I saw Avatar over the weekend and it lived up to the hype. The graphics, themes, characters and everything else are pretty much amazing. It's one of the great movies of our time. I can finally forgive James Cameron for making Titanic.
I'm not surprised that some conservatives are nervous about so many people seeing it. The Tribune gave a platform to one Chicago alderman who calls it anti-American and anti-military. I guess he didn't notice that two of the film's principle heroes are a former Marine and a former Army soldier.
If anything, it was anti-blackwater and anti-homicidal-war-crazed maniac. Two specific leaders looked bad in the movie, not the soldiers. This Alderman is playing the same old game the war-mongers played when anyone who criticized Bush's rush to war in Iraq was accused of being against the troops.
If the alderman's idea of America is best described by the Trail of Tears and the invasion of Iraq, then yes, this movie is anti-American. Anyone who recognizes that those weren't America's proudest moments won't have a problem with Avatar.
After Avatar, I thought about Transformers 2, which I rented on video when I couldn't find anything interesting I hadn't seen yet. I was impressed by the visuals but the themes couldn't have been more opposite from Avatar. First, they portrayed anyone who wants to negotiate or do a little thinking before jumping into war as a cowardly, meddling, weak politician who endangers all of mankind. I'm sure most conservative talk radio hosts didn't mind.
Then, Megan Fox's character gave young fans a lesson in war crimes 101 by torturing a small robot into switching sides. But at least she made it sexy.
Why isn't it controversial to have a movie for kids and teens that promotes a war-mongering, pro-torture mindset? Besides all the other reasons Avatar is an excellent movie, it's nice to have an antidote to nine years of fear-mongering and war-mongering from conservative leaders and media.