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Over the festive period I managed to get to the cinema to finally see Avatar in all it’s 3D glory. As well as doing amazing business at the box office it’s been getting pretty good reviews across the board from people saying it’s ‘historic’ to others admitting that the story is a bit rubbish but the visuals more than make up for it. Well, for what it’s worth, I had a great experience watching it – the motion capture was a massive step forward as you bought the blue-skinned Na’vi and their world completely. Certainly for other film makers (who can afford the technology) it’s going to change how certain types of film are made.
I’m not going to be another person who criticises the story and characters – yes it’s one we’ve seen many times before and the characters are wafer thin but this is no Transformers 2. At least you see where all the money went and James Cameron really understands how to film action in a gripping and visual stunning way. I recommend everyone to go to see it in cinemas but don’t expect to remember much about it once it’s finished, apart from how cool it looked.
So onto the 3D – this was the first full 3D film I’ve seen and it was very impressive… the same way that I was impressed when going into the Planetarium of the National Space Centre or the first time I visited Cine2000 at Wicksteed Park. After a while though, it became a distraction – rather than immersing me in the story it kept reminding me that I was in a cinema watching a film. In my opinion, it’s a gimmick designed to make film companies more money and liven up otherwise very poor films (ie The Final Destination, My Bloody Valentine etc.).
When I see a great film that sucks you in to it’s world and characters, I forget that I’m in even in a cinema let alone watching a two-dimensional screen being projected onto. Surely this is the fully-immersive experience that 3D can only dream about. Any thoughts?
7 Comments for The future of cinema?
luke - January 6, 2010 at 10:49 am
JK - January 6, 2010 at 4:04 pm
Whilst anything like this is in it’s infancy (although it’s been in cinemas since the late 70’s), there will always be an element of ‘trying too hard’… where the technology gets in the way of the subject/story etc. Once everyone has wrung the neck of the novelty and got over their showing off, we should settle into a really absorbing and relevant experience that embellishes a film/story. In the meantime, we will have to suffer an overload of effect – which can constantly remind you of being at the cinema, not immersed in the story.
This could be used to advantage though of course – Bertold Brecht’s plays sought to constantly remind the audience of their being in a theatre, heightening the relevance of message to real life.
phil - January 6, 2010 at 6:00 pm
Shaz - January 6, 2010 at 10:28 pm
Thanks Phil, enjoyed your write up and the Mark Kermode clip (but then he usually is always right!). I might not be cool in saying this, but I haven’t watched Avatar yet – the sheer vulgarity of the costs spent in production has put me off as I do prefer low key, low budget foreign films if I’m honest – however I have been changing my mind after listening to feedback from those who have seen it. It sounds very much like its a significant moment in cinema history, so for that reason I don’t want to be left out. However, as with most things that signify modernity, there is usually a reaction against it. Check out Disney’s forthcoming “traditional” fairytale, The Princess and the Frog, which has literally gone back to the drawing board in its production. It uses the original hand-drawn 2D animation from the old days – even re-employing people who were sacked when Disney felt the only way forward was to compete with Pixar’s 3d animation powerhouse. I’ve only seen the trailer but it looks like it might be a breath of fresh air. Be interested to know what you think.
phil - January 7, 2010 at 11:10 am
It’s interesting with The Princess and the Frog as it’s a direct result of John Lassetter going from Pixar to Disney and bringing those sensibilities – that the reason for the success of computer animation with Pixar and Toy Story was because the story and characters were so good and not particularly that it was computer generated. Of course this didn’t hurt and since then, the technology has resulted in some amazing results but I think all the Pixar films would have done as well if they were traditionally drawn. Be interesting to see how the Princess and the Frog does…
luke - January 22, 2010 at 11:25 am
Well – the verdict is in! I finally got round to seeing Avatar in 3D this week and I have mixed feelings about it… On a surface level I was blown away – I had to keep reminding myself that it wasn’t real – as daft as that sounds. I can see why technically it took so long to make and cost so much dollar. My main gripe is that even with ALL OF THAT there was virtually nothing innovative or unexpected in the story. The dialogue was cheesy and the plot predictable. Plus he could have easily cut half an hour out and saved a few squillion.
Those niggles aside, I left the cinema feeling like i’d had a valuable and moving experience, that I finally understood the hype, and with renewed faith in the ‘blockbuster’ event movie to transport me somewhere new for a few hours.
7/10 (Not sure it requires a sequel though…)
JL - February 2, 2010 at 12:41 pm
Saw it at last this weekend. I could say a lot but a lot has already been said.
I thought it was good I enjoyed it, great visuals. With the 3D at times I thought I was going to fall off the cliff myself. BUT it isn’t great like the press would have you believe. The story line has been used many times before, Man called horse, Dances with wolves to mention a few.
I’m not just being a smart arse and trying to be cool and anti movement because it’s become such a massive hit either.
Nice write up Phil! I have to say after seeing Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs in both regular format and 3D I was even more blown away by the 3D viewing – it added something other-worldly to certain scenes that made me grin and laugh out loud – so perhaps once perfected it really will be the future of the cinematic experience.