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(Variety) Cool Avatar grosses $3.5 million during its midnight run. Charles Grodin approves   (variety.com) divider line 387
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otnemem32420 [TotalFark] 2009-12-18 11:41:00 PM  
I went to a midnight showing and saw it in 3D, and I have to say that it's the most visually impressive movie I've seen.

 
hubiestubert 2009-12-19 12:20:05 AM  
Midnight show, IMAX HD3D, and to be honest, it was jaw dropping.

There has not been a film done with 3D on this scale, or as well as this. It's not a gimmick. It's not a "gotcha!" trick. It brings you into the world, and it is persistent, consistent, and absolutely worth seeing.

The story is very Cameron. Sigourney Weaver is her usual brands of awesome, and if you don't like either, this ain't the film for you, but you might want to check the tech out, because it is going to be the benchmark for anything done in 3D for quite a while.

 
eyehate [TotalFark] 2009-12-19 12:45:59 AM  
I wanted to see this until I realized I had seen the commercials and blue people and previews everywhere and now I have no desire to see it at all.

 
hubiestubert 2009-12-19 12:47:19 AM  
eyehate: I wanted to see this until I realized I had seen the commercials and blue people and previews everywhere and now I have no desire to see it at all.

More room the aisle then.

 
The English Major [TotalFark] 2009-12-19 12:54:37 AM  
hubiestubert: eyehate: I wanted to see this until I realized I had seen the commercials and blue people and previews everywhere and now I have no desire to see it at all.

More room the aisle then.


He doesn't the film.

 
hubiestubert 2009-12-19 01:13:42 AM  
The English Major: hubiestubert: eyehate: I wanted to see this until I realized I had seen the commercials and blue people and previews everywhere and now I have no desire to see it at all.

More room the aisle then.

He doesn't the film.


The Fark accidentally my post.

 
CraicBaby [TotalFark] 2009-12-19 04:25:29 AM  
I might go see this movie on Boxing Day since hubby and I have nothing else to do that day and we sure as hell aren't going shopping. The IMAX theatre is literally on the other side of town at the big-ass West Edmonton Mall, but it's worth the drive if there's a movie I really want to see on IMAX.

/best part of that theatre is the animatronic fire-breathing dragon

 
testaclese 2009-12-19 04:56:01 AM  
Ah, is this the Avatar-love thread? Good. Because HOLY CRAP I loved it.
No matter how far the drive you need to take to see it in one form of 3D or another you must.

Ignore the merchandising/preview/studio hype and just go enjoy it. Read Roger Ebert's review.

What hubiestubert said above, ditto. The 3D is just such a "normal" thing after a few minutes. It just helps transport you to Pandora. Ah heck, it's just such a fun thrill ride.

GO HAVE FUN.

 
Speedbts alt 2009-12-19 05:07:37 AM  
A coworker went and saw it at IMAX. They said the effects were so amazing, they are going to have to see it again to watch the story. That's not a ringing endorsement for me.

 
Britney Spear's Speculum 2009-12-19 05:09:07 AM  
So, is 3.5 million for a midnight showing good?


/srs question

 
Bloody William [TotalFark] 2009-12-19 05:12:37 AM  
hubiestubert: The English Major: hubiestubert: eyehate: I wanted to see this until I realized I had seen the commercials and blue people and previews everywhere and now I have no desire to see it at all.

More room the aisle then.

He doesn't the film.

The Fark accidentally my post.


I the IMAX in 3D.

 
Bloody William [TotalFark] 2009-12-19 05:14:09 AM  
Speedbts alt: A coworker went and saw it at IMAX. They said the effects were so amazing, they are going to have to see it again to watch the story. That's not a ringing endorsement for me.

Honestly, the story was shmaltzy, predictable, and lifted from three or four animated films. Seriously, entire chunks were copied over from Ferngully: The Last Rainforest, Atlantis: The Lost Empire, Battle for Terra, and Pocahontas.

Looked AMAZING, though. The aliens pretty much leaped out of the uncanny valley, to the other side.

 
fender12 2009-12-19 05:21:03 AM  
Could the story and characters stand on their own without the 3D and fancy visual effects?

 
misterblaine63 2009-12-19 05:30:34 AM  
Damn, that's Cameron's best opening weekend since Aquaman!

