Reasons of Success: Great Visuals and Arnold Schwarzenegger

Rating: 6/10 (18 January 2010)

I have no doubt that this movie is the most OVERRATED film of the decade. The highlights of this film were its great visual effects and its beautifully crafted production design. That's fine if Avatar gave you eye orgasms, it had really good visuals that cleverly promotes environmental conservation, but the story followed the same exact plot of a white man who sees the error of his ways by spending time with a more ethnic race and becomes their only hope of survival. Sounds familiar? That's because it is the same 'Hollywood Formula' that's been used for decades. It's literally same plot used in Dances with Wolves, The Last Samurai, Disney's Atlantis, and Pocahantas. District 9 did the same thing too but that movie is better because the story centered on the conflict of immigration with such an interesting turn; the aliens were coming to us, not us going to them.
The other issue I have with this film is that it really didn't deserve the 'Best Picture' nomination yet it won the award at the Golden Globes because of Cameron's friendship/connection with the Governor of California. Arnold was the one who introduced Avatar in the Golden Globes Ceremony! Not only that, he made a deal with Cameron! Half of the film's proceeds would go to the State budget, Oh Gee- I wonder what was going to be given to Cameron in return...could it be...'Best Picture'? You honestly can't tell me that Arnold has no power to influence the decisions of the Hollywood Foreign Press because he is the freaking Governor! He can easily just pay them off so that friend Cameron can win the top prize.
As for its high ratings and successful box office, that's just the result of the majority of the population being brainwashed into loving whatever the director of the Titanic makes for now on! I am not someone who hates the work of James Cameron, I really admire the Terminator films and Aliens. I even thought Titanic was an alright film, overrated, but alright. This film does not deserve all of the high recognition because besides the action, visual effects, and production design, there is really nothing special at all. If you are looking for that special quality that Avatar lacks, go see The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus, it's a much more creative and meaningful film than this one will ever be.