tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16435271.post3155884955946937618..comments2023-05-14T21:11:23.699-04:00Comments on CHEESEBURGER BROWN: Story Wallah: The Stereoscopic Experience in AvatarCheeseburger Brownhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01384136287767500794noreply@blogger.comBlogger27125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16435271.post-402425587113688482010-01-14T14:13:55.054-05:002010-01-14T14:13:55.054-05:00Watched the 3D IMAX first... watched the RealD jus...Watched the 3D IMAX first... watched the RealD just last night. IMAX 3D is still using linearly polarized filters, so you gotta kinda keep yer head up straight or it gets messy.<br /><br />I didn't notice the negative axis use until I watched it in the somewhat less engrossing RealD format.<br /><br />I was hoping the improved frame rate of RealD would make what I perceived as 'flickering' in 3D IMAX go away... but I think that's just an artifact of the stereography or whatever they call it. It was always 'corner of eye', not the point of intent on the screen.<br /><br />I definitely noticed the negative axis elements in RealD more, particularly the arrows sticking into General Head-Scratch towards the end.<br /><br />The scenes with Gen. headscratcher in the quad-fan copter also broke me out of the movie engrossment with the thought of "Hey, I'm watching a 3D movie" rather than "Hey, this Pandora place is great!"<br /><br />Part of me is actually *more* satisfied that the plot was as simple and overused as it was. It brought me out of the theater thinking about it. I definitely really liked the movie, yet the plot was quite tired. Therefor, what I liked must have been the world, imagery, scenery, animals, plants, and characters (hit and miss on those a bit). The music and soundtrack were good, but the main theme song lines up too much with that Titanic song (the one sung by some canadian?). It's kinda...err.. sad that it's the same guy who did both.<br /><br />I'm not sure this movie would have been improved by a good or novel plot, though I expected the company to be complicit in the murder of He Lead's brothers' death to get a real killer into the avatar program.<br /><br />I know the whole chant-and-thrash was supposed to be a commune with the happy nature spirit, but to me, the effect really had an evil feeling to it.. maybe it was the lighting of the scene... I dunno... seemed kinda perverse without any obvious perversion in it... so I'm not sure why... made me briefly wonder if I was siding with the right team...<br />Maybe it represented a collectivism or submission that doesn't sit well with me, I dunno. Either way, it stuck out like a sore thumb to me in the movie as estranging me from the smurfs.fooburgerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00598732577922981025noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16435271.post-69401707238944531312010-01-07T12:00:21.718-05:002010-01-07T12:00:21.718-05:00Simon, thanks for the tip (and minor validation). ...Simon, thanks for the tip (and minor validation). It occurs to me that Mr. Studi is probably old enough -- and skilled enough -- to snag the role of Mr. Miss in the silver screen adaptation of the <i>Cheeseburger Brown Anthology</i>.Sheik Yerboutinoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16435271.post-62981527540068553152010-01-06T18:49:04.554-05:002010-01-06T18:49:04.554-05:00This jargon heavy post is helpful. The 3-d buzz is...This jargon heavy post is helpful. The 3-d buzz is full steam ahead. Your little 3-d primer will help me understand current and future 3-d tech.<br /><br />You don't always need stories to entertain us, a quick post on your thoughts is always good, and yes it is your job to entertain us, you hooked us in and we are here now.Big thttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03728437300843445339noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16435271.post-32688998853783094072010-01-06T11:32:31.357-05:002010-01-06T11:32:31.357-05:00Interestingly, Sheik, Wes Studi was prominent in t...Interestingly, Sheik, Wes Studi was prominent in the credits, so Magua was, indeed, in this film. Although I think he voiced Papa Smurf rather than Jealous Mohawk Guy. I recognised his voice immediately upon hearing it, so looked for it (and personal validation) in the credits. I found the former but not the latter. Seek elsewhere, I suppose.<br /><br />(To clarify: Wes Studi played the character <a href="http://media.lunch.com/d/d7/177832.jpg" rel="nofollow">Magua</a> in one of my favourite film adaptations of all time: <i>Last of the Mohicans</i>. He was, appropriately, Jealous Mohawk Guy - in both role and film tribal affiliation - in that movie, so now he's moved up to tribal leader.)Simonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06946639624660520997noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16435271.post-85941824138806410642010-01-06T10:52:55.595-05:002010-01-06T10:52:55.595-05:00Zero g vomit: now that sounds unpleasant.