Sure hope he partied until dawn.

 
The All-Powerful Atheismo 2009-12-19 05:37:35 AM  
Bloody William: hubiestubert: The English Major: hubiestubert: eyehate: I wanted to see this until I realized I had seen the commercials and blue people and previews everywhere and now I have no desire to see it at all.

More room the aisle then.

He doesn't the film.

The Fark accidentally my post.

I the IMAX in 3D.


I went to see Avatar... I was disappoint.

 
galactus5000 2009-12-19 05:44:12 AM  
The All-Powerful Atheismo: Bloody William: hubiestubert: The English Major: hubiestubert: eyehate: I wanted to see this until I realized I had seen the commercials and blue people and previews everywhere and now I have no desire to see it at all.

More room the aisle then.

He doesn't the film.

The Fark accidentally my post.

I the IMAX in 3D.

I went to see Avatar... I was disappoint.


Funny....I was very, very appoint.

 
browntimmy 2009-12-19 05:48:32 AM  
Twelve of that was from me. It's going to get another 12 on Sunday.

 
GungFu 2009-12-19 05:53:23 AM  
But..but...Avatar is like Dances with Masai Warrior Smurfcats...so it can't be successful! You all are liars!

LIARS! And I hate you. People on Fark said it was a POS film before it was released, so how can they be so wrong? It makes no sense.

 
FuzzyLynx 2009-12-19 05:53:55 AM  
browntimmy: Twelve of that was from me. It's going to get another 12 on Sunday.

Same. I saw it at midnight last night, and I'm seeing it again with the girlfriend tomorrow. Possibly again thereafter.

It might not have the most original or majestic story, but I'll be damned if there isn't a movie that makes the most use of CGI without it feeling blatant, bloated, or otherwise unnecessary.

 
zunkus 2009-12-19 05:59:37 AM  
Saw it the other day in IMAX 3D. Freaking beautiful movie, sure the story has been told before but just about every story has. I highly recommend some really great pot.

 
That_Dude 2009-12-19 06:03:46 AM  
Wait, I thought $3.5mil for a midnight showing is bad. Didn't SoaP make about half that on its way to bombing spectacularly?

And even though none of you care about my opinion, I would like to say that I thought it was a well made popcorn flick but wasn't anything special. Then again, I saw it in 2D so that may have had something to do with it.

/Too late at night to write coherently.

 
nesler [TotalFark] 2009-12-19 06:27:03 AM  
That_Dude: Wait, I thought $3.5mil for a midnight showing is bad. Didn't SoaP make about half that on its way to bombing spectacularly?

New Moon made 26.3 million dollars in its midnight showings, but it was also shown in more than 3500 theaters that night. Avatar was shown in 2000. But that's still not terribly encouraging, especially given the fact that making and marketing Avatar apparently cost somewhere around 500 million dollars.

 
Tachikoma [TotalFark] 2009-12-19 06:30:34 AM  
hubiestubert:
There has not been a film done with 3D on this scale, or as well as this. It's not a gimmick. It's not a "gotcha!" trick. It brings you into the world, and it is persistent, consistent, and absolutely worth seeing.


The Pixar movies also did 3D this way. So yes, there have been films done with 3D on this scale before.

But Avatar was amazingly gorgeous... and amazingly cliche and predictable. I highly suggest seeing the movie to actually see it, and giggle through the plot line ('I see you!'). The forests are amazing, and I spent a great part of the movie actually studying the background fauna and wildlife (because the writing really didn't require any more than a 'oh, speech moment' attention span, sadly), and wondering about how everything worked in detail. The phosphorescent lines that marked every single species, even the Na'vi, the evolution of the biological link mechanism, and how on Earth were there waterfalls from floating islands that had no access to a large water supply or the water table.

While there is obviously oxygen in the environment (fire), I wondered what the majority of the atmosphere was (helium, perhaps? Or argon?), and was slightly disappointed by the humans making a comment about how Pandora was a low gravity environment (hence the gigantic stature of everything), and then it not visually showing in any form after that. That plot hole was just annoying the entire movie, and it made me want to throttle whoever had put it in there, and the visual team that promptly forgot it.

