I don't understand why so many are apparently offended by this story. We've seen the exact same thing dozens of times before and I don't remember people raging about it back then. Avatar copied from many different films. The influences from Dances with Wolves and even Dinotopia (lol) are extremely apparent.

Have you seen Dances with Wolves? While the main character comes to appreciate the native american culture and gradually becomes a respected member of the tribe, he never becomes their de facto leader or lead them in a war against the white man. If I remember correctly, he warns them and advises them to leave their village like Jake does, but they end up doing exactly that (surprise!) . It's a much more realistic movie and the protagonist is more of a spectator than a legendary warrior who is destined to save the tribe.

I don't think anyone's actually offended. an american indian might be if he or she sees the na'vi as a caricature of their own race, but to me it's just a stupid part of the movie that kind of keeps me from enjoying it even as a dumb cheesy action flick.


also, I think I remember saying the visuals were the strongest point of the film. this may be true in terms of 3D rendering, but I would like to emphasize that the visual design itself is just awful in most cases, eg all the alien creatures. worse than most sci-fi and video game shit even

300 was very racist and blatant about it and no one seemed to care. :(

i didn't see 300 because it also looked like stupid videogame garbage but i remember reading that it's narrated by some old spartan guy as propaganda so that could technically be an out. it's still apparantly homophobic as a motherfucker though but that's probably the source material and director speaking.

bonus zach snyder gaybaiting ive been meaning to post for a while

A pivotal moment in the “Watchmen” plot has Nite Owl and Rorschach hacking into Ozymandias’ computer. Keep a close eye on his desktop, and you’ll see an ominously titled file folder. “Adrian’s sorta like very asexual, but he’s possibly a homosexual,” grinned Matthew Goode, referring to a long-held suspicion among “Watchmen” fans. “There’s a very small thing in his file window, and it just says, ‘Boys.’ Which is very funny, and that’s the kind of detail that Zack works with.”

this is especially funny when the movie was consistently praised as being as close to the source material as possible, meaning one of the few personal (one might say.... auteurial) touches the director made in the adaptation was dropping a gratuitous LOL FAG joke. what a guy

I enjoyed this movie. It was a ball of cliches which I think overly worked because it meant you could just watch and absorb the world. The story required no thought on your part, so all that was left was to watch.
Definitely pissed I didn't watch it in IMAX, but I went on a date to see it. Didn't want to waste that kind of cash on some woman so early on.

yeah wouldnt want to drop a 20 on your date

seriously

I spend more so my broke ass friends can hang out and they're all dudes

ya damn ingrate

That's not the point DietCoke:

oh god that is the most.....idk wow


xkcd is 90% HEY CHECK THIS OUT I HAVE A GIRLFRIEND (OR MAYBE I JUST PRETEND THIS GIRL I LIKE IS MY GIRLFRIEND????)

I thought 90% of XKCD was science references for engineers to circle jerk over.

I thought 90% of XKCD was science references for engineers to circle jerk over.

yes but they all feature his girlfriend/the girl he obsesses over (i have heard this story both ways so i am not sure if that is actually his girlfriend or not)


to me xkcd has always screamed LOOK I HAVE A GIRLFRIEND so to see an xkcd making fun of these people without even trying to be funny at itself is just painful

I feel guilty because I want to go see the movie again

I wouldn't do it though, it's just too expensive and too long.

you are so stupid it's unbelievable

Who are you? *checks post history and sees that all posts are one liners*

 

 

God forbid someone use more than a sentence to express themselves.

aha have you read the xkcdsucks blog vellfire? you might enjoy that

Who are you? *checks post history and sees that all posts are one liners*

 

 

God forbid someone use more than a sentence to express themselves.

aha have you read the xkcdsucks blog vellfire? you might enjoy that

idk why anyone would bother to write and update a blog every single day just about a comic strip they don't even like, but yeah this picture pretty much sums that up

lol

mateui please read that article about avatar. i refuse to believe that you don't have the reading comprehension to have read it and not understood what it was saying.

edit: also this is relevant: http://www.comedycentral.com/videos/index.jhtml?videoId=219442&title=mooney-on-movies

When I made my comment is wasn't in regards to the discussion of this article or even to the remarks made by the people in this thread, simply my viewpoint on the movie and the general reaction from what I've personally heard from some others debating the film. It wasn't directed to anyone in particular.

Ok, I've read that article and I have to disagree with part of its "white fantasy" viewpoint. I find it hard to believe writer of that article has actually read Dune, because using that as an example is just stupid. Collectively, I can see this phenomenon in play, but to call it a white fantasy is really downplaying the issue. If anything, it should be a human fantasy, because regardless of the race in question, this is about humans being superior to nature/animals/other humans, and oppressing them. The fantasy revolves in being absolved from those sins by liberating those who you had once oppressed. History puts whites squarely in the driver seat of this scenario, but it can easily apply to other scenarios. It is white man that has explored and conquered various lands throughout history - and because of that past it is easy to see how stories written about absolving oneself from these trangressions occur.

The aspect of absolving oneself while still retaining white man's privileges is interesting, and I don't deny it occurs. Of course anyone would love to be absolved while still retaining a superior status. This logic is flawed, but then, so are humans themselves. The guilty man wants to resolve the oppression, but also remain in an elevated position afterwards. This in itself is irony at its best because you're trading one situation for another. Both are ultimately negative, but the second one appears to be more righteous to the man in question. This is the fantasy - to be morally upright while still retaining the power over some people/group.

A film about a German liberating Jews (Schindler's List) is just as guilty of falling into this type of fantasy pattern. Both groups here are white in skin color so to simply call it a white fantasy is just narrow minded and doesn't fully convey the meaning of this phenomenon. I'd call it an oppressor fantasy instead.

@Niitaka: that link doesn't work. Takes you to the Comedy Central homepage instead.