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James Cameron's "Avatar"

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  • CMH
    Making you famous
    • Oct 2002
    • 26203
    #31
    re: James Cameron's "Avatar"

    Originally posted by jmood88
    How the hell does it cheapen the movie? I'm tired of people complaining just because things are more advanced than they were 20 years ago. The reason why animatronics were used was because CGI wasn't at the point to where you could actually make computer generated characters look like they were on screen. And if you want to see a blend of CGI and puppetry watch Where The Wild Things Are.
    I think his point is that a lot of films relying heavily on CGI are more concerned with visuals than plot.

    I know, I know, some people just want to see pretty things look prettier and explosions look bigger. That's fine, but it still echoes his thoughts: If it has a heavy influence of CGI, chances are the plot is secondary.

    And I don't mean this is true for every film. But it is true for most.
    "It may well be that we spectators, who are not divinely gifted as athletes, are the only ones able to truly see, articulate and animate the experience of the gift we are denied. And that those who receive and act out the gift of athletic genius must, perforce, be blind and dumb about it -- and not because blindness and dumbness are the price of the gift, but because they are its essence." - David Foster Wallace

    "You'll not find more penny-wise/pound-foolish behavior than in Major League Baseball." - Rob Neyer

      Comment

      • elgreazy1
        MVP
        • Apr 2007
        • 2996
        #32
        re: James Cameron's "Avatar"

        Originally posted by jmood88
        How the hell does it cheapen the movie? I'm tired of people complaining just because things are more advanced than they were 20 years ago. The reason why animatronics were used was because CGI wasn't at the point to where you could actually make computer generated characters look like they were on screen. And if you want to see a blend of CGI and puppetry watch Where The Wild Things Are.
        Exactly. I'm not damning the entire CGI process, I'm merely stating CGI is being used more for a crutch as opposed to a tool for movies. Directors are supposed to be artists so they should use all the tools of film making at your disposal, don't merely become a one trick pony as we see with many movies.

        Case in point of the bad, Star Wars (old, new trilogy) had so much CGI going that you can't even make anything out. Sometimes too much of a good thing is bad. Example of the good is your suggestion.
        My Arte
        PS5: El_Greazy
        Playing: College Football 2025, WWE 2K24, FIFA 21, Among Us, Party Animals

          Comment

          • jmood88
            Sean Payton: Retribution
            • Jul 2003
            • 34637
            #33
            re: James Cameron's "Avatar"

            I do agree with that but I usually avoid those movies that only use CGI for the sake of using it. I guess I misread what you wrote.
            Originally posted by Blzer
            Let me assure you that I am a huge proponent of size, and it greatly matters. Don't ever let anyone tell you otherwise.

            If I went any bigger, it would not have properly fit with my equipment, so I had to optimize. I'm okay with it, but I also know what I'm missing with those five inches. :)

              Comment

              • Seymour Scagnetti
                Banned
                • Oct 2006
                • 2489
                #34
                re: James Cameron's "Avatar"

                Originally posted by elgreazy1
                Exactly. I'm not damning the entire CGI process, I'm merely stating CGI is being used more for a crutch as opposed to a tool for movies. Directors are supposed to be artists so they should use all the tools of film making at your disposal, don't merely become a one trick pony as we see with many movies.

                Case in point of the bad, Star Wars (old, new trilogy) had so much CGI going that you can't even make anything out. Sometimes too much of a good thing is bad. Example of the good is your suggestion.
                Totally agree, the action in the original trilogy was much more engaging because it looked realistic. Another good example is that wretched Indiana Jones and Crystal Skull, although I don't think anything could help that atrocity. Huge budget and CGI scenes couldn't have looked any faker and artificial.

                A good example of why real stunts blended with some CGI when appropriate is Casino Royale. There's a certain grittiness to movies when they don't rely solely on CGI. Compare Casino Royale with the effects in Die Another Day (that surfing scene, ouch). When you use too much CGI you overindulge and create totally unrealistic scenes that take you out of the movie.

                Even for monster movies, Jurassic Park also used animatronics many times and it was a much better movie for it as opposed to something like King Kong where it was used anytime Jackson could manage it for every scene he could think of. Unfortunately if there is a next jurassic park it will be soley CGI because it has made filmmakers lazy for the most part like Speilberg with Crystal Skull.
                Last edited by Seymour Scagnetti; 11-05-2009, 05:46 PM.

