If you read movie reviews, and I am assuming that you are if you are reading mine, then there will be ample reading for you on the movie Avatar. Many of the ones I have read are like minded in saying that the movie is visually stunning but that the story does not match up to the movie; however, Avatar is more than that.
In school we learn all the things we as a species have discovered through out the years. Be it language, history, science or math, these are the tools we use to function in society. Also, many of us then turn to organized religion to fill our spiritual needs, and this gives us the tools to deal with our existence and our mortality. But to teach us what we are, as sentient and cultural beings, we turn to art. Art is the culmination of our spirituality, our history, our science, and our existence. Be you Protestant, Baptist, Methodist, Catholic, Muslim, Jewish, etc. you look at the Sixteenth Chapel and you are moved. You see a Rembrandt, DaVinci, or Picaso and your life is better everyday after as a result. You read Shakespere, Hemingway, Twain, or whomever and your outlook on the world around you shifts. The generations leading up to ours will be remembered for their music, such as Mozart, Beethoven, Bach, the Beatles, and yes, Michael Jackson, and we were moved by them all. And in a hundred years when our generation's art is examined, and masterpieces are talked about, James Cameron's Avatar will be among those that are remembered.
Avatar is quite simply stunning. I am without a doubt that for at least that short moment on film, Hollywood can make anything real. The movie takes place on a planet called Pandora, and despite its name, it is as beautiful as any painting I have ever seen. Of the two and a half hour movie, much of it is spent just being in the world that is Pandora, and for this will we remember Avatar as a masterpiece. With its neon colored plants and animals and the Na'Vi's human feel, despite the fact that they are anything but, I left the theater looking to the sky and hoping that Pandora was somewhere above me. The animals are life like and amazing, the plants are something out of a dream. At times you want to reach out and touch what you are seeing, and it is hard to believe that Cameron did it all with some cameras and computers. I did not get to see it in 3-D, and admittedly I do not particularly enjoy 3-D, but let me tell you it is not necessary to experience the beauty of this film.
Will it be known for its story, no I do not think it will, but that does not mean it did not make the grade. The flaw, if it could be called such, is that maybe the story does try to do too much. While it touches you in many different ways, it does not expound on any of those feelings. To give an example I will bring up another masterpiece. The movie Cast Away is a testament to the feelings of loss, loneliness and ultimately perseverance. Tom Hanks spends the better part of the movie making the audience feel Chuck Noland's struggle to deal with isolation and despair. It is a movie that wraps us in a single focused and intricate journey of shear determination to survive. Avatar meanwhile takes on a journey, during which we experience a story of self discovery, love, domination/resistance, loss and faith. Each touch us in a personal way, but the fact of the matter is you can only do so much in less than a few hours. Where I felt the story excelled, was in its expression of faith. (Spoiler Alert) Pandora is a living and breathing entity and all if its creatures are connected. The Na'Vi can connect to this shared sentience and live as part of it. They have faith in all those things around them, and it is this that drives everything else they do. But it does not make them weak, or naive. Their faith makes them strong and gives them the power to persevere, when some would otherwise give in. I think, personally, this was my favorite tone of the movie, but trust me when I say there were plenty of tones to choose from.
The acting also did not fail. Sam Worthington was great. There is an interesting correlation between Worthington's character, Jake Sully, and the actor himself. Sam Worthington is well on his way to being an action star, especially with Clash of the Titans just around the corner, and action stars can be one dimensional at best. Jake Sully begins the movie as a crippled Marine, focused only on being a soldier once again. But what Worthington does well for Sully, and in turn for his career, is make him emotional. He makes Sully more than the jar head that he refers to himself as at the beginning of the movie, and gives the leader, brother and lover depth. I have always been a fan of Giovanni Ribisi, and while he was very good in this film I would not say it was his best. His character is the corporate monger who has to deal with his desire for money vs his conscience, with money winning. Stephen Lang is the ultimate villain and does a good job as what appears to be a representation of Cameron's view of our previous administration. And Zoe Saldanea is beautiful, both as a Na'Vi and someone who has to bring a personality through a completely computer generated being.
