Anti-Technology Themes in James Cameron's Avatar

ThousandStars writes "'The anti-technological aspect [in James Cameron's Avatar] is strange because the movie is among most technically sophisticated ever: it uses a crazy 2D and 3D camera, harnesses the most advanced computer animation techniques imaginable, and has apparently improved the state-of-the-art when it comes to cinema. But Avatar’s story argues that technology is bad. Humans destroyed their home world through environmental disaster and use military might to annihilate the locals and steal their resources.' The question is two-fold: why have a technically sophisticated, anti-technical movie, and why are we drawn to it? Part of the answer lies in Neal Stephenson's Turn On, Tune In, Veg Out."

Comments

Re:it's called "entertainment"

[dhermann]

I think the problem lies in the fact that Avatar is so close to moving from a "good" movie to a "great" one. When Cameron writes a script with such a singular, juvenile perspective on strip mining for minerals, it's frustrating because it's dumbed down for... I'm not sure. Are morons a key target demographic now? Even kids could understand this concept. In any case, the villain is practically copied from a Captain Planet episode.

The question shouldn't be: Why does Avatar portray a technologically-advanced society negatively and a savage society positively, but why doesn't Avatar equalize the conflict by adding an appeal by Parker (the corporate goon) about the uses of unobtainium (P.S. unobtain-- ohhhhhh, I see what you did there). Just add some shots of sick kids or a barren wasteland on Earth and a heartfelt monologue about how badly the humans need the mineral, and the physical conflict in the movie becomes a moral conflict with infinitely more meaning. Make Sully a real character with some internal emotions while you're there.