Director: James Cameron

Cast: Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Sigourney Weaver, Stephen Lang, Joel Moore


I respect James Cameron immensely, but being responsible for Titanic clearly does not mean creating masterpieces every time. I understand how long he had to wait and how hard he had to work for this film to be possible. I truly appreciate all of the technology involved. But this film was cliche. The story was cliche, the social commentary was cliche, the acting was cliché, and the name of the planet the film is set on-Pandora, is really cliche.
The plot is simple. Humans want something. Another culture has it. Humans will do whatever it takes to get it-at all costs to everyone involved. Not only have the humans discovered the thing they want on an alien planet, the aliens are different, and therefore in desperate need of conformation to the human way. Sound familiar?
The best part about the film was the references to Native American cultures. Pandora is essentially alive, and worshiped accordingly. Everything communicates with special neuron-like appendages that must be connected to each other in order for communication to happen. The point: bonding. Unity. Connection. Empathy. Respect. Life. Nurturing. I could go on, but my words would end up being as boring as the film. The giant ”Home Tree”, what it symbolizes, and its demise were the most moving and poignant aspects of the film. The planet of Pandora was based on a significant and very interesting concept. The planet was essentially alive, connected by all life. The symbolism, however, was too much. Blues, greens, reds, every-where. Life. Vernal life. Transcendence. Too much. Other than that, the plot was weak, the script was weak, and the entire film was predictable.
And knowing that with technology like this, the days of acting and art in general are numbered. That is bad. Very very bad.