The only other flaw I will state, is that again I left a Hollywood creation feeling inferior physically. Even computer generated beings look better than I do, but alas that I fear that will never change. There are few movies I will say need to be watched in a theater, but this is certainly one of them. It is worth every cent of that 8-10 dollars you will spend per ticket to visit an audio and visual art exhibit. Someday a teenager will be forced to sit through a virtual lecture on the art of the early 21st century, and will probably hate every minute of it, but they will be required to watch this movie, and whether they realize it at that moment or not, the will be changed forever. Do not miss your opportunity to change too.
Though visually Avatar gets an A++, overall I give an A and urge you to see it.
Thanks for reading, until next time.
JP
Friday, December 18, 2009
Monday, November 30, 2009
Ninja Assassin
Hello All! OK so I know i am almost a week late on this post but hey what are the chances that any of you have gone to see this movie yet. I went and saw Ninja Assassin the night it came out, and while I was surprised my small theater even carried it, I was still amazed that there were only two other people in the theater. As of Monday the movie has only taken in 21 million and came in 6th at 13.1 for the weekend.
I have always felt that special effects, and in general the modern action film, killed two classic kinds of films. The classic western and the classic martial arts film died before I was even born. As a child of the 80s, my first exposure to martial arts films were Karate Kid, Best of the Best, etc. The western is something that I grew up thinking only old people watched, with my only saviors having been Tombstone and Young Guns. Now the western, even really good ones like 3:10 to Yuma, have really just become dramas with action sprinkled in. Meanwhile, martial arts films have become something that we watch in animated form or epic movies that are more about art then action. Do not get me wrong, I love the fight sequences in Crouching Tiger, Hero, and the like, but they are not the same as the movies we all remember watching Bruce Lee rise to stardom in.
This brings me to Ninja Assassin, and lets get right to the bad. It does not surprise me that this movie was written in a matter of days (according to the writer J. Michael Straczynski in a quote found on Wikipedia). This movie is a poorly written attempt at reviving those classic marital arts films of our societal past. The plot is mundane and boring and the flash backs are not always appetizing. The majority of the acting in the movie was par at best and some of the characters in the movie were just plan unneeded. (Spoiler Alert) The entire Interpol investigation is a waste of time and the characters associated with it are irritating. I am still not sure I understand the entire thing with the KGB. Also, some of the supernatural effects were a little too out there for the feel of the rest of the movie.
All of that being said this movie has some amazingly redeeming qualities. While I am not sure why he associated himself with such a poor script, the movie is directed by James McTeigue who is quickly becoming a must see director. If you are not aware, he worked on all of the Matrix movies, Star Wars Episode II, and made his directorial debut with V for Vendetta (Awesome!). What he does with this movie is incredible. The action sequences are terrific and he makes Rain, who plays the lead Raizo, look bad-ass. Where this movie does pay proper tribute to those martial arts films of the 60s and 70s is the awesome ninja on ninja, blood squirting action. The movie is also produced by the Wachowski Brothers, who produced the Matrix movies and V for Vendetta.
As I stated before, the lead is played by Jeong "Rain" Ji-hoon. Rain is a Korean pop star that is huge in Korea and Japan but has only been seen here in the movie Speed Racer. If you Wikipedia him you will see a picture of him in this rediculous pink outfit that he used to perform in and cringe that he could be an action star, but fear not, James McTeigue makes him look incredible. His general acting still needs some work but there is certainly some promise there. According to Wikipedia, it was watching him doing some fighting in the Wachowski Brothers directed Speed Racer that inspired Ninja Assassin. Just wished they could have come up with a better script and supporting talent.
The flash backs in the movie, are at times unnecessary and tedious, but they in general carry the plot. The actors that play the younger versions of Raizo and his love interest Kimiko do ok but generally with the exception of the fight sequences this movie is a bore. My only hope is that the fight sequences are enough to keep Ninja Assassin from being a scar on McTeigue or Rain's resumes. As for the Wachowski Brothers, with this and Speed Racer on their list of recent achievements they are in trouble of become jokes. Overall, I give the movie a C+, with only McTeigue and Rain keeping it from a failing grade.