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                  • TheLetterZ
                    All Star
                    • Jul 2002
                    • 6752
                    #35
                    re: James Cameron's "Avatar"

                    The CGI looks fantastic, but after watching the trailer, I feel as if I already know exactly what happens in the movie.

                      Comment

                      • marshallfever
                        MVP
                        • Aug 2003
                        • 2738
                        #36
                        re: James Cameron's "Avatar"

                        Originally posted by TheLetterZ
                        The CGI looks fantastic, but after watching the trailer, I feel as if I already know exactly what happens in the movie.
                        Yea same here, i feel like the latest trailer has just depicted the entire movie's plot

                          Comment

                          • Thrasha
                            MVP
                            • Nov 2004
                            • 3374
                            #37
                            re: James Cameron's "Avatar"

                            Something about this smells Waterworld part deux...

                            But seeing as though it's made by Cameron, it's hard to foresee this really tanking just off his name alone.

                            But if it does bomb, I think it'll make the Hindenburg look like a bonfire.
                            “Nobody in the history of the game tried what I just tried. We’re talking about on the biggest stage, in New York, playing out of position and asked to hit fourth for the New York Yankees. I mean, that’s never been done.” - Sheffield on Sheffield

                              Comment

                              • Maize08
                                MVP
                                • Nov 2008
                                • 1917
                                #38
                                re: James Cameron's "Avatar"

                                This is James Cameron's brain-child and I am very excited to see it. This was the movie that was 12 years in the making, which is also the last time we saw a Cameron movie. He actually waited on the movie to see if the technology could advance enough to make the movie what he wants it to be.

                                Cameron has never let us down before, but this is big for him. Are we seeing a revolutionary picture, following his timeless epic?

                                Think of Francis Ford Coppola following Godfather with Apocalypse Now. This is the blockbuster epic that he always wanted to make. With Coppola, it was a long and tedious process to produce Apocalypse Now, same with Cameron.

                                So I want to see, are we going to be blow away; are we about to see a revolutionary epic, or Heaven's Gate?

                                (Please someone get that reference)

                                  Comment

                                  • goldteethbandit
                                    Rookie
                                    • Jul 2002
                                    • 44
                                    #39
                                    re: James Cameron's "Avatar"

                                    I thought the big deal about this movie was how it looks in 3-d? So I don't really know how to feel about the trailers.

                                      Comment

                                      • Russell_SCEA
                                        SCEA Community Manager
                                        • May 2005
                                        • 4161
                                        #40
                                        re: James Cameron's "Avatar"

                                        Originally posted by goldteethbandit
                                        I thought the big deal about this movie was how it looks in 3-d? So I don't really know how to feel about the trailers.
                                        Yup what we say at Comic Con and at Avatar day was mind blowing none of those trailers can give you anything close to how this movie looks with Cameron's 3D's camera and 3D shooting technique.

                                          Comment

                                          • Fresh Tendrils
                                            Strike Hard and Fade Away
                                            • Jul 2002
                                            • 36131
                                            #41
                                            re: James Cameron's "Avatar"

                                            Too bad my theatre doesn't have any 3-D screens.



                                              Comment

                                              • Stroehms
                                                MVP
                                                • Jan 2008
                                                • 2641
                                                #42
                                                re: James Cameron's "Avatar"

                                                I want to see this. Looks decent. Off to google 3-D theaters in my area...

                                                  Comment

                                                  • goh
                                                    Banned
                                                    • Aug 2003
                                                    • 20755
                                                    #43
                                                    re: James Cameron's "Avatar"

                                                    Bomb or not,it can't be any worse than the game.

                                                      Comment

                                                      • Kearnzo
                                                        Banned
                                                        • Jul 2002
                                                        • 5963
                                                        #44
                                                        re: James Cameron's "Avatar"

                                                        Avatar | Rotten Tomatoes
                                                        http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/avatar/?name_order=asc
                                                        Discover reviews, ratings, and trailers for Avatar on Rotten Tomatoes. Stay updated with critic and audience scores today!


                                                        Wow, 89% fresh, with 100% fresh from top critics. I was already excited for this, but now I can't wait. Seeing it on Christmas Eve with my father and brother.

                                                          Comment

                                                          • Miles_Yuhas
                                                            MVP
                                                            • Mar 2004
                                                            • 2689
                                                            #45
                                                            re: James Cameron's "Avatar"

                                                            Absolutely pumped now after the slightly unexpected fantastic reviews.

                                                              Comment

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