Avatar

I had been looking forward to seeing Jim Cameron's new movie Avatar. The hype had been so amazing. I went in expecting a fun, entertaining movie, and that is not what I found. It made me quite uncomfortable. So, here are some of my thoughts on the movie:

Pros:
1. The special effects are stunning. This is the best 3D movie I have ever seen.
2. Very clever creative use of so many things - for example, love the word "unobtainium". Brilliant.

Cons:
1. The destruction of Pandora was painful to watch. When the huge tree fell, I could not watch.
2. The elimination of the native populations hit too close to home. The scene where the Na'vi on "horseback" armed with bows and arrows charge the men with guns had me in tears. I saw almost too clearly what it must have looked like when the Native Americans were massacred. Or any other native peoples. Guns, Germs and Steel in action. And in that context, the Hollywood ending seemed disingenuous.

So, maybe Cameron is trying to make a political statement about the environment. And if that changed even one person's mind about how precious our planet is, then in my opinion the movie is a success. I've heard people say that they were depressed that they did not live on Pandora. (Click here to read one such article). To those I say, open your eyes. You do.