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The Inevitable Avatar Post, Part 1: Expectations
Expectation plays a huge role in the movie going experience. Whether or not you think you’re going to like a movie has a direct impact on whether or not you actually do like a movie. It’s nice to be pleasantly surprised by a flick you thought was going to suck, but it’s awful to be disappointed by something that seemed like it was going to be great. But what creates these expectations?
Rabid fanboys feed on any scrap of information about an upcoming movie, then make a snap judgment about the movie and post it on the web. It isn't long before these separate decisions meld together to form one collective opinion, commonly referred to as “buzz.” Buzz is what sets expectations for a movie and, like it or not, it has become the lifeblood of the modern popcorn flick. Most of the time, buzz is built as a movie is being made, but sometimes buzz can be created through anticipation. In the 20 years between Star Wars movies, fans grew so itchy for new Star Wars that it didn’t matter if the new movies weren’t very good.
Once upon a time there was a filmmaker who beat bad buzz. It seems hard to imagine now, but James Cameron’s Titanic was purported to be a colossal flop. It was over budget and over schedule. But Cameron had the last laugh when the movie was seen by everyone who could take in oxygen and made just over a kabillion dollars.
It’s been a decade since James Cameron’s last movie. He’s been out of the limelight for so long that there is a generation of young movie fans who think that McG directed Terminator. But those of us fanboys who are old enough to know better have been eagerly anticipating his next move.
In the aftermath of Titanic, Cameron wanted to make this movie he’d written called Avatar, but technology wasn’t good enough for him to be able to pull it off. At this point most filmmakers would move on to something else, but Cameron, in his interminably stubborn way, said ‘screw it’ and set about inventing the technology he needed to make his movie.
Three years ago, it was announced that Avatar was finally going into production. The project was shrouded in secrecy. The only thing that was known was that it was destined to be spectacular. We were told it was going to change movies forever.
That last statement is a dangerous one. It set the bar for Avatar impossibly high from the very beginning.
Last summer at Comic Con—the current birthplace of movie buzz—Cameron unveiled 10 minutes of footage from the movie. Fans waited for 4 hours to get a glimpse of the “future of movies” (which is a long time for anyone to spend in stuffy convention hall squeezed into a Stormtrooper costume). The immediate reaction to what they saw was…”meh”. The bad buzz began to build.
James Cameron is nothing if not a master showman and he’s always said that Avatar is meant to be seen in as large a format as possible in 3D. So a few months ago, 15 minutes of the film where screened for audiences in Imax theaters around the country. Reactions were again mixed.
At this point, it’s unclear if Avatar is going to revolutionize movies, like Star Wars, Terminator 2 or The Matrix, or go down in history as another overpriced, bloated flop alongside Waterworld and Ishtar.
I say let the fanboys throw barbs behind the shield of anonymity that is the internet. Let them debate if the aliens in the movie look as if a Thundercat mated with a Smurf. I don’t care. I’m in. Bad buzz or not, you had me at “a film by James Cameron.” I’m trying not to create expectations for the movie because the only way I will know where it belongs in the annals of cinematic and pop culture history is by planting myself in front of an Imax screen, strapping on a pair of 3D glasses and experiencing it for myself.
After 11 years of buildup, Avatar opens in theaters this weekend. My ticket is bought and I am anxiously waiting for my chance to see it.
Rabid fanboys feed on any scrap of information about an upcoming movie, then make a snap judgment about the movie and post it on the web. It isn't long before these separate decisions meld together to form one collective opinion, commonly referred to as “buzz.” Buzz is what sets expectations for a movie and, like it or not, it has become the lifeblood of the modern popcorn flick. Most of the time, buzz is built as a movie is being made, but sometimes buzz can be created through anticipation. In the 20 years between Star Wars movies, fans grew so itchy for new Star Wars that it didn’t matter if the new movies weren’t very good.
Once upon a time there was a filmmaker who beat bad buzz. It seems hard to imagine now, but James Cameron’s Titanic was purported to be a colossal flop. It was over budget and over schedule. But Cameron had the last laugh when the movie was seen by everyone who could take in oxygen and made just over a kabillion dollars.
It’s been a decade since James Cameron’s last movie. He’s been out of the limelight for so long that there is a generation of young movie fans who think that McG directed Terminator. But those of us fanboys who are old enough to know better have been eagerly anticipating his next move.
In the aftermath of Titanic, Cameron wanted to make this movie he’d written called Avatar, but technology wasn’t good enough for him to be able to pull it off. At this point most filmmakers would move on to something else, but Cameron, in his interminably stubborn way, said ‘screw it’ and set about inventing the technology he needed to make his movie.
Three years ago, it was announced that Avatar was finally going into production. The project was shrouded in secrecy. The only thing that was known was that it was destined to be spectacular. We were told it was going to change movies forever.