I'll probably end up owning the DVD eventually, but I hope this movie launches a new era of believable CGI movies. Yes, the Uncanny Valley was still alive and well (the animals were all far too slick and shiny to be natural, and ended up distracting from the scenes they were in, as did the odd texture of the blue skin), but we are attempting to climb up and out of it. Hopefully they can take what they learned here, and, instead of needing to just put the actors on stage in a digital format, can create humans from scratch in the future. While the body motions will probably remain motion capture for years to come, it would be nice to see them have the ability to just create a character, no base actor of physical scan needed.

/It's worth the cash to see it in 3D IMAX
//just remember it's a popcorn flick
///think Fern Gully, but without Tim Currey

 
Confabulat [TotalFark] 2009-12-19 06:30:42 AM  
That_Dude: Wait, I thought $3.5mil for a midnight showing is bad. Didn't SoaP make about half that on its way to bombing spectacularly?

And even though none of you care about my opinion, I would like to say that I thought it was a well made popcorn flick but wasn't anything special. Then again, I saw it in 2D so that may have had something to do with it.

/Too late at night to write coherently.


Why would you go see this movie in the theater in 2D? That makes no sense to me.

 
FuzzyLynx 2009-12-19 06:33:20 AM  
nesler: That_Dude: Wait, I thought $3.5mil for a midnight showing is bad. Didn't SoaP make about half that on its way to bombing spectacularly?

New Moon made 26.3 million dollars in its midnight showings, but it was also shown in more than 3500 theaters that night. Avatar was shown in 2000. But that's still not terribly encouraging, especially given the fact that making and marketing Avatar apparently cost somewhere around 500 million dollars.


New Moon also profits from the vast number of teeny-bopper girls and women who wish they were still that young - and their appropriately-whipped counterparts - that wanted to see that movie.

Avatar doesn't get the support of that type of rabid fanbase. I still think it's going to have a spectacular opening weekend despite being 3 hours long (and thus fewer showings, and thus fewer ticket sales).

 
Schadenfreude ist die schoenste Freude [TotalFark] 2009-12-19 06:59:11 AM  
Tachikoma: slightly disappointed by the humans making a comment about how Pandora was a low gravity environment (hence the gigantic stature of everything), and then it not visually showing in any form after that. That plot hole was just annoying the entire movie, and it made me want to throttle whoever had put it in there, and the visual team that promptly forgot it.

Goddamn, that is one MASSIVE f*cking plot hole. How the hell does James Cameron go on and on about all the money and time they invested in making this as realistic as possible with biologists, linguists, etc. and miss something that f*cking big?

 
TheGhostofFarkPast 2009-12-19 07:14:43 AM  
Schadenfreude ist die schoenste Freude: Tachikoma: slightly disappointed by the humans making a comment about how Pandora was a low gravity environment (hence the gigantic stature of everything), and then it not visually showing in any form after that. That plot hole was just annoying the entire movie, and it made me want to throttle whoever had put it in there, and the visual team that promptly forgot it.

Goddamn, that is one MASSIVE f*cking plot hole. How the hell does James Cameron go on and on about all the money and time they invested in making this as realistic as possible with biologists, linguists, etc. and miss something that f*cking big?


Cameron's ego got in the way of that main point, he was to busy giving himself a pat on the back to realize how big he screwed up.

i331.photobucket.com

/I think Cartman said it best in regards to this movie.
//if you wanted stunning visuals just go see an IMAX dome movie
///why waste it watching some half assed plot?

 
ManhattanRedneck 2009-12-19 07:26:04 AM  
For $500M they couldn't come up with a better name for that ore they were mining? UNOBTANIUM!!!!! There was a resounding groan from my friends when that was mentioned.

This was visually awesome in IMAX 3D, but the story sucked, was utterly cliche and boring most of the time, and TOO FARKING LONG. The running jumping climbing was cool and interesting for maybe the first hour. I give this 5/10, but purely on the visuals. I don't know if I have the patience to slog through that crappy dialogue again.

