[IheartBB]

Originally Posted by setanta

You're not understanding me here. Of course every film can be traced back to an original, archetypal storyline, but unfortunately for Avatar it never deviated from that tired formula, with the end result being a thoroughly predictable movie that had nothing new or imaginative to say. Contrast this with District 9, a film that dealt with the same themes but used a totally new and interesting approach. That's what I look for in a film; not a hackneyed, preachy, single layered message movie that was basically an excuse for the visuals.

And criticizing a masterpiece like Toy Story is a no no in my book! lol

Well at least we agree that 'Toy Story' is a masterpiece

As far as the formula is concerned, maybe you're right, but I don’t think go can expect anything different from a Hollywood blockbuster, and I think the whole argument is irrelevent these days as everything seems to have been done. It did have quite strong environmental messages though without coming across as preachy, which is very rare in this day and age. It seems that you can either call it a simple story that‘s just ‘excuse for visuals’ or as a compelling story that utilises its special effects. I’d call it the latter.

‘District 9’, although thoroughly entertaining, again cannot be described as original either. It, like ‘Avatar’, is grouped in with the sci-fi genre, which I do not entirely agree with although it is understandable. ‘District 9’ is closer to a ‘body horror’ than simply a ‘sci-fi’. And if 'Avatar' is criticised for being predictable, 'District 9' can be for the very same reason.