Thanks for reading, until next time!
JP
I have always felt that special effects, and in general the modern action film, killed two classic kinds of films. The classic western and the classic martial arts film died before I was even born. As a child of the 80s, my first exposure to martial arts films were Karate Kid, Best of the Best, etc. The western is something that I grew up thinking only old people watched, with my only saviors having been Tombstone and Young Guns. Now the western, even really good ones like 3:10 to Yuma, have really just become dramas with action sprinkled in. Meanwhile, martial arts films have become something that we watch in animated form or epic movies that are more about art then action. Do not get me wrong, I love the fight sequences in Crouching Tiger, Hero, and the like, but they are not the same as the movies we all remember watching Bruce Lee rise to stardom in.
This brings me to Ninja Assassin, and lets get right to the bad. It does not surprise me that this movie was written in a matter of days (according to the writer J. Michael Straczynski in a quote found on Wikipedia). This movie is a poorly written attempt at reviving those classic marital arts films of our societal past. The plot is mundane and boring and the flash backs are not always appetizing. The majority of the acting in the movie was par at best and some of the characters in the movie were just plan unneeded. (Spoiler Alert) The entire Interpol investigation is a waste of time and the characters associated with it are irritating. I am still not sure I understand the entire thing with the KGB. Also, some of the supernatural effects were a little too out there for the feel of the rest of the movie.
All of that being said this movie has some amazingly redeeming qualities. While I am not sure why he associated himself with such a poor script, the movie is directed by James McTeigue who is quickly becoming a must see director. If you are not aware, he worked on all of the Matrix movies, Star Wars Episode II, and made his directorial debut with V for Vendetta (Awesome!). What he does with this movie is incredible. The action sequences are terrific and he makes Rain, who plays the lead Raizo, look bad-ass. Where this movie does pay proper tribute to those martial arts films of the 60s and 70s is the awesome ninja on ninja, blood squirting action. The movie is also produced by the Wachowski Brothers, who produced the Matrix movies and V for Vendetta.
As I stated before, the lead is played by Jeong "Rain" Ji-hoon. Rain is a Korean pop star that is huge in Korea and Japan but has only been seen here in the movie Speed Racer. If you Wikipedia him you will see a picture of him in this rediculous pink outfit that he used to perform in and cringe that he could be an action star, but fear not, James McTeigue makes him look incredible. His general acting still needs some work but there is certainly some promise there. According to Wikipedia, it was watching him doing some fighting in the Wachowski Brothers directed Speed Racer that inspired Ninja Assassin. Just wished they could have come up with a better script and supporting talent.
The flash backs in the movie, are at times unnecessary and tedious, but they in general carry the plot. The actors that play the younger versions of Raizo and his love interest Kimiko do ok but generally with the exception of the fight sequences this movie is a bore. My only hope is that the fight sequences are enough to keep Ninja Assassin from being a scar on McTeigue or Rain's resumes. As for the Wachowski Brothers, with this and Speed Racer on their list of recent achievements they are in trouble of become jokes. Overall, I give the movie a C+, with only McTeigue and Rain keeping it from a failing grade.
Thanks for reading, until next time!
JP
Sunday, November 22, 2009
New Moon
Hello again everyone! Let me start this post by saying that I have read all four of the Twilight Books (Yes, audio books count!) and I need to express a general opinion about them. I had a few problems with the books and I apologize in advance for the super fan this may insult.
The first problem I had was that the first two books, and this is the nicest way of saying this, were whiny. Bella tends to do a lot of whining throughout the books, but particularly the first two where draining at times. I think I know what the author, Stephanie Myer, was trying to do, or at least I will speculate as much. I think she has a good understanding of what teenage girls like and feel. I also think that was clearly her audience, particularly for the first two books. The only problem with that is teenage girls are, no offense ladies, somewhat crazy and obsessive. I think this hurt the books in that it took away from the depth of the characters. It ended up making Bella feel like a groupie, and Edward an arrogant fool. I think the comparison they make to Romeo and Juliet is interesting, because Shakespeare had a way of making an arrogant fool, Romeo, have depth where Edward clearly falls short.
