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[Tams]

Overrated maybe and you're entitled to that opinion, but to call his films forgettable is a bit of a stretch.

I only really remember Titanic because I'm vaguely interested in the history of it. Avatar... there were some VTOL flying space marines attacking blue aliens who lived around a big tree... Terminator... ummm, Arnie is a very advanced robot that kills people and other robots? I really don't remember.

 

[TonyK]

Seems to be the smash hit no one is talking about. It was a visual spectacle of course, but the story was entirely basic but simultaneously pulled in too many directions, even recycled the same bad guy from the first one.

The Monday after the release everyone in my office was talking about the movie. That doesn't mean everyone went to watch it, but everyone knew about the release and had an opinion.

For example, when they released Nope, a movie I liked, nobody in my office knew anything about it. When they released Top Gun Maverick, a few knew. Avatar is in a totally different league, everyone knew about it. Maybe they don't talk about the plot, message or characters, but people knows it's something special for good or for bad.

I even know people that has not gone to the cinema since the pandemic started until now with Avatar 2.

 

[DKehoe]

I only really remember Titanic because I'm vaguely interested in the history of it. Avatar... there were some VTOL flying space marines attacking blue aliens who lived around a big tree... Terminator... ummm, Arnie is a very advanced robot that kills people and other robots? I really don't remember.

Wait, you don't think Terminator 2 was a memorable film? What would you consider to be some examples of memorable films over the last few years?

 

[RJMacready73]

Shoot me down, but Terminator and Terminator 2 are grossly overrated. They are good films but they are hardly nuanced.

Titanic is his best film by far, but even that is a bit silly in places.

And no, I don't like arthouse films.

 

[ZehDon]

James Cameron makes perfect mind candy cinema.

If you don't think about it, it's great. But if you do... it's all so very mediocre and forgettable.

I remember when we called these kinds of movies "escapism". And judging from the success of Avatar and now The Way of Water, people are very keen for some old fashioned "escapism". I don't need every single TV Show, movie, YouTube video, song, and book to be soaked in "biting social commentary". Sometimes, I need a break. Sometimes, I just want to go places I haven't gone to, and see things I haven't seen. And that's what Cameron is delivering with his Avatar movies.

 

[levyjl1988]

I can see Avatar surpassing Titanic and when it does...
The top 3 movies will all start with A, coincidence I think not.
These movies are AAA titles after all...

 

[Werewolf Jones]

Titanic is just Edward Scissorhands on a boat.

Cameron's best never made billions.

 

[Doom85]

I remember when we called these kinds of movies "escapism". And judging from the success of Avatar and now The Way of Water, people are very keen for some old fashioned "escapism". I don't need every single TV Show, movie, YouTube video, song, and book to be soaked in "biting social commentary". Sometimes, I need a break. Sometimes, I just want to go places I haven't gone to, and see things I haven't seen. And that's what Cameron is delivering with his Avatar movies.

Avatar is pretty blatant about its “save the environment” message…

 

[ZehDon]

Avatar is pretty blatant about its “save the environment” message…

In what way does this detract from its escapism?

 

[Doom85]

In what way does this detract from its escapism?

Commentary is commentary. And honestly, it’s not saying anything new that the 90’s didn’t shove down our throat.

 

[ZehDon]

Commentary is commentary. And honestly, it’s not saying anything new that the 90’s didn’t shove down our throat.

Not at all - I specifically said "biting social commentary", something that plagues a lot of modern entertainment that's absent from Avatar. Environmentalism, on the other hand, is literally a central theme of the series. But hey, if you think "She-Hulk" and "Avatar" are doing the same thing thematically, there's not much anyone can say.

 

[Doom85]

Not at all - I specifically said "biting social commentary", something that plagues a lot of modern entertainment that's absent from Avatar. Environmentalism, on the other hand, is literally a central theme of the series. But hey, if you think "She-Hulk" and "Avatar" are doing the same thing thematically, there's not much anyone can say.

So basically you want one form of preaching over another form of preaching.

 

[ZehDon]

So basically you want one form of preaching over another form of preaching...

Exactly, because themes are the same as preaching - which is why George Lucas was famously preaching about "Good vs Evil" in Star Wars. Good work, gold star - do you have a YouTube channel with this kind of analysis?

 

[Doom85]

Exactly, because themes are the same as preaching - which is why George Lucas was famously preaching about "Good vs Evil" in Star Wars. Good work, gold star - do you have a YouTube channel with this kind of analysis?

Triggered James Cameron fan incoming, red alert!

 

[ZehDon]

Triggered James Cameron fan incoming, red alert!

So, nothing of substance to reply with then. Please, continue pretending "Black Christmas" and "The Empire Strikes Back" are both "preaching" and "shoving it down your throat".

 

[Doom85]

So, nothing of substance to reply with then. Please, continue pretending "Black Christmas" and "The Empire Strikes Back" are both "preaching" and "shoving it down your throat".

Who the fuck even brought up Black Christmas?! That’s not even sci-fi! Or was James Cameron secretly Bob Clark in disguise this whole time?!

And yes, continue to pretend that Avatar isn’t Dancing with Wolves/Pocahontas/Ferngully wrapped up in a ”humans hurting the environment = bad” shtick that hasn’t been done to DEATH.

 

[ZehDon]

Who the fuck even brought up Black Christmas?! That’s not even sci-fi! Or was James Cameron secretly Bob Clark in disguise this whole time?!

And yes, continue to pretend that Avatar isn’t Dancing with Wolves/Pocahontas/Ferngully wrapped up in a ”humans hurting the environment = bad” shtick that hasn’t been done to DEATH.

Triggered James Cameron detractor incoming, red alert!

"Commentary is commentary" you said - I tried to highlight that it isn't the case. I hope the space-bending irony of you complaining a "shick" being "done to death" while dragging out the "Avatar = Dancing with Wolves/Pocahontas/Ferngully" meme from thirteen years ago isn't lost on you.

 

[Doom85]

Triggered James Cameron detractor incoming, red alert!

Implying being compared to Bob Clark is “detracting”: