After winning Best Picture and Best Director at the Golden Globes, Avatar is a front-runner for the Oscar’s top prize. But does it deserve it?
ARE YOU KIDDING?
This may come as a shock to most of the country, but Avatar is not a good movie. For months now, people have walked out of theaters awed by $240 million worth of pretty CGI and eye-catching 3D, only to be fooled, once again, by director James Cameron’s visual hypnosis. After cutting through the smoke and mirrors, however, Avatar is as bare bones as you can get.
The winner of Best Picture is supposed to represent the pinnacle of filmmaking, and this year a few films, including The Hurt Locker and Up in the Air, have made strong cases for that title. In the span of a few hours, these movies manage to craft a uniquely compelling story, something that Cameron seems to have forgotten about. Avatar is simply FernGully or Disney’s Pocahontas regifted in shiny, new wrapping paper.
However, it is not Avatar’s unoriginality that lets it down. Instead, its script proves that Cameron could probably benefit from a few screenwriting classes. In a weak year for original (as opposed to adapted) works, Avatar’s script probably won’t even garner a nomination for Best Original Screenplay. The entire narrative is as thin and substance-less as it can get away with, never reaching beyond surface level. Because of this, characters remain caricatures — shiny blue dolls who spew out little gems like “I see you.” If that weren’t enough, consider this: Cameron wrote an entire language for the Na’vi people, and yet, when tasked to come up with a name for the mineral being mined on Pandora, Cameron brilliantly decides on “Unobtainium.” Really? This is Oscar material?
In an ideal world, the Best Picture winner would have it all: a good script, fantastic acting, beautiful cinematography and much more, and it’s a huge shame that Avatar fails on so many fronts. It could have been revolutionary. But it just isn't.
ABSOLUTELY!
At the moment, the world’s pulse is furiously beating to three syllables: A-VA-TAR. James Cameron’s epic is shattering box office records and capturing the hearts and imaginations of audiences across the globe. If the Academy wants to breathe some life into the Oscars and reclaim its seat at the popular table, handing Avatar its ultimate trophy is its best bet.
While an Avatar win would clearly be a strategic choice for the Academy, it’s not as if it doesn’t deserve it. Popularity and box office receipts aside, Cameron’s futuristic trip to Pandora happens to be an incredible piece of filmmaking, one that completely transcends the apparent limits of the medium to become a fully immersive, engrossing and memorable (3D!!!) experience. Visually, Avatar is absolutely stunning and redefines what’s possible. Cameron has created an eye-popping fantasy world that audiences are obviously eager to get lost in.
It is impossible to deny the film’s striking visual beauty and flawless craftsmanship, so detractors have harped about a weak script and unoriginal story. Should a couple of lines of corny dialogue and a familiar plot be enough to ruin its chances at taking the top prize? Absolutely not! It may be a tried and true story, but it’s only helpful in expanding the film’s global audience and leaving them with lasting emotional attachment. Cameron has also put his own contemporary spin on the tale, turning Avatar into a profound political and environmental message disguised as a rousing popcorn movie, complete with a totally unique language and unforgettable visual effects.
In the end, Avatar is reminding people worldwide why they fell in love with the movies in the first place, and if that’s not reason enough to win Best Picture, then what is?
