Loved Avatar’s World-Making
I just saw Cameron’s movie Avatar. I went for the spectacle, the total immersion. As a way to visit another planet it was fantastic. Don’t be distracted by the lame plot (a galatic Dancing With Wolves). The joy is all about the experience. You get an insanely complete world — language, culture, biology, machines, geology, and so on. Every plant is invented. I thought it was going to be computer-y but the tenor and atmosphere was refreshingly biological. Sure the movie’s “message” was environmentally preachy, and the but the experience in 3D was pretty cool. My 13-year old son gave it 5 stars. It is not hard to imagine most movies being fabricated with the same make-a-world technology. It also has “video games” written all over it. Takes the world-making of Star Wars and Lord of the Rings to the next level. I was dazzled by the fantasy and its completeness. Definitely a cultural landmark.
