Wednesday, December 23, 2009

YouTube Matters: I'm on a Sleigh



I'm always skeptical about parodies of parodies but these guys do it right. "Take a good hard look at the Merry Christmas sleigh!"

Friday, December 18, 2009

Guest Post: Avatar Review



Avatar is supposed to be one of the greatest movies of our time. Billed as the most expensive movie ever made at $300 million I can see what they used the money for. The most amazing special effects. Ever. Well...that and ripping off Fern Gully's storyline. Seriously. Think Fern Gully, add in some CGI and 3D and a little difficulty deciphering between what's real and what's not and you have yourself the whole premise of Avatar. When I read that it took James Cameron 15 years to film the movie I thought I was going to see a cleverly written story put to life through graphics like I had never seen. Instead I realized that it took Cameron 15 years to build the technology to film a ripped off storyline.





The character development was enough to make you feel attached to the main characters, but the crappy writing was enough to make me turn to my neighbor and comment on the cheese factor. Also notable is the less than subtle push that humans ruin the Earth and we must take advantage of what we have. While at times hollow and and overblown, the movie keeps its audience captivated and involved with its grandeur. The Na’vi are the most intriguing cinematographic creations to date, with a mix of human features and then features of Cameron's imagination.


My recommendation? See Fern Gully 3, oops I mean Avatar, in the theater. It's worth spending the money to see the special effects because they're amazing and I don't think they'll translate the same way on your tv screen the way they do on the big screen. Is this Cameron's next Best Picture Oscar winner? I highly doubt it. I give the movie a B+.


--Caroline McLean