BTW, C...Zero g vomit: now that sounds unpleasant.<br /><br />BTW, CBB, thank you so much for the official naming convention. "Bluhura"... nice.<br /><br />So did Jealous Mohawk Guy actually have a mohawk, or is he just this film's Magua?Sheik Yerboutinoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16435271.post-57168330920249007232010-01-05T20:28:13.451-05:002010-01-05T20:28:13.451-05:00I also quite liked the zero g scene, probably one ...I also quite liked the zero g scene, probably one of my favorites from the movie. It just came off really convincingly.<br /><br />Unfortunately it also set off my wifes motion sickness.Tolomeahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16384928311920896699noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16435271.post-71380214324822989722010-01-05T20:17:51.817-05:002010-01-05T20:17:51.817-05:00Now that I think about it, the video game like bri...Now that I think about it, the video game like bright colour palette does distract me more than the story line. It was hard to immerse myself in the world that just doesn't look right. I can live with the plot.<br /><br />For some reason, I really enjoyed the zero G scenes at the beginning. Very 2001'ish.Orick of Torontohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07151258407218493474noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16435271.post-51637903442244702682010-01-05T17:38:15.569-05:002010-01-05T17:38:15.569-05:00So, no radio-controlled banana cream pies?
Great ...So, no radio-controlled banana cream pies?<br /><br />Great technical coverage. I'm looking forward to this purely from the visual point of view; as I understand it, the weak writing doesn't detract too much from the experience.Sheik Yerboutinoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16435271.post-14422551329243223282010-01-05T13:18:42.922-05:002010-01-05T13:18:42.922-05:00The movie, to me, worked wonderfully well. As much...The movie, to me, worked wonderfully well. As much as I snickered at the pic I posted a couple comments up, I didn't feel like mocking the movie at all after I left. The reason the two movies are so easily compared is because it's a well-known and oft-used story archetype. I get that. I think, in this instance, it allowed Cameron to focus on the genesis of this means of story <i>telling</i>, and the juxtaposition with actual better stories will come, eventually.<br /><br />Had he tried for something more original, AND thrust it into this new medium he's created, well, I think it would have come out the ass end looking the worse for wear. But I am an expert in neither story telling nor modern, visual doo-daddery, and can offer only a poor layman's opinion.Simonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06946639624660520997noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16435271.post-27971135130213032992010-01-05T12:53:25.132-05:002010-01-05T12:53:25.132-05:00I have seen neither Ferngully II nor Pocahantas. ...I have seen neither <em>Ferngully II</em> nor <em>Pocahantas</em>. Sure, I could tell the story wasn't original, but could someone really pack the power of <em>Simon of Space</em> into a movie? We'll always fall into a trap when trying to compare something we've read to something we've seen on screen.Markhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08722639974320971726noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16435271.post-14216937066599315132010-01-05T11:40:04.496-05:002010-01-05T11:40:04.496-05:00@Simon,
LOL. Guess I am not the only one thinking...@Simon,<br /><br />LOL. Guess I am not the only one thinking that. I just hope Cameron doesn't mess up Battle angel Alita. Plenty of good material there.Orick of Torontohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07151258407218493474noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16435271.post-23296680233322196002010-01-04T17:15:29.145-05:002010-01-04T17:15:29.145-05:00Orick, it's funny that you mention it's ba...Orick, it's funny that you mention it's basically Pocahontas in space.<br /><br /><a href="http://i.imgur.com/JmRmb.jpg" rel="nofollow">To wit:</a>Simonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06946639624660520997noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16435271.post-79273829617375726022010-01-04T16:50:18.550-05:002010-01-04T16:50:18.550-05:00Ok, I admit being impressed by the 3d aspect, whic...Ok, I admit being impressed by the 3d aspect, which really is great in this movie through the subtlety. A minor things that some people probably won't really care about but stood out for me was how the time and record display on the bottom left corner showed up slightly positively during the video blog scene.<br /><br />With all this focus on 3d, did no one else notice how much improvement there was on the motion capture part and how the virtual character managed to convey emotion/expression so well. I have always been bother by how weird the simplest motion would look on a virtual character like a wave of an arm. Even Gollum from LOTR look unnatural to me. This is the only movie that have virtual characters that impressed me.