/paying $21.50 hurts so much

 
archie leach 2009-12-19 07:45:14 AM  
FuzzyLynx: nesler: That_Dude: Wait, I thought $3.5mil for a midnight showing is bad. Didn't SoaP make about half that on its way to bombing spectacularly?

New Moon made 26.3 million dollars in its midnight showings, but it was also shown in more than 3500 theaters that night. Avatar was shown in 2000. But that's still not terribly encouraging, especially given the fact that making and marketing Avatar apparently cost somewhere around 500 million dollars.

New Moon also profits from the vast number of teeny-bopper girls and women who wish they were still that young - and their appropriately-whipped counterparts - that wanted to see that movie.

Avatar doesn't get the support of that type of rabid fanbase. I still think it's going to have a spectacular opening weekend despite being 3 hours long (and thus fewer showings, and thus fewer ticket sales).


Also, many, if not all, of the largest non-IMAX auditoriums are not 3D compatible.


See this Link (new Box Office Mojo window) for why the midnight number means nothing.

 
retarded 2009-12-19 07:51:48 AM  
Saw it last night, and so, basically, as everyone here is saying, beautiful and amazing imagery. Storyline was a bit weak.

This would be an awesome movie if it had more of a horror or thriller type edge to it. If Aliens, for example, were made in 3-D and using this type of animation, wow. But for the most part it's a Disney movie about white people trying to ruin the environment of blue people for capitalistic gain.

But my son loved it and for a cranky little 15-year old punk to have a good time with his old man on a Friday night was worth much more than the price of admission and the popcorn.

 
DD0 [TotalFark] 2009-12-19 07:57:49 AM  
Saw it in IMAX 3D yesterday. 100% must see.

It wouldn't have mattered if it was in some ancient language that no one spoke and you couldn't follow along, just the visuals alone are worth it.

 
DD0 [TotalFark] 2009-12-19 07:58:31 AM  
Oh and does anyone have a big bag of mushrooms? I want to go back...

 
CarnySaur 2009-12-19 08:29:40 AM  
DD0: Saw it in IMAX 3D yesterday. 100% must see.

It wouldn't have mattered if it was in some ancient language that no one spoke and you couldn't follow along, just the visuals alone are worth it.


That just made me think of Apocalypto.

 
brigid_fitch [TotalFark] 2009-12-19 08:41:37 AM  
I really want to see this but have to wait until next weekend. Bunch of friends are planning a day trip to AC next Sunday, so we'll see it at the 3D Imax theatre at the Tropicana then.

/AC's the closest 3D Imax
//I'm NOT about to spend any money just to see this in 2D

 
Deylan 2009-12-19 08:50:20 AM  
Didn't see it in Imax, but I did see it in a regular-sized 3d-capable theater.

Blown. Away.

Freaking beautiful. Wish I had the scratch to go see it again.

 
Clarence Potter 2009-12-19 08:57:53 AM  
CarnySaur: DD0: Saw it in IMAX 3D yesterday. 100% must see.

It wouldn't have mattered if it was in some ancient language that no one spoke and you couldn't follow along, just the visuals alone are worth it.

That just made me think of Apocalypto.


Yeah, same here. Is it that seeing this movie in boring old 2D would just be a waste, or what? My closest theater has listings for Avatar 3D and Avatar 3D IMAX. I am confused, and yes I am also lame.

 
Ashtrey [TotalFark] 2009-12-19 09:03:17 AM  
Clarence Potter: Yeah, same here. Is it that seeing this movie in boring old 2D would just be a waste, or what? My closest theater has listings for Avatar 3D and Avatar 3D IMAX. I am confused, and yes I am also lame.

Don't worry, I'm somewhat young, somewhat hip and can tell you the difference, in a general sort of way. IMAX is a bigger and more curved screen.

And I have to assume that seeing this in 2d would just be a waste. I heard a reviewer say that this movie was like when Dorothy got to OZ and everything went to color. I really hope this is thta sort of advance, and I want to see that in all its 3d glory.

 
Joyfulcheese 2009-12-19 09:06:04 AM  
Just call it "Dances with a man called horse in space" and be done with it. The plots about as complicated as mash potato, but the visuals are what carries you along with it. If you can happily suspend disbelief you'll enjoy the film and not really notice the time going by.

