"There are many dangers on Pandora, and one of the subtlest is that you may come to love it too much."

-Dr. Grace Augustine



Tuesday, January 26, 2010

"Avatar" Now the Biggest Film of All Time


It's official, James Cameron's Avatar has surpassed Titanic this past weekend, making it the biggest movie of all time. Avatar had been poised to overtake Titanic for some time now, achieving what no other movie has in twelve years this past weekend. Thank you to all of you who were loyal fans to the world of Avatar, and knew that it would become the biggest film of all time. As for you critics... told you so. Avatar may well reach $2 Billion, according to sources, but as for that, we will have to wait and see.

Tuesday, January 19, 2010

Still On Pandora



I saw Avatar for the fifth time yesterday, officially making it the movie that I have seen the most at the theater. I'm not sure whether or not I'll see it again on the big screen, but I highly doubt that I won't. Even though my body was in Theater 10 at 12:00pm on 1/18/2010, every other part of me was 4.4 light-years away on 8/23/2154. Yet again, Pandora has continued to refuse to let my imagination and my soul go. I have become lost in that world, in the breathtaking sensation of the day and within the bioluminescence of the night. Among the Omaticaya People and the creatures that also call Pandora home. My heart still lingers 4.4 light-years away, and the very core of me refuses to lift off Pandora.

Somewhere 4.4 light-years away from where I sit now, there is a moon called Pandora, orbiting the planet Polyphemus near the star Alpha Centauri A, that has stolen my imagination and captured my mind. I doubt if I'll ever get either back, but as far as I'm concerned, they can remain on that moon for as long as I live.

Sunday, January 17, 2010

Golden Globes - Best Motion Picture Drama


Avatar was awarded the Golden Globe for Best Motion Picture Drama this evening, and heads into the Academy Awards as a short priced favorite for Best Picture. The award for Avatar followed director James Cameron picking up the best director award earlier in the evening. Even if Avatar isn’t successful at the Academy Awards, the picture is heading for new records, and is currently set to become the highest grossing film of all time. Director James Cameron took the opportunity to say that those in the room had the best jobs in the world, and said that he believed that Avatar represented the best of cinema.
Photo, left to right: Sam Worthington (Jake Sully), James Cameron (director), Zoe Saldana (Neytiri), Jon Landaupose (producer), Sigourney Weaver (Dr. Grace Augustine)

Golden Globe - Best Director


The winner of the Best Director Golden Globe is James Cameron for his work on the groundbreaking epic, Avatar. Cameron accepts his award from his real life neighbor, Gibson, saying, "I'm going to try to make this as brief as I can because frankly I have to pee something fierce. I'm actually not well-prepared because frankly I thought Kathryn [Bigelow, director of The Hurt Locker] was going to get this so I'm kind of winging it here. She richly deserves it, but make no mistake, I'm very grateful." Cameron then thanked and recognized the work of his fine cast, thanking them for their outstanding work by speaking Na'vi.

"Avatar" Hits 1.6 Billion


James Cameron's Avatar has now earned $1.6 Billion. In an unprecedented display of strength, Avatar led the worldwide box office for a fifth consecutive weekend, fast catching up on all-time champ Titanic, distributor 20th Century Fox said on Sunday (1/17/10). Cameron's sci-fi epic has now earned $1.6 Billion, just $237 Million short of the $1.8 Billion record set by the filmmaker's Titanic in 1998. "Titanic was a ship. Avatar's a rocket ship," said Chris Aronson, Fox's senior vice-president of domestic distribution. The North American contribution stands at $491.8 Million (the third-highest tally of all time) thanks to a $41.3 Million weekend. Fox, a unit of News Corp, expects it to hit $500 Million on Monday, when business will get a boost from the U.S. Martin Luther King holiday. That will mark the Avatar's 32nd day of release. By contrast, Titanic took 98 days to reach that tally on its way to a record $601 Million. Keep in mind, Avatar sales are inflated by higher ticket prices in general and premium pricing for 3-D screenings. Avatar is enjoying strong holds every weekend. In the current period, it was off just 18%. Titanic was the last movie to lead the box office for five consecutive weekends, although Avatar might struggle to reach its record of 15 unbroken weekends. The foreign total stands at $1.1 Billion after a $125 Million weekend. Avatar trails the Titanic overseas haul of $1.2 Billion by just $127 Million. Avatar, the tale of a disabled ex-Marine sent from Earth to infiltrate a race of 10-foot (3-meter) blue aliens and persuade them to let his employer mine their homeland for natural resources, is reportedly the most expensive film ever made, with a budget of at least $300 million.



For all those who didn't believe that Avatar could surpass Titanic's $1.8 Billion first place trophy spot, think again. For all those who believed in Avatar's inevitable domination (includes myself), thank you for helping that becom a reality. All we can do now is wait for Avatar to dethrone Titanic, something that even James Cameron himself has said will happen.