<br /><br />On the other hand, I still think the movie didn't live up to the hype for me. 2 things that didn't work.<br /><br />1. Simple, boring, predictable plot line. Simon of Space this wasn't. It was basically Pocahontas in space.<br /><br />2. The bright artificial looking colour. Yes, I understand it's rainforest on an alien world. I understand the dazzling colour looks great. But are all alien fauna and flora really made from highly reflective, totally smooth surfaces with really bright colour? I loved the great vista of floating mountains though, physics be damned.Orick of Torontohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07151258407218493474noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16435271.post-20286753313608919012010-01-04T00:28:21.459-05:002010-01-04T00:28:21.459-05:00Nice post & nice blog. I love both.Nice post & nice blog. I love both.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16435271.post-6931591002071305882010-01-03T21:58:09.769-05:002010-01-03T21:58:09.769-05:00I was irritated by the focus control of the movie ...I was irritated by the focus control of the movie -- when I wanted to look at something it would be blurry. Perhaps fighting Cameron's focus is what gave me the 3d headache.Davehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14854096881452687343noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16435271.post-27752790387483449732010-01-03T16:30:20.459-05:002010-01-03T16:30:20.459-05:00Your blog keeps getting better and better! Your ol...Your blog keeps getting better and better! Your older articles are not as good as newer ones you have a lot more creativity and originality now keep it up!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16435271.post-54177550639339509712010-01-03T11:46:33.791-05:002010-01-03T11:46:33.791-05:00Excellent post! I too was quite impressed with the...Excellent post! I too was quite impressed with the 3D effects of the movie, and I was trying to explain to my friend that making a 3D movie is not just pointing two cameras at things. I think I will shoot this post to him and the level of jargon will impress upon him how hard it is to do good 3D.<br /><br />Avatar's plot is pretty generic but it's interesting how Cameron plays the audience's emotions like a harp. During the last battle between Jakesully and the general I really, really wanted the general to die. It was cathartic.<br /><br />Oh, but one thing. You know how the blue monkeys have that neural attachment to jack into horses, flying creatures, etc? When Jake and his girl are doing it I didn't see them connecting their neural hoses. Are they polarized the wrong way so two monkeys can't connect, or would connecting just be too weird, causing some kind of ridiculous sex feedback loop? This bugs me.Mike Verdonehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13638359196609476290noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16435271.post-53432911667046797312010-01-02T12:49:49.381-05:002010-01-02T12:49:49.381-05:00Oh, and how could I forget?
*) Latin Boob Girl (V...Oh, and how could I forget?<br /><br />*) Latin Boob Girl (Virtuous Marine)<br /><br />Yours,<br />CBBCheeseburger Brownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01384136287767500794noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16435271.post-10035128440299389512010-01-02T11:16:44.345-05:002010-01-02T11:16:44.345-05:00Um, also, to explain the character reference above...Um, also, to explain the character reference above, I should say that I had a lot of trouble getting anyone's name in <i>Avatar</i>. It didn't really interfere with parsing the plot, of course, but it did complicate discussion afterward.<br /><br />My colleagues and I ended up standardizing the names of the following key players:<br /><br />*) Jakescully (He Lead)<br />*) Bluhura (She Lead)<br />*) General Scratch-Head (Villain, Military)<br />*) Burke 2.0 (Villain, Corporate)<br />*) Dr. Ripley (She Scientist)<br />*) Dr. Dodgeball (He Scientist)<br />*) Jealous Mohawk Guy (He Lead's Foil)<br />*) Papa Smurf (Old Tribal Dude)<br />*) Witchy Smurf (Old Shaman Lady)<br /><br />May our key serve as a beacon to all.<br /><br />Yours,<br />CBBCheeseburger Brownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01384136287767500794noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16435271.post-26053681515230494562010-01-02T10:59:10.923-05:002010-01-02T10:59:10.923-05:00Mark,