This is not true, however, of Jacob. If I could interview Ms. Myer I would love to ask her if she tried as hard with Jacob. Jacob's character has a way of talking to you, most likely because he is constantly being abused in the books. He is the night in shining armor that we often pull for, but in this case is rejected at almost every turn. This is takes me to my second problem with the books. Jacob's constant abuse, and I can only speak for myself, makes Bella the biggest monster of them all. She uses Jacob, knowingly I might add, and in the end (I won't ruin it for those still reading) is sort of dealt with in this neat little way that left me a little irritated. That however is a review for another time.
All of that being said, Ms. Myer owes Chris Weitz, Kristen Stewart, and Taylor Lautner a ton of gratitude and respect. New Moon portrayed everything I felt its worded counter part attempted to portray. For those who are contantly saying the movie is never as good as the book, let me say this, can it be. Books have the ability to drone on about the most minute of details, while movies cannot afford that luxury. A movie has two hours to do what a book has twenty hours to do. In the two hours and twenty some-odd minutes that New Moon has, it hits almost every plot highlight in the books and the actors give the characters depth that the books sometimes worked hard to do.
Chris Weitz and Summit Entertainment puts together a film that looks how it feels, both real and sureal at the same time. Summit is a independent film company and I think it is good for the Twilight movies, keeping them grounded. The actors are of course more attractive then I or most will ever be, but they look real and even the vampire and werewolves do not go way over the top. I think if anything the somewhat subdued CGI of the wolves were the most extravagant thing in the movie, and that is including a trip to Rome and a visit with the Volturi. The movie flows well and does not seem as long as it is, which was a concern I had going in. There were times in the books where I wanted it to get to the point, and I did not have that in the movie. My one criticism is, and again I have to be careful of taking my own advice, it did brush over parts of the books that I enjoyed, such as Charlie's involvement and bonding with Alice and the growth of Jacob and Bella's relationship, but again there are only two hours.
Now the actors, I will start by saying this, Kristin Stewart could become the death of Megan Fox's star. At nineteen she has begun to grow up right before our eyes and is beautiful in the same way that I have always felt that Diane Lane is. I will say that her screeching in the movie at times is annoying and unbelievable, but her depiction of Bella is spot on. I think she and Chris Weitz's direction during Bella's depression is accurate and effective. I will take this moment to implore Kristin to find a movie that does not make her so depressive and dark because I want to believe that she can do something else. She has a history of playing depressive and dark characters and she is running the risk of falling into that early in her career.
On a side note, let me say that Dakota Fanning is doing a good job of putting herself in situations to make the transition from child star to budding actress, by doing the Twilight movies and Push, characters the audience would not have expected to see her in.
I want to briefly speak to the vampires. Robert Pattinson has an appeal that we have not seen out of our cousins across the pond in the last decade. At a time when the Australian's have filled the void, Robert Pattinson is England's return to our hearts. I will say that he has to be careful that the teenage mobs do not only kill him physically, but professionally as well. Again he will have to strive to distance himself if he wants anyone over the age of 21 to buy him as a talent. The rest of the vampires take a back seat to the Werewolves, but again we do take a trip to the Volturi, who are sufficiently distant and arrogant, and again, though she has maybe two lines and five minutes in the movie, Dakota Fanning steals the show. I look forward to Eclipse and a real return to the Cullens.
So cue the stars of the movie, the Werewolves. After I got past the feelings of insecurity staring at abs for a good 50 minutes of the movie, I found out Taylor Lautner is a really good teenage werewolf. Make no mistake that the New Moon book is clearly about the werewolves, and there is a lot the movie was forced to leave out, but Taylor Lautner and Chris Weitz get the audience there quickly and efficiently. Taylor does an excellent job of being that knight in shining armor and does and excellent job of taking his constant rejection. Sam and the crew are not as present as I would have liked, but they take advantage of their time there. The action sequences with the wolves both with vampires and without, are exciting and also subdued enough to fit in with the rest of the movie. I think the best part of the movie is that it ties the story together in a way that the books were not able to do until the third and fourth books.