And the "massive faking plot hole" mentiond before isn't even a plot hole, yes they mention about the gravity but it doesn't really come into any key part of the plot. If anything the lighter environment would explain why the mechanised suits were able to move as deftly as they did and also why that huge freaking space shuttle was able to fly like it does in the film.

All in all though highly recommended, but don't take everyone here's word for it see it yourself. But make sure you do in 3D.

 
Clarence Potter 2009-12-19 09:06:53 AM  
So then 2D > 3D > 3D IMAX?

 
Clarence Potter 2009-12-19 09:07:51 AM  
Clarence Potter: So then 2D > 3D > 3D IMAX?

Wow did I ever hose that.

s/>/</g

 
Bartowski 2009-12-19 09:23:02 AM  
nesler: That_Dude: Wait, I thought $3.5mil for a midnight showing is bad. Didn't SoaP make about half that on its way to bombing spectacularly?

New Moon made 26.3 million dollars in its midnight showings, but it was also shown in more than 3500 theaters that night. Avatar was shown in 2000. But that's still not terribly encouraging, especially given the fact that making and marketing Avatar apparently cost somewhere around 500 million dollars.


Avatar is an original film that has not been done before. The reason New Moon's was so high was because of the rabid built in fan base. Not only was it a sequel, but it had a large following of readers too. Avatar has neither. To put it in comparison, Star Trek has a 3.8 opening, and even it has a built in fan base.

 
TommyBahama 2009-12-19 09:26:40 AM  
all the imax 3d showings within 40 miles of me are sold out. :(

 
Hetfield [TotalFark] 2009-12-19 09:37:25 AM  
Any thoughts on RealD vs. Dolby 3D?

 
ertznay 2009-12-19 09:39:49 AM  
Did you ever have sex with a chicken Jack?

 
Ashtrey [TotalFark] 2009-12-19 09:39:49 AM  
Hetfield: Any thoughts on RealD vs. Dolby 3D?

Eh, I'm half deaf so I don't really care so much about sound.

No ear canal on the left side, so surround sound doesn't mean anything to me. Why yes, my father DID work at a nuclear power plant, why do you ask?

 
TappingTheVein [TotalFark] 2009-12-19 09:43:56 AM  
Britney Spear's Speculum: So, is 3.5 million for a midnight showing good?

Yes. Well it's more like "this movie is a huge success" kind of good.

 
Ashtrey [TotalFark] 2009-12-19 09:46:15 AM  
TappingTheVein: Britney Spear's Speculum: So, is 3.5 million for a midnight showing good?

Yes. Well it's more like "this movie is a huge success" kind of good.


Yeah if that's for 3.5 million for 1 showtime, I have to imagine that's pretty good.

 
KhamanV 2009-12-19 09:47:08 AM  
Tachikoma: .

I'll probably end up owning the DVD eventually, but I hope this movie launches a new era of believable CGI movies. Yes, the Uncanny Valley was still alive and well (the animals were all far too slick and shiny to be natural, and ended up distracting from the scenes they were in, as did the odd texture of the blue skin)


Sorry, trimmed up your post. The two theories I have - well it's actually one thing that connects. As to the waterfalls on the floating islands, I get the sense by the very abundant and rich, rainforest style flora that Pandora is a high-moisture world. The islands might be high enough to collect massive amounts of condensation which then pours off of them.

This also might explain the slick creatures to an extent - I never saw anything feathered. Rather, to handle the moisture in the atmosphere, the skin of everything is a waterproof/water absorbent leather.

 
plywoodjungle 2009-12-19 10:07:33 AM  
Am I the only one who has no desire to see this video game...........I mean "movie"?

/Titanic sucked giant iceberg balls

 
Blowmonkey [TotalFark] 2009-12-19 10:18:34 AM  
TheGhostofFarkPast: /I think Cartman said it best in regards to this movie.
//if you wanted stunning visuals just go see an IMAX dome movie
///why waste it watching some half assed plot?


I so wish people would stop quoting from south park as though it were profound or relevant to anything.

 
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