Avatar

Am I seriously the only person in the world who didn't enjoy this movie? Who didn't think it was WAY too long? Who didn't think that the plot was flimsy and ridiculous? Who thinks James Cameron should stick to sweeping, epic love stories based on historical events?

Time for some lists!

Pros:
*Computer graphics were good
*Acting was good
*Pandora was really beautiful, well imagined

Cons:
*I'm not sure if making the military out to be heartless and unappreciative of nature/indigenous cultures is A) acurate or B) a good idea right now
*The plot was unoriginal- Disney's Pocohontas, anyone?
*Why didn't we hear about these other tribes at the beginning, and why didn't the military/anthropologists try to get in touch with them? They could have been useful in over-throwing/understanding the Na'vi.
*The part where the other scientist gets jealous of the protagonist's success is irrelevant to the plot- why did they put it in there?
*Why didn't the lady pilot get in trouble for turning back during the attack, and why especially was she then allowed to be near the prisoners, thus letting them escape?
*Character development was minimal
*If there WERE other life forms on various other parts of the universe, do we REALLY think they would look and behave so similar to humans?
*The Na'vi culture seemed very African (perhaps Native American?), and there seemed to be some very Blood Diamond undertones...or was that just me? Very white-people-raping-and-exploiting-other-cultures-for-monetary-gain...

Needless to say, I don't think this movie will meet with nearly as much success as Titanic, both in relation to awards as well as future recognition/remembrance.

Overall: C+
Final note: Too long, too simple, too advertised...a let down.

Tan lines

Have you seen those ads that are supposed to make you aware of skin cancer, melanoma and such? They're really gross as they show what it looks like when your skin cells get brown and then pop into your blood stream. They certainly get the point across- at least until the next commercial featuring gorgeous, thin, and very tanned women comes on.

Here's my deal: I live in New Zealand, but I'm from Colorado, and as a college kid I get three months off during the summer. Except for the New Zealand summer is the Colorado winter. Or at least part of it (the last snow hits in early June, and the first in September...a long winter). So basically, for the last two years, I've had nothing but back-to-back winters. No room for a tan.

This summer, however, I'm spending my three months in Australia. Perth, WA, to be exact. And it's a lot hotter, and a lot drier than NZ. Today it got up to 39 degrees. And as an American, I don't have a valid work visa, so I spend my days...you guessed it...beside the pool in the backyard. I spend twenty minutes on my front and twenty minutes on my back, I get in the water regularly and I don't wear any sunscreen. Lucky for me, I don't really burn (thank you, Mexican genes).

But the thing about laying on your back and your front, is that you tend to miss the sides. I'm really not sure how this happens, but it does. If you look at me from the front or back, you'd say, "That girl looks good", but from the side you'd say, "That girl looks like an oatmeal cream pie."

So that's my dilemma: not the struggle of my conscience, to tan or not to tan, but the fear that I'll spend my summer striped. Laying on my side on a deck chair is just too uncomfortable! When I figure out a solution for this, I'll let you know. Signing off...

Little Debbie