I think the most surprising part of the movie, was the humor. There are quite a few times that the audience found itself laughing despite the otherwise brooding tone to the movie. It keeps the movie from becoming too depressive. I was also happy to see that it was able to keep it entertaining for those of us not between the ages of 11 and 19 and of the female persuasion. I give it a B+.
Thanks for reading, until next time!
JP
PS. Go Team Jacob!
The first problem I had was that the first two books, and this is the nicest way of saying this, were whiny. Bella tends to do a lot of whining throughout the books, but particularly the first two where draining at times. I think I know what the author, Stephanie Myer, was trying to do, or at least I will speculate as much. I think she has a good understanding of what teenage girls like and feel. I also think that was clearly her audience, particularly for the first two books. The only problem with that is teenage girls are, no offense ladies, somewhat crazy and obsessive. I think this hurt the books in that it took away from the depth of the characters. It ended up making Bella feel like a groupie, and Edward an arrogant fool. I think the comparison they make to Romeo and Juliet is interesting, because Shakespeare had a way of making an arrogant fool, Romeo, have depth where Edward clearly falls short.
This is not true, however, of Jacob. If I could interview Ms. Myer I would love to ask her if she tried as hard with Jacob. Jacob's character has a way of talking to you, most likely because he is constantly being abused in the books. He is the night in shining armor that we often pull for, but in this case is rejected at almost every turn. This is takes me to my second problem with the books. Jacob's constant abuse, and I can only speak for myself, makes Bella the biggest monster of them all. She uses Jacob, knowingly I might add, and in the end (I won't ruin it for those still reading) is sort of dealt with in this neat little way that left me a little irritated. That however is a review for another time.
All of that being said, Ms. Myer owes Chris Weitz, Kristen Stewart, and Taylor Lautner a ton of gratitude and respect. New Moon portrayed everything I felt its worded counter part attempted to portray. For those who are contantly saying the movie is never as good as the book, let me say this, can it be. Books have the ability to drone on about the most minute of details, while movies cannot afford that luxury. A movie has two hours to do what a book has twenty hours to do. In the two hours and twenty some-odd minutes that New Moon has, it hits almost every plot highlight in the books and the actors give the characters depth that the books sometimes worked hard to do.
Chris Weitz and Summit Entertainment puts together a film that looks how it feels, both real and sureal at the same time. Summit is a independent film company and I think it is good for the Twilight movies, keeping them grounded. The actors are of course more attractive then I or most will ever be, but they look real and even the vampire and werewolves do not go way over the top. I think if anything the somewhat subdued CGI of the wolves were the most extravagant thing in the movie, and that is including a trip to Rome and a visit with the Volturi. The movie flows well and does not seem as long as it is, which was a concern I had going in. There were times in the books where I wanted it to get to the point, and I did not have that in the movie. My one criticism is, and again I have to be careful of taking my own advice, it did brush over parts of the books that I enjoyed, such as Charlie's involvement and bonding with Alice and the growth of Jacob and Bella's relationship, but again there are only two hours.
Now the actors, I will start by saying this, Kristin Stewart could become the death of Megan Fox's star. At nineteen she has begun to grow up right before our eyes and is beautiful in the same way that I have always felt that Diane Lane is. I will say that her screeching in the movie at times is annoying and unbelievable, but her depiction of Bella is spot on. I think she and Chris Weitz's direction during Bella's depression is accurate and effective. I will take this moment to implore Kristin to find a movie that does not make her so depressive and dark because I want to believe that she can do something else. She has a history of playing depressive and dark characters and she is running the risk of falling into that early in her career.
On a side note, let me say that Dakota Fanning is doing a good job of putting herself in situations to make the transition from child star to budding actress, by doing the Twilight movies and Push, characters the audience would not have expected to see her in.
