My Blonde, Blue-Eyed Icon Speaks For Us All

[redbrunja]

Okay, so I didn't even realize that Avatar came out yesterday until all the horrible reviews (and glee at the horrible reviews) started popping up on my flist.

To which I add: hee.

Also, I wanted to link to a fantastic recasting of the movie. 

Comments

[misora.livejournal.com]

...oh wow, I absolutely love that casting. Especially Katara and Zuko, they're perfect. Heck, the entire cast selection is perfect.

Do you plan on seeing this movie? Honestly, I'm torn. The casting is made of such fail, and apparently the reviews are pretty bad...but I'm still so curious about it.

[teh-amazing-one.livejournal.com]

Torrent it?

[smillaraaq.livejournal.com]

Pay to see some other, less-faily movie and sneak into the TLA showing instead? Keeps the money out of M. Night's pockets AND boosts the box-office stats for his competition -- win-win!

[misora.livejournal.com]

...


No, if I'm going to see it, I'm going to pay like any other customer. I'm not above torrenting, but any torrent right now is just going to be some kid's shaky vidcam.

And regardless of whether the money goes to M Night's pockets or not, the real test will be if the movie production company decides to fund him for more projects. If they decide based on the reviews that it was indeed crap, M won't be making the sequels.

Then again, he might've already signed a 3-movie deal. So I don't think my $7 is going to matter, either way.

[redbrunja.livejournal.com]

Oooh, good idea. I hope to download it when the DVDs come out - I certainly don't care enough to rush out and watch it right away.

[wicked-seraph.livejournal.com]

... I rather like this idea.

[redbrunja.livejournal.com]

I plan on seeing it in some manner that does not involve giving the filmmakers money. If worse comes to worst, I MIGHT break and watch it via netflicks.

[mistaria.livejournal.com]

You should buy a ticket to something else that is playing at the same time and then sneak into TLA. ::nodnod::

[sharkflip.livejournal.com]

That re-casting would make a movie I would actually want to see.

The thing that's struck me most about the movie (that hasn't been articulated excellently by other people, like the racefail and cgi abominations)? None of the characters seem to smile. At all. Ever.

WTF?

All the shots of Ong look like mug shots. Everybody else has FRSRS faces that just look strained because they lack acting chops.

What happened to the smiles?

[redbrunja.livejournal.com]

You're right. I remember going 'such a fucking shame' when I heard the dialogue was terrible, because that was one of the things I noticed (and loved) when I watched the cartoon - how snappy and honestly funny the dialogue was.

[smillaraaq.livejournal.com]

ISN'T THE SCHADENFREUDE DELICIOUS?

tallycola has some excellent Water Tribe dream casting, neatly putting the lie to "but there aren't any good Inuit/First Nations/Native American actors for those parts", over here (http://community.livejournal.com/racebending/251573.html).

[redbrunja.livejournal.com]

It's my favorite kind of freude. ^_^

[kalliel]

I'm likely to be unfamiliar with Avatar for the rest of my life, but looking at the character pics and the actor pics in that re-casting, they look spot on and fabulous.

It made me a little sad, because you just think, had the movie producers decided to go that route, can you imagine what this film would have done? Something to be more proud of than what it seems to have accomplished in reality, that's for sure.

Now I can't stop looking at the recast. XP Seriously, the bulk of those just seem so right. Thanks for the link~ *bookmarks*

[redbrunja.livejournal.com]

You're welcome.

Have you seen the cartoon? Because I would strongly recommend it.

[kalliel]

For some reason, I actually haven't! I think I caught an episode on TV once, but it was the season 2 finale or something, so I was pretty confused. XD I'll definitely keep that in mind.

[redbrunja.livejournal.com]

Not only do the actors look like the main characters but almost all of them have acting experience. The original cast was picked because they were the best my ass, look at this list! Even if I was going to pick them based on their resumes the ones from the non race fail casting would win hands down.

Yeah, what a nice slap at the people who said the actors they used were the best for the job.

[redbrunja.livejournal.com]

*nods* Do you know why the actors were picked in the first place? M. Night said that the kids just HAD to have the part! They just HAD to have it because he had a feeling about them! xD

Trust me, I remember that, and I remember thinking at the time 'Okay, M. Night, those actors better be the best thing since sliced bread!'