Sunday, January 10, 2010

4.4 Light-Years Away



I just got home from watching Avatar for the fourth time. It's now tied with Zombieland for the most times I've seen a movie at the theater. I'm going to see Avatar at least one more time for sure, making it the movie that I've gone to see the most. Even though I've now seen it four times, it hasn't lost anything on me. I'm still captured by it, by everything in it. In fact, I think I've gained more everytime I've seen it. I catch things I haven't noticed, and I'm getting much more familiar with the Na'vi language, which helps me become immersed in the world of Pandora. On top of all this, tonight was the first time that I saw a movie at the theater by myself. I wouldn't have wanted to do this with any other film than Avatar, and I'm so happy that I did.


Somewhere 4.4 light-years away from where I sit now, there is a moon called Pandora, orbiting the planet Polyphemus near the star Alpha Centauri A, that has stolen my imagination and captured my mind. I doubt if I'll ever get either back, but as far as I'm concerned, they can remain on that moon for as long as I live.

Saturday, January 9, 2010

"Avatar" Now the Second Biggest Film of All Time


The box office dominance of Avatar continues, with the news that James Cameron's film has now become the second biggest of all time. It's taken less than three weeks for the film to achieve this, and on day 20, its takings worldwide stood at $1.135 Billion. That's seen it overtake Lord Of The Rings: Return Of The King's $1.119 Billion, and the only film that stands ahead of it is Cameron's own Titanic. Its take of $1.843 Billion seems to be out of Avatar's reach to some, but I doubt it. Even if you take into the account of inflation, the higher cost of ticket prices and the fact that many are paying a premium to watch the film in 3D, this is a staggering achievement to say the least. This means that, for the fourth time in his career, Cameron has made the most expensive film of all time (Terminator 2, True Lies, Titanic and now Avatar), and each time he's won the gamble and made huge sums of money the other side. Is there any stopping of the Avatar juggernaut? Probably not.

Thursday, January 7, 2010

Neytiri

"You have a strong heart, no fear... but stupid, ignorant like a child!"
WARNING: AVATAR SPOILER
Neytiri Dis'kahan A'itey (known only as Neytiri) is the Na'vi princess of the Omaticaya Clan. She is the daughter of Eytukan and Mo'at. She is initially supposed to mate with Tsu'Tey, one of the clan's finest warriors, but she is undecided. She learns English from Grace Augustine's school, but it gets closed down, as humans want to evacuate the Na'vi. One day while hunting in the woods, Neytiri sees an avatar and stalks him. As she is about to kill him with a bow, an Atokirina' (seed from the Tree of Souls, a very pure spirit) floats down and gently lands on her arrowhead. She sees this as a sign that the avatar is pure, and she lowers her bow. Later that night, when the avatar is attacked by a pack of viperwolves, she protects him by fending off and killing two of the creatures. The avatar inroduces himself as Jake Sully and tries to thank her for her help. Since the Na'vi consider all creatures to be children of Eywa, their deity, she angrily rejects his thanks at first, telling him that she only saved him because he has a strong heart and no fear. Just then, dozens of Atokirina' land on Jake. Neytiri is amazed by the sight and, seeing this as a good sign from Eywa, decides to take him to Hometree (Na'vi - "Kelutrel"), the home of the Omaticaya Clan. There, her father Eytukan, leader of the clan, and her mother Mo'at, the clan's spiritual leader, assess Jake. Mo'at feels purity in him and tells Neytiri to teach him the clan's culture and language to help his learning of the Na'vi species. After reluctantly obeying, Neytiri begins to teach Jake. Their relationship grows and as time passes, they become closer to one another and a mutual attraction grows between them. She shows him how to ride a Direhorse, how to use a bow, how to walk like a Na'vi, how to kill an animal cleanly, and the Na'vi language itself. After much preparation, Neytiri tells Jake that he is ready to tame his own ikran (banshee). After climbing Iknimaya (Stairway to Heaven), Jake, Tsu'Tey, and two other Na'vi arrive at the ikran nesting site. Neytiri meets up with them there on her own ikran, Seze ("blue flower"). Jake is then ordered by Tsu'Tey to go first. When Jake is able to capture and tame is own ikran, Neytiri is very proud of him, taking flight next to him on her ikran. Their relationship reaches a new level. That night, Jake undergoes the ceremony where Eytukan considers him as one of their own, a part of The People. Later that same night, Neytiri takes Jake to the Tree of Voices (Na'vi - "Utral Aymokriyä"). She tells him that he may now make his bow out of the wood from Hometree, and that he may now choose a woman. After she lists a couple of eligible female Na'vi, Jake tells Neytiri that he has already chosen who he wants, but that she must also choose him. Neytiri smiles and replies that she already has. They both choose each other as life mates, and they mate under the Tree of Voices and before Eywa, spending the rest of that night there. She tells him that she is with him now, and that they are mated for life. This seals their relationship for the remainder of their lives. During the events leading up to the final battle with RDA forces, their relationship grows tense, as Neytiri believes Jake to be a traitor and rejects him from the clan, saying that he would never be one of the people. After Jake proves his strong connection to Eywa by becoming a Toruk Makto, Neytiri accepts, loves, and sees him once more. She displays her love for him several times, by saving his avatar's life from an enraged Tsu'Tey and also his human body from Colonel Quaritch, killing the Colonel and placing an oxygen mask on Jake's human body after he nearly suffocates in Pandora's atmosphere. They now remain together and lead the Omaticaya people.

