look strong and intelligent. Why don't you come over and meet my husband so we can negotiate a gamete transfer over dinner?" And how would she get pregnant without genitals? Swallow the stuff?

The book said about the same as I fancied it. My translation from Russian:
"The reproductive mechanism is analogous to ours. But Na'vi's unique physiological properties help them to experience the full intimacy inaccessible for us. Na'vi's connection via their braid causes the emotional link between woman and man unbreakable until the death. The interweaving of their braids gives simultaneously the deep spiritual unity and the erotic pleasure, but that of itself is not conducive to the reproduction."

The book describes some dangers what we did not watch in the movie. I suppose that they can appear in the sequel.
I liked the notion that some Pandora plants can be useful for Earth ecology (and for our one also). But the greed Corporation was interesting only unobtainium for some reason. Big profit I assume.

[Elessar]

Do you mean to say the plants on pandora could be translated to Earth? Like to regrow our ecosystem if it had all but died? Kind of interesting idea for a sequel... Jake and Neytiri on Earth

[Ludmila]

Do you mean to say the plants on pandora could be translated to Earth? Like to regrow our ecosystem if it had all but died? Kind of interesting idea for a sequel... Jake and Neytiri on Earth

The book explained that the deadly danger of Pandora's air for human consists in the higher concentration of the carbon-dioxide gas and the admixture of xenon and hydrogen sulfide. I suppose Pandora's plants might adapt here.
The book said: "Pandora is rich in not only minerals. Its nature may save Earth… For example, oktoshroom (I do not proper spelling) is rapidly growing and radiation-resistant fungus. It absorbs the different soil pollutions and can purify Nevada's (the one from movie) toxic plains."
I think that we'll see more adventures on Pandora at first. The book gives many Pandora's affects that we did not watch.

[auroraborealis]

Avatar was amazing. It made me sob in public and I mean like snot coming out of my nose sobbing. This is not something I typically do..ever. at all. zero. nada. I think it was partially the music but the movie was just soooooo amazing and gut wrenching.

[Elessar]

Avatar was amazing. It made me sob in public and I mean like snot coming out of my nose sobbing. This is not something I typically do..ever. at all. zero. nada. I think it was partially the music but the movie was just soooooo amazing and gut wrenching.

I liked it that much too!!!