Avatar: The White Savior Story

I saw Avatar on the opening midnight showing. I know….hard core, right? I’m visiting family in the Midwest and honestly…..I don’t know what else to do out here but watch every movie out this season.

(Spoilers warning. Not like it was a surprising plot, but don’t day I didn’t warn you!)

SciFi-wise, Avatar is freaking unbelievable! CG quality was amazing. The humanoid aliens were so realistic that sometimes I forgot they’re not real. The landscaping was magnificent. The animals were fakey and less lifelike in comparison. Reminded me of old school Jurassic Park dinos. Other pluses: OMG wicked awesome aircrafts; alien nookie; a few minority minor characters (with speaking roles even – gasp!); and characters falling in love while swooping through aerial stunts on pterosaurs thingies. Hawt.

Here comes my view: Countless John Smith - Pocahontas, noble savage, colonial cliché view crammed enough up your ass that you'll never have a bowel movement again. It was Dances With Wolves/The Last Samurai/Planet of the Apes/Power of One on scifi steroids. There’s no end to the stereotypes, graceful indigenous people freeballing in war paint, bow and arrows, “tribal” music full of chants, drums, and flutes, spiritually connect to Mother nature, large group hypnotic ceremonies, the works. I half expected to see an Ewok to jump out on screen. Or straight at my being a 3d movie.

Story is from the corrupted, emotionally broken man, Jake Scully, as he learns the ways of the noble people, falls in love with the hottie native, rallies the people and defeats the powerful money hungry invaders (aka corporate.) Going native and saving the savages…. a white man’s wet dream. I mean the new girlfriend’s betroth, the alpha warrior, even end up forgiving our dear Jake and the two totally become BFF. That is until Alpha dies honorable death.

I enjoyed Avatar and wouldn’t mind seeing it again. And you should go see it, too. It’s a visual feast. But acknowledge it as the white savior story that it is. They just replaced brown/yellow/ black with blue ten foot tall, four fingered aliens. What's White Savior? See here.

Also, what’s up with the ending song “I See You”? Was that Celine singing?