"Avatar" Exclusive Clip: Results


Here is another exclusive Avatar clip. This one minute and forty second scene is with Dr. Grace Augustine and Parker Selfridge (the corporate administrator for the RDA mining operation) discuss why humans are on Pandora.

"Avatar" Exclusive Clip: Thanator



Here is another exclusive Avatar clip. This two-and-a-half minute scene is when Jake Sully's avatar is chased by the Thanator (Na'vi - "palulukan") on Pandora.

"Avatar" Exclusive Clip: Iknimaya


Here is an exclusive three minute Avatar clip. The scene is when Jake Sully, Tsu'Tey, and a few other Na'vi climb the Thundering Rocks (or "Stairway to Heaven") to the ikran (banshee) nesting site. There they are met by Neytiri to help them with their task. This rite of passage is called the "Iknimaya", where a young Na'vi must select, capture, and successfully bond (tsahaylu) with one of the ikran that nest there).

Learn Na'vi


For those of you who fell in love with the movie Avatar, the world of Pandora, and the Na'vi race, there is a website that may be of some interest to you. Like the die-hard Star Trek fans who learned Klingon, the invented language of the Star Trek universe, Avatar fans around the world are dying to learn the language of the Pandora natives - Na'vi. Na'vi is the language invented by linguist Paul Frommer (pictured above), a professor at the University of Southern California, who was approached by James Cameron. For those who wish to learn Na'vi, the following link to this website can provide much help on the language's vocab and grammar:

http://www.learnnavi.org/

There you have it... a website dedicated to the Na'vi language. There are other websites out there that also provide information on Na'vi, but so far this seems to be the most dedicated.

Also - just in case you were wondering what the words in the picture above mean, here are their translations from Na'vi to English:

zìsìt - "year"
nì'awve - "first"
muiä - "proper/fair/right"
fpeio - "challenge (ceremonial)"
tireaioang - "spirit animal"
tskxe - "rock"
kllpxìltu - "territory"
AVATAR - "(best. movie. ever.)"

"Avatar" Makes Fastest $1 Billion



Avatar, the highly promoted and largely computer generated movie distributed by 20th Century Fox in December has become the fastest ever film to gross $1 Billion at the box office in ticket sales. While some commentators have been quick to point out that this rapid revenue is due, in part, to the premium price attracted by 3D movies, the swift sales for Avatar mean that, just weeks after its premier, Avatar is already the fourth highest grossing film at box office in history, the top four currently consists of:

Titanic – $1.8bn
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King – $1.12bn
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest – $1.07bn
Avatar – $1bn

With the film not even out in Italy – where it is scheduled for a 15th January release – it is highly likely that, following a January with few big movies coming to screens, Avatar will overtake all those above it in the current list to become the biggest selling movie in history. What is astounding is that Avatar passed the billion dollar mark in just 17 days, making $350m in the US alone and over $670m in the rest of the world. With many fans deciding to watch the movie multiple times and many non movie-goers deciding that the 3D experience and huge budget spent by director James Cameron on this movie is sufficient draw to pull them into theatres, Avatar is proving to provide real return on investment. Bert Livingston, a distribution expert for 20th Century Fox explained: "I think everybody has to see Avatar once, even people who don’t normally go to the movies, they’ve heard about it and are saying, 'I have to see it'."

Wednesday, January 6, 2010

Pandora Discovered


A short video giving viewers a first look at the world of Pandora, as portrayed in James Cameron's epic new motion picture, Avatar. Narrated by Sigourney Weaver (Dr. Grace Augustine).

"Avatar"


AVATAR
I first saw this movie on December 21, 2009. My first post on this blog will be my review of it. I have no idea where to start. When I first saw the teaser trailer for this movie, I had no interest in seeing it whatsoever. I then watched the official trailer when it was released, which changed my mind a little. After seeing what the movie was about, it interested me a lot, and so I decided on watching it. Wow. There are only a few single words that come to my mind as I try to describe it to you now: "epic" being the simplist of them. Everything in this movie was so incredibly detailed, from the enviroment to the creatures that inhabited it. On top of the amount of imagination, the story and characters themselves set it a whole bar higher. It had the perfect amount of everything that makes a movie good for me. I found myself wishing it was longer than the near three hours it was. If your a fan of movies such as The Lord of the Rings, Star Trek, Titanic, or Terminator, or even if you're not, I want you to watch this film. James Cameron did an outstanding job. I only wish that it would be as mind-blowing on DVD as it was in the theatre. It was so effortless for me to get completely absorbed and captivated in this movie and never wanting to come back. I wish I could live on Pandora and become one of the Na'vi. Oh and Neytiri is mine.