That last statement is a dangerous one. It set the bar for Avatar impossibly high from the very beginning.
Last summer at Comic Con—the current birthplace of movie buzz—Cameron unveiled 10 minutes of footage from the movie. Fans waited for 4 hours to get a glimpse of the “future of movies” (which is a long time for anyone to spend in stuffy convention hall squeezed into a Stormtrooper costume). The immediate reaction to what they saw was…”meh”. The bad buzz began to build.
James Cameron is nothing if not a master showman and he’s always said that Avatar is meant to be seen in as large a format as possible in 3D. So a few months ago, 15 minutes of the film where screened for audiences in Imax theaters around the country. Reactions were again mixed.
At this point, it’s unclear if Avatar is going to revolutionize movies, like Star Wars, Terminator 2 or The Matrix, or go down in history as another overpriced, bloated flop alongside Waterworld and Ishtar.
I say let the fanboys throw barbs behind the shield of anonymity that is the internet. Let them debate if the aliens in the movie look as if a Thundercat mated with a Smurf. I don’t care. I’m in. Bad buzz or not, you had me at “a film by James Cameron.” I’m trying not to create expectations for the movie because the only way I will know where it belongs in the annals of cinematic and pop culture history is by planting myself in front of an Imax screen, strapping on a pair of 3D glasses and experiencing it for myself.
After 11 years of buildup, Avatar opens in theaters this weekend. My ticket is bought and I am anxiously waiting for my chance to see it.
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Comment by ks on December 13, 2009 at 3:36pm -
Meh. I vote for overrated flop.
I'm probably wrong, and it'll make a mint, but I can't get excited about this at all. Overuse and showcasing of technology does nothing for me, and I find both Imax and 3D in movies to be highly irritating.
Mr. S really wants to see it, though.
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Comment by Mamawho on December 13, 2009 at 4:15pm
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I usually set my expectations low for blockbuster-type movies. And I like things that go boom and all that, so I'm fairly easy to please.
This movie has generated some nasty reviews from folks concerned with disability and race issues. Of course, these were written before anyone saw the movie, so who knows how it all pans out. They may be taking the movie a bit too seriously, too. I would find it more egregious if a movie set in our reality had some problems with how it addressed certain issues.
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Comment by Herasmus B. Dragon on December 13, 2009 at 6:19pm
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All I know about it is what they wrote into last week's Bones.
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Comment by Kiwi on December 13, 2009 at 6:40pm -
From the previews it seems to me the movie is Fern Gully reinvented for an adult audience.
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Comment by TeacherJ on December 13, 2009 at 6:49pm -
HBD, same here! I watched that episode going, "What are they talking about?" until I saw the ads.
It sounds like a kind of cool concept. It'd be great if it turns out to be good.
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Comment by Alan on December 13, 2009 at 9:13pm -
In in. I have modest expectations so I'm hopeful. But it does look way cool...
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Comment by Daddy Geek Boy on December 13, 2009 at 9:56pm
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Interesting. I have not heard any of this. What are the criticisms? From what it seems, the movie may actually deal with race issues in a positive way.
This movie has generated some nasty reviews from folks concerned with disability and race issues.
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So the TV commercial that's running for Avatar now says, "On Friday, movies will never be the same." There goes tempering anyone's expectations.
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DGB - Some folks have taken issue with how the main character's new, "whole" body is obviously prized over his paralyzed human body, perpetuating the idea that being disabled makes one less than human,and that being an able-bodied alien is preferable to being a paralyzed human. As a moderately disabled person, I can say that I'd much prefer to be fully able-bodied. Would I take a new body if it were offered to me? Maybe. I am really hesitant to claim that the movie is ableist just because a paralyzed guy gets a new, better body - it seems that the alien creatures are more physically evolved than humans, so even swapping an able human body for an alien one would be an upgrade.
Some of the other stuff I've heard is that the Na'vi are depicted as noble savages. If so, it certainly wouldn't be the first popular movie to do so. That characterization has the possibility to be demeaning and have some nasty racial implications, but I try to go into these things with a dose of humor and a willing suspension of disbelief - I mean, we're talking about 10 ft. tall blue aliens here. I'm not immediately going to impose contemporary race issues onto the social structures of a movie before I've seen it.
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Mamawho...The paralyzed thing is something that I will think about when I'm watching the movie. As for the "savage" thing, do you think the complaint is because African-American actress Zoe Saldana is playing the lead? My suspicion is that criticism could be a little overblown. But once again, something to be aware of as I watch.
Capp...I don't know why Titanic gets a lot of flack now. It's an incredibly well done movie. Totally meant to be kind of cheesy and schmaltzy. It's an epic love story. I haven't seen it in a while, but perhaps it hasn't aged well. Or maybe because it is the number one grossing movie of all time, your expectations were set too high.
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