Ah yes, the shot of General Scratch-Head st...Mark,<br /><br />Ah yes, the shot of General Scratch-Head standing there imperialistically in the cockpit of those flying dealies they obviously rented from Syndrome's estate after the liquidation event that must have followed the end of <i>The Incredibles</i>.<br /><br />It's funny you mention that shot (or shots, as the set-up was repeated at least three times according to my memory), because it also bothered me as a bit too depthy, plus it was one of the few sequences were the integration between the CGI and meat was questionable.<br /><br />...Actually, I can't remember what the opening scene was. I had a lot on my mind.<br /><br />I also really liked <i>District 9</i>. The more I hear from Neil, the cooler a fellow he sounds like.<br /><br />Simon,<br /><br />The story isn't much -- I mean, it's Fern Gully II. I wonder how tedious (if at all) I'll find having to sit through it a second time, since my milfy wife wants to see it now, too. I saw it as a day job work event with colleagues, you see.<br /><br />Yours,<br />CBBCheeseburger Brownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01384136287767500794noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16435271.post-39462985708267789432010-01-02T10:38:52.170-05:002010-01-02T10:38:52.170-05:00How timely. I just saw the movie in regular 3D on...How timely. I just saw the movie in regular 3D on an average multiplex screen in Tulsa, on Jan 1, and had not yet read this post (whew, close one).<br /><br />There were only a couple moments where I thought, "yeah, so that looks hokey" because of the 3D, and they were scenes of the military leader guy in the futuristic 'copter. The rest, I felt, was brilliant, especially the opening scene.<br /><br />I sat next to a bloke who said it was his fourth viewing of the film, one of those being in IMAX 3D. I fully intend to take my wife to the IMAX 3D version when we return to the Dallas area. She didn't like <em>District 9</em> (said she might have had the aliens been "cuter,") so I'm giving her and our marriage a second chance with <em>Avatar</em>.Markhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08722639974320971726noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16435271.post-84282390797743147192010-01-02T10:31:11.406-05:002010-01-02T10:31:11.406-05:00Very much so, Mr. B.
Got home after 1.30 AM last...Very much so, Mr. B. <br /><br />Got home after 1.30 AM last night, and it hardly seemed like three hours that I was in the theatre. It was very easy to follow along with the rather simple story, and I totally predicted two of the more significant happenings ere they occurred.<br /><br />Still, it was hugely entertaining, and I had to get there at 8.30 to line up for the 10.30 show. There were already 30+ folks in line ahead of us. Longest I've ever waited to see a movie (in Imax), but it was worth it, to me. It was by far the most visually stunning THING I've ever seen.<br /><br />Best impact versus maximum impact, indeed.Simonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06946639624660520997noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16435271.post-46641994072447822972010-01-02T10:11:18.583-05:002010-01-02T10:11:18.583-05:00Tolomea said,
...I wonder if I was just picking b...Tolomea said,<br /><br /><i>...I wonder if I was just picking bad stuff to look at or if the depth of field was particularly narrow.</i><br /><br />It seemed to me -- and I'm certainly not to be confused with a cinematographer -- that the depth of field was indeed shallow. I took it as an effort to direct the eye.<br /><br />Simon: did you enjoy the movie?<br /><br />Yours,<br />CBBCheeseburger Brownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01384136287767500794noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16435271.post-46856528962219654772010-01-01T19:06:01.801-05:002010-01-01T19:06:01.801-05:00I like this. And now I have lingo for some of the ...I like this. And now I have lingo for some of the stuff that's been annoying me about 3d movies, particularly the window violations. We saw Avatar at the IMAX (worlds biggest evn) precisely because the window violations in Up annoyed the hell out of me.<br /><br />I also have this bad habit of inspecting the background when the action is slow, with Avatar this resulted in me constantly trying to look at stuff that was out of focus.<br />I wonder if I was just picking bad stuff to look at or if the depth of field was particularly narrow.Tolomeahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16384928311920896699noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16435271.post-14441687084978015082010-01-01T19:02:08.304-05:002010-01-01T19:02:08.304-05:00Well, I may have understood at least a little more...Well, I may have understood at least a little more than I let on. I was mostly excited because I'm going to see the late show in Imax this evening after dinner, and I'm pretty stoked for it. We don't get out to see grown up movies sans enfants much these days, so it'll be pretty swell. Your comment about best impact versus maximum impact reassures me.Simonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06946639624660520997noreply@blogger.com