[qualapec.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I'm torn. On one hand, it could be a good movie. On the other hand- race!fail. On one hand, they could do the characters correctly...On the other hand Katara and Sokka are replaced by some teeny pop blahblahs and all the villains were given dark skin...what's that supposed to say? What purpose do those changes even HAVE?

But I'm also very stubborn, and kind of wanted to see it ever since a friend of mine got called a racist for wanting to see it. Things like that just leave me with a sense of "Well, if you're going to be like that about it, then maybe I WILL see it". IDK.

[redbrunja.livejournal.com]

I think it could have been a good movie, even with the race!fail. From what I'm seeing, even if you factored that out, it is still a terrible movie. But I do support people wanting to decide for themselves.

[smillaraaq.livejournal.com]

Yeah, it's currently running at an ABYSMAL 6% rating at Rotten Tomatoes, not to mention a flood of negative viewer reactions on Twitter and YouTube -- even leaving aside the racebending and genderfail, the consensus is that the writing is TERRIBLE, exposition-heavy tell-don't-show, and the acting is largely flat...not to mention that it seems like the half-assed after-process 3D is being universally panned. If you *must* see this, at the very least don't waste your money on the 3D version.

[redbrunja.livejournal.com]

I know this is currently, like, cinema blasphemy, but I don't like 3D. Just about ever.

[smillaraaq.livejournal.com]

We can both be heretics together, then! I don't get what makes it such a big deal either -- I saw How to Train Your Dragon in the 3D version and while the effects were cute, they didn't really seem to *add* anything to the movie but a slightly amusing novelty factor, and it just wasn't ZOMG AMAZING enough of an effect to me to justify the higher ticket price.

[redbrunja.livejournal.com]

I know! And in live action, they just make the action/image LESS clear.

And the one movie I watched in IMAX had only sections in three D so you had to take these stupid glasses on and off....

[smillaraaq.livejournal.com]

Oh geeze, that sounds SO annoying!

IMAX would be another one of those things where I don't really see the point, unless the ticket prices come WAY down. I saw some scenery-porn documentary sort of thing in it at a museum a few years ago, and it was kind of cool, but nowhere near cool enough for me to want to pay a premium to see regular movies in it. But considering I'm still using an old, smallish, non-HD television 'cause I just don't spend enough time watching it to justify spending money on an upgrade unless and until it dies, clearly I am so not the bleeding-edge-video target market for this stuff. *shrugs*

[redbrunja.livejournal.com]

It really was.

I've been lucky enough to get really good price deals for the things I've seen on the IMAX... and honestly, I've yet to feel that the gigantic screen has added anything.

[bellonablack.livejournal.com]

I've actually never really...well, that's not true, I have been very offended before, but to change the race of the main characters is just aggressive. To me anyway. I'm glad it's tanking.

[redbrunja.livejournal.com]

It's offensive to a LARGE section of the internet and the populous core of fans who would have made this movie a success in a different situation.

[bellonablack.livejournal.com]

I haven't been around the group, and am a bit out of the loop on it. I didn't mean to imply I was singular in my offense. I do think diehard fans would have been supportive.

[redbrunja.livejournal.com]

I just wanted you to know that other people were agreeing with your response. ^_^

[systemaurora.livejournal.com]

never watched the cartoon it's based on, but I am curious to see it from the previews. race!fail is always a bummer though. =/ I'll probably watch it for free after it comes out on video or something.

[redbrunja.livejournal.com]

Watch the cartoon first. It's absolutely amazing and shows what a great story you call tell even when you aim it at kids (admittedly, there are some problems with the ending, but).

Additionally, the cartoon is ridiculously feminist.

[solace-adrift.livejournal.com]

Brandon Soo Hoo is the one that kills me. He's so ridicously perfect for the part, what with already being an accomplished and actor, the martial arts stuff, and having that goofy quality of Aang's. Though apparently Ong is a much more serious figure.

And I like how Shyamalan was able to add bonus genderfail. That takes skill.

[wicked-seraph.livejournal.com]

One of my friends wanted me to go see the movie with her (she knows it's problematic, but still wanted to see out of curiousity) and just... ugh. As much as I've grown to love the series, I have far more things I'd rather do with my almost non-existend funds right now than support TLA and all its copious amounts of fail.

That recasting, however, is amazing and fabulous and I kinda wanna hug it ♥

[redbrunja.livejournal.com]

Understandably.

[cynchick.livejournal.com]

Oh, I raged. And so I don't have to rehash my rage all over your journal:

http://cynchick.livejournal.com/78676.html#cutid1