Hexapuma vs. the water fountain follow-up report

[rolanni]

Hex still Does Not Believe In the new water fountain, though the water bowl remains acceptable for brief drinks. The black mountain has been disguised and put away. Thanks to everyone for their advice; I'll keep you posted on progress, or lack thereof.

The weather today is a bright, sunny and perfectly calm 0F/-17C; tomorrow to be a thought warmer. I see that my old hometown, Baltimore, is about to get whacked with a nasty snowstorm; everybody down that way stay safe, 'k?

Yesterday, or the day before, I was, as is my habit, perusing the Apple trailer site. I believe that I may wish to see the Tim Burton Alice in March, in an Actual Movie Theater. On the other hand, there's no way I'm going within ten miles of the new Robin Hood. Anybody seen Avatar yet? Is it something more than Noble Blue Indians being Exploited by an Evil Corporation? Should I put it in my Netflix queue?

Comments

[robotech-master.livejournal.com]

Saw it today.

If you're going to see Avatar, see it on the biggest movie screen you can find, IMAX if you can, in 3D.

Seen like that, the movie's lush cinematography is overwhelming. YMMV, but in my opinion it more than made up for the underwhelming "Dances with Smurfs" story.

On a big screen, in 3D, Avatar is an experience.

On a small screen, it will be just another Dances with Wolves clone.

[rolanni.livejournal.com]

If you're going to see Avatar, see it on the biggest movie screen you can find, IMAX if you can, in 3D.

Saco's (http://pressherald.mainetoday.com/story.php?id=254973) kind of a long drive for a movie, especially a movie that's telling a story I've heard many times before. If the only thing going for it is Teh Pretty, I may give it a miss, even in Netflix.

[robotech-master.livejournal.com]

Well, if the story is an old one, it is at least told well. And again, Teh Pretty is not just "pretty", it's downright amazing. It is no exaggeration to say this is the best CGI that has ever been seen on the screen.

James Cameron has filled in the "uncanny valley" with a bulldozer.

[robotech-master.livejournal.com]

And Peter Watts nails it (http://www.rifters.com/crawl/?p=959):

It’s been years now since special effects were enough to entice me into a theatre. Ever since the ascension of CGI, it’s been possible to render pretty much anything a writer can imagine. The highest production values have been devalued by the relentless onslaught of Moore’s Law. I didn’t care how eye-popping something looked; there had to be more to lure me in. No modern movie can succeed solely on the strength of its special effects.

But then I saw Avatar, and in terms of sheer technical virtuosity it just blew me away. Every frame is gorgeous. Every two minutes of footage looks as though it must have cost as much as any other whole movie to make. Every perfectly-rendered dust mote and shaft of filtered sunlight forces me to smile and widen my eyes despite my most jaded intentions.

I have a lot of problems with Avatar as a story. As a movie, though — as an experience — it has made me change my own rules, at least for now.

Avatar is a movie that succeeds on the strength of its effects.