Updated- Avatar: Worthy of a Cult Following, by Whitney Farmer – Un Pop Culture

February 18, 2010 Whitney Farmer 8 Comments

In the dark, we three sat, glasses upon glasses. East Coast time zone voice mails were ignored. Little white dogs that needed walking at home were forgotten. Risking migraine headaches from the 3D visual effects, we munched popcorn and Junior Mints while dodging dragons and iridescent hunks that leapt out of the screen.

Now I get it.

This is why people go to movies. How could I have forgotten this?

I was speaking with my little sister later, telling her that I had seen a movie that Mom (penchant for violent blockbusters) and Dad (Ingmar Bergman aficionado) both enjoyed. That they both liked it was impossible, and yet I had witnessed it. As we talked, we were remembering when we were little kids and watched “Creature from the Black Lagoon” on T.V. with 3D glasses that we got from the grocery store. Yes, the monster with the blue/red aura did look like he could reach out of the screen. But he was only 18 inches tall, and our Chihuahua/Pomeranian could have taken him.

What James Cameron has done is filled our order, finally. There has been a tremendous amount of press regarding the technology that had to be developed to create this film. If a nuance of animated expression went flat, if a walk through this alien landscape was fractionally off biomechanically, the audience would have been pulled back into their reality. They could not have flown with dragons or gotten a crush on a blue dude.  And that would have been a shame.

Never once was there this failure

“Avatar” is officially a success within the pop culture marketplace. It has already made buckets of money and is forecasted to continue to do so.  My hope, however, for this film is that it enter into a level higher than popularity or success. Not the Oscars, of which it will probably receive many. I want it to become a cult favorite.

There are enough layers in this movie to make you want to see it again, but what causes a film to develop a cult following?  Recalling the midnight movie subculture that used to flourish before the rise of gangs that made these events honestly dangerous, most movies shown seemed to be completely awful – “The Warriors” being the exception. The draw to the experience was to have a place to hang out with your friends even after the football game was over. Sleep-deprived, it was easy to become philosophical and even risk sensory hallucinations that made the movie going experience even more exciting.  Straight lines became wiggling rows of ants, and even the outer edges of the shot became a place where our eyes would hunt for insider information or deeper meanings.  Was that Sting before he became Sting? Meatloaf before he became Meatloaf? How long would it take for Ralph Bakshi to finish the Ring Trilogy…?

Becoming a cult classic can rescue a fringe vision from obscurity, so I recognize that I am breaking the rules by nominating “Avatar” for what I consider the highest honor. But it is one of those movies that can accomplish all the thrills of a dead-of-night marathon without any of the risks.  Your senses are captivated.  Your unsophisticated hopes for justice and love are fulfilled, thank God. It is impossible to capture all of the images at one viewing. It makes you sound smarter when you talk about it. And Sam Worthington is hot. “Warriors” hot.  Unfortunately, he has now been tagged to be the next James Bond.  Now I’ll have to share him.

I hate it when that happens.

Haiti Update

“We Are the World” has been remade AND SHOT IN 3D to generate help for rebuilding Haiti. Check it out:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bnkdQpDhcs4

“Everybody Hurts”, originally from R.E.M.,  has also been recorded with a terrific ensemble for the same purpose. Check it out.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i2FEDNAqmmI

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Quote of the Blog: From Ed, beloved Dude of Light and Fog after a rough show: “I don’t get it. Usually lesbians like me.”

Whitney runs a rock music venue in L.A. She has an M.B.A. and no one cares.