According to Sigourney Weaver, Avatar didn’t bring James Cameron a Best Director Oscar this year because Kathryn Bigelow has breasts.

“Jim didn’t have breasts, and I think that was the reason.  He should have taken home that Oscar.”

She went on to rant about the political nature of the Oscars and the only reason Kathryn Bigelow took home an Oscar was so The Academy could make history by naming its first Female Best Director.

Weaver was both promoting Avatar  in Brazil and protesting the proposed Belo Monte dam in the Amazon over the weekend when she made these statements to the Brazil News site, Folha Online.

For someone who has been the face of “Female Empowerment” this is a shocking statement to hear from Sigourney Weaver.   While “who deserves what” and the “politics of Oscar” is open for discussion, I feel that this sort of statement is unfounded as The Hurt Locker was clearly a better executed film than the over-bloated, simplistic popcorn flick that was Avatar.

[Source: NYPost via FilmSchoolRejects]

Masked in secrecy and a decade in the making, James Cameron’s Avatar has finally entered the public culture in full force.  When the first images and trailers started appearing, many people (including myself) were underwhelmed.  Mainly at the character design of the aliens, the generic dialog heard in the trailer (“You’re not in Kansas anymore! You’re on Pandora . . .), and a plot lifted almost directly from Dances With Wolves and Pocahontas.  Plus, the statements made by the director and the marketing stating Avatar was a “Game Changer” gave us plenty of snarky ammo.

However, a small percentage of the populous has finally seen Avatar a full week before it’s release.  No longer are snarky jokes involving Smurfs and Thundercats being hurled.  Those same critics who were poking fun are all eating crow and now statements such as: “Magical!” “Masterpiece” “Epic” “Overwhelming” “Spectacle” and “Immersive” (just to quote a few) are flooding the geek interwebs.

Currently showing 15 positive reviews and 1 negative review on RottenTomatoes.com, Avatar is finally gaining some positive buzz from trusted sources.  So, with all that said, here’s what I gather about Avatar and you can start geeking out and pining over blue aliens.

Positive buzz:

• Avatar is a breathtaking visual tour-de-force.  From the lush, fully realized environment of Pandora to it’s alien inhabitants, everything is magically realistic.  This is the first MUST SEE 3D film experience that I’ve heard of.  It could change the way we view movies.
• I’m reading that Avatar is exciting and it’s 2.5 hours goes by quickly thanks to James Cameron’s expert pacing.
• The last 20 minutes is said to be absolutely mind blowing.
• James