AVATAR...2009...Cameron

I am a firm believer in the fact that filmmakers are storytellers.  In the case of this sci-fi lovers dreamworld, (taking place in a galaxy far away...), humans can step into the literal bodies of the aliens that they are studying via a personal "avatar." The word avatar, according to Princeton's world.net.web, means: embodiment: a new personification of a familiar idea; "the embodiment of hope"; "the incarnation of evil"; "the very avatar of cunning." It also means: the manifestation of a Hindu deity (especially Vishnu) in human or superhuman or animal form; "the Buddha is considered an avatar of the god Vishnu."  Hmmm...that's disturbing. RPG'ers will also lay claim to the word as they "live" their games...and get the snot beaten out of them at school in their real lives.  

I've asked myself if James Cameron,

 writer/director/producer of Avatar, is simply appealing to the masses or if somewhere deep within himself is a young sci-fi nerd living his other life on the big screen.  Leave it to Cameron to produce a sci-fi 3-D action thriller "for the whole family" with 500 million dollar budget (probably the highest on a film yet). Cameron farmed out to the best in the biz - Lucasfilms, Weta, Skywalker Sound.  The outcome was the 

astounding marriage of CGI

 and real life action, a believable story, and an empathetic tale of colonization that should hit pretty close to home.

I just taught the book Things Fall Apart - a tragic story about the British colonization of Nigeria in the early 1900's.  Its author, Chinua Achebe, claims to have written his book as a reminder to his people not to completely lose the old ways, and to the world to not repeat the wrongs of the past.  Achebe speaks of the "white men" coming into his native tribe in Africa - some who come peaceably to befriend and learn about the tribes, and others who come to take and force compliance. Native Americans will also relate to the moral of the Avatar story.  They know of forced compliance and the general disrespect of their gods.  As in Native American culture, the "Blue People" of this far away planet, have a pantheistic religious milieu that encompasses all that they do.  They are people of the trees, athletic and naturalistic.  It's an REI member's dream to get to live like they do.  The adventures are palpable, the landscape beautiful.  We, the theatergoers, see through the eyes of Sam Worthington, a truly solid character.  He is believable, and (like the hero "Jack" from the show Lost) he has a refreshing understanding of stillness.  He's the jarhead-made-Avatar. 

Now to the penny-drop: I was deeply disturbed by this film's blatant freedom to show nudity as justified by cultural differences and CGI affects, sexuality as justified by the idea that at least one party believed that they were "mating for life," and pagan rituals as truth justified once again by the difference in culture.  Our culture seems to demand tolerance and acceptance of differences while rejecting critical thinking.  In life's classroom, this is an unacceptable practice.  The family sitting behind me probably should have shielded their 5 & 6 year old's eyes during a number of scenes - or not brought them at all.  People are bringing their whole families into the bedrooms of random strangers and encouraging them to watch.  I am disgusted.

So, to end this rant, I believe this film to be an action-packed thrill-ride with a message much like Achebe's - go and learn of the cultures but never feel that you are better and can take what you want from them.  I also believe that this film is dangerously beautiful - attractive in a way that makes you say "oh, I guess it's ok. It's just a story." And later as you enjoy his Worthington's last few words, "Afterall, it's my birthday," you smile.  You may not realize that you've accidentally downed the entire bottle of poison - slowly, so it was barely noticeable.