I want to briefly speak to the vampires. Robert Pattinson has an appeal that we have not seen out of our cousins across the pond in the last decade. At a time when the Australian's have filled the void, Robert Pattinson is England's return to our hearts. I will say that he has to be careful that the teenage mobs do not only kill him physically, but professionally as well. Again he will have to strive to distance himself if he wants anyone over the age of 21 to buy him as a talent. The rest of the vampires take a back seat to the Werewolves, but again we do take a trip to the Volturi, who are sufficiently distant and arrogant, and again, though she has maybe two lines and five minutes in the movie, Dakota Fanning steals the show. I look forward to Eclipse and a real return to the Cullens.
So cue the stars of the movie, the Werewolves. After I got past the feelings of insecurity staring at abs for a good 50 minutes of the movie, I found out Taylor Lautner is a really good teenage werewolf. Make no mistake that the New Moon book is clearly about the werewolves, and there is a lot the movie was forced to leave out, but Taylor Lautner and Chris Weitz get the audience there quickly and efficiently. Taylor does an excellent job of being that knight in shining armor and does and excellent job of taking his constant rejection. Sam and the crew are not as present as I would have liked, but they take advantage of their time there. The action sequences with the wolves both with vampires and without, are exciting and also subdued enough to fit in with the rest of the movie. I think the best part of the movie is that it ties the story together in a way that the books were not able to do until the third and fourth books.
I think the most surprising part of the movie, was the humor. There are quite a few times that the audience found itself laughing despite the otherwise brooding tone to the movie. It keeps the movie from becoming too depressive. I was also happy to see that it was able to keep it entertaining for those of us not between the ages of 11 and 19 and of the female persuasion. I give it a B+.
Thanks for reading, until next time!
JP
PS. Go Team Jacob!
Saturday, November 14, 2009
2012
Ok, first a side note. I have created this blog so that I could do editorials separate from my other blog that is supposed to be more for my maybe someday comic book or novel ventures. As I am overly opinionated, and frankly a little lazy about real work, I for see this blog being used more. I encourage you to read my other blog which you can find here.
Now then, I went and saw the movie 2012 tonight and felt like I had to make some comments. Leading up to my seeing this movie I had been frustrated reading all of the reviews. They appear to be bothered by the unlikeliness of the premise and the what some called a "weak" plot. If that was all you should critic a movie about then they are absolutely right. There is no catastrophe that is going to strike in 2012, it is extremely long, and the premise of the movie is pretty weak. The plot itself is very straight forward and for the most part is carried by the acting. All of that being said, this movie is an instant classic and will be remembered as one of the epics of our generation.
There is a reason that we flock to movies like this and why we are willing to pay anywhere from $8 to $20 to sit on our ass for three hours. During that three hours we experience the emotional spectrum. (Spoiler alert) When the protagonists of the story are constantly being shot down by the bullies and politicians, and environmental catastrophes, we feel their anger and frustration. We laugh at the one liners and thrill in the adrenaline rush fights for survival. When a relatively small character, sits with his family and watches the oncoming tsunami he knows will kill his son, because we all know that is the only one he is thinking about in that moment, we all feel that pain. When fathers have to say goodbye to their children, we share their sadness. And when those who survive look out on a brand new day, we share their hope. Some of these emotions we forget we have in the hectic comings and goings of our life, but for moments during this movie we feel them and relate to the moments in our lives that have also given those emotions.
We are also, and more importantly, reminded of not who we are as individuals but what we are as a species. We as human beings, more than anything else, are problem solvers. When our ancestors created the first tools and built their first homes they were solving problems in a way no other creature on earth has. Throughout history we have thrived when we should have failed, we have bent the heavens and earth to meet our needs. I think what disturbs me most about so many of us now is the lack of perspective and the ability to solve life's everyday problems. It is movies like 2012, Independence Day, Day After Tomorrow, and even the Matrix, when we are reminded that we are survivors. They say that in the shark you will find the perfect hunter, we are the perfect thinkers. Our propensity to learn and adapt is nothing short of a miracle and we should be more appreciative. We would do well to remember this as we face the future that we must create for our children.
And lastly, and possibly the thing that both the movie and I want to express the most, we as human beings have the ability to show compassion. We share in each characters experience because we have the compassion to feel for them. What I felt that 2012 did better than most movies of its kind was to have the protagonists remember that while they were surviving, all around them people they did not know where dying. Regardless of your race, nationality or religion, we are all human beings and if we cannot show compassion to those around us we have lost our humanity. Remember that the people around you do not need you to baby them or lead them to your way of thinking, they only need understanding and respect. You do not have to like that gay couple, Muslim family, or born again Christian, but you should show them the understanding and respect that you would want them to show you. Human beings have been on this planet for thousands of years, and if we want to make it more than a few hundred more, we must stop being the self-righteous fanatics that are plaguing us now, and start to respect each other.
So, if you have three hours to kill and 20 bucks to spend then I say go see the movie. It is by no means the greatest movie I have seen, but we need these reminders in our celebrity obsessed, materialistic lifestyles. It always good to take a moment and share in someone else pain, even if that someone is a Hollywood character. And whether you go see the movie or not, tomorrow try to find one person in your day that you show a little extra compassion and understanding.
Until next time, thanks for reading!
Now then, I went and saw the movie 2012 tonight and felt like I had to make some comments. Leading up to my seeing this movie I had been frustrated reading all of the reviews. They appear to be bothered by the unlikeliness of the premise and the what some called a "weak" plot. If that was all you should critic a movie about then they are absolutely right. There is no catastrophe that is going to strike in 2012, it is extremely long, and the premise of the movie is pretty weak. The plot itself is very straight forward and for the most part is carried by the acting. All of that being said, this movie is an instant classic and will be remembered as one of the epics of our generation.
There is a reason that we flock to movies like this and why we are willing to pay anywhere from $8 to $20 to sit on our ass for three hours. During that three hours we experience the emotional spectrum. (Spoiler alert) When the protagonists of the story are constantly being shot down by the bullies and politicians, and environmental catastrophes, we feel their anger and frustration. We laugh at the one liners and thrill in the adrenaline rush fights for survival. When a relatively small character, sits with his family and watches the oncoming tsunami he knows will kill his son, because we all know that is the only one he is thinking about in that moment, we all feel that pain. When fathers have to say goodbye to their children, we share their sadness. And when those who survive look out on a brand new day, we share their hope. Some of these emotions we forget we have in the hectic comings and goings of our life, but for moments during this movie we feel them and relate to the moments in our lives that have also given those emotions.
We are also, and more importantly, reminded of not who we are as individuals but what we are as a species. We as human beings, more than anything else, are problem solvers. When our ancestors created the first tools and built their first homes they were solving problems in a way no other creature on earth has. Throughout history we have thrived when we should have failed, we have bent the heavens and earth to meet our needs. I think what disturbs me most about so many of us now is the lack of perspective and the ability to solve life's everyday problems. It is movies like 2012, Independence Day, Day After Tomorrow, and even the Matrix, when we are reminded that we are survivors. They say that in the shark you will find the perfect hunter, we are the perfect thinkers. Our propensity to learn and adapt is nothing short of a miracle and we should be more appreciative. We would do well to remember this as we face the future that we must create for our children.
And lastly, and possibly the thing that both the movie and I want to express the most, we as human beings have the ability to show compassion. We share in each characters experience because we have the compassion to feel for them. What I felt that 2012 did better than most movies of its kind was to have the protagonists remember that while they were surviving, all around them people they did not know where dying. Regardless of your race, nationality or religion, we are all human beings and if we cannot show compassion to those around us we have lost our humanity. Remember that the people around you do not need you to baby them or lead them to your way of thinking, they only need understanding and respect. You do not have to like that gay couple, Muslim family, or born again Christian, but you should show them the understanding and respect that you would want them to show you. Human beings have been on this planet for thousands of years, and if we want to make it more than a few hundred more, we must stop being the self-righteous fanatics that are plaguing us now, and start to respect each other.
So, if you have three hours to kill and 20 bucks to spend then I say go see the movie. It is by no means the greatest movie I have seen, but we need these reminders in our celebrity obsessed, materialistic lifestyles. It always good to take a moment and share in someone else pain, even if that someone is a Hollywood character. And whether you go see the movie or not, tomorrow try to find one person in your day that you show a little extra compassion and understanding.
Until next time, thanks for reading!
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