The Last Airbender [2010]

[muc147]

I was bendin' air last night. Thank you Taco Bell!

haha
gr8
I would love to bend the air when this movie comes to my country

[JunkBarMan]

No, it would've been an excellent film if that ego-driven twat of a director hadn't butchered the characters and story of the original.

Couldn't have said it better myself....

[mooger]

CGI does sell big people will go see it

[clocker]

CGI does sell big people will go see it

CGI is ubiquitous in almost every film you see today, even the ones you wouldn't expect to look for it in.

Technology is a wonderful thing but has lately become the whole point of many blockbuster films, far overshadowing the scripting and acting in favor of the "WOW!" factor.

I recently read a retrospective review of Jaws which discussed the problems Speilberg had with the mechanical shark (named Bruce, after Speilberg's lawyer).
It basically didn't work and Speilberg had to work around the fact that he couldn't present a convincing shark on screen...his solutions made the movie the icon it's become and Jaws would almost certainly have been much weaker film had the special effects been more advanced and reliable.

Another example of this would be Alien.
You don't really ever see the creature until the very end (where it's pretty obvious you're looking at some poor schmuck in a rubber suit) and the suspense level is cranked way up because you're forced to imagine the creature instead of being presented with the images outright.

Neither of these movies would be the same if made today and I'll posit that neither would be as good.

[IdolEyes787]

CGI should only be used to compliment a script not take the place of one.
Also although it's never going to happen again CGI can't duplicate the feeling that you get from seeing thousands of extras onscreen like in Dr Zhivago or Gone with the Wind .
I don't care what anyone says there is no emotional resonance watching a bunch of blue cartoon characters live or die in Avatar.It's the cheap thrill of a roller coaster at best and as far removed from art( or humanity) as possible.

[brilman]

Yeah great, a mixture of what? LOTR, The Fifth Element and Kung Fu Kids. Another unnecessary movie :/

No, it would've been an excellent film if that ego-driven twat of a director hadn't butchered the characters and story of the original.

Guess he was looking for a new film and his kids told him about this one. He said in a interview that he watched a few min. of it

And yes CGI,3D sell wonder what happened to smell-a-vision?

[clocker]

what happened to smell-a-vision?

It stunk.

[chalice]

CGI does sell big people will go see it

CGI is ubiquitous in almost every film you see today, even the ones you wouldn't expect to look for it in.

Technology is a wonderful thing but has lately become the whole point of many blockbuster films, far overshadowing the scripting and acting in favor of the "WOW!" factor.

I recently read a retrospective review of Jaws which discussed the problems Speilberg had with the mechanical shark (named Bruce, after Speilberg's lawyer).
It basically didn't work and Speilberg had to work around the fact that he couldn't present a convincing shark on screen...his solutions made the movie the icon it's become and Jaws would almost certainly have been much weaker film had the special effects been more advanced and reliable.

Another example of this would be Alien.
You don't really ever see the creature until the very end (where it's pretty obvious you're looking at some poor schmuck in a rubber suit) and the suspense level is cranked way up because you're forced to imagine the creature instead of being presented with the images outright.

Neither of these movies would be the same if made today and I'll posit that neither would be as good.

I haven't seen it in a while, and my memory of it may well be padded by the post-hype, but wasn't one of the most iconic moments from Alien John Hurt's intestines exploding into our innocent faces? I think we all grew up a little after seeing that. Be it rubber gunge or CGI.

Point being, the dramatic effect is purely pivotal upon the accepted cinematic realism of a give era. The Exorcist springs to mind. At the time, it was terrifying, today it's a little schlock.

Kids are spoilt these days. And I suppose we are too.

[clocker]

Of course, the chestburster scene is probably the single most memorable part of Alien but if you rewatch the film, that single short view of the alien as it skitters away on the floor is the only time you see the entire creature till the end of the movie (Sigourney Weaver's panties being the second most iconic shot...maybe).

The point being that what the audience is forced to imagine is always scarier than what you hand them on a platter.

Forgetting this maxim leads to inanities like the Saw/Hostel franchises, where the audience is spoonfed the horror and the visual ante must rise with each sequel because the assumption is that the audience is too stupid to use their imaginations.

Which is probably true.

[chalice]

Of course, the chestburster scene is probably the single most memorable part of Alien but if you rewatch the film, that single short view of the alien as it skitters away on the floor is the only time you see the entire creature till the end of the movie (Sigourney Weaver's panties being the second most iconic shot...maybe).

The point being that what the audience is forced to imagine is always scarier than what you hand them on a platter.

Forgetting this maxim leads to inanities like the Saw/Hostel franchises, where the audience is spoonfed the horror and the visual ante must rise with each sequel because the assumption is that the audience is too stupid to use their imaginations.

Which is probably true.

Hovering on my principle point, to qualify, I'm saying that, at the time, Alien was cutting edge special effects, despite the scarcity of the monster. I'm certainly not disputing the huge effect of the cinematic veil and reveal. This permeates all drama (or comedy).

Just that, this was one of the seminal moments between the artistry of shadow and light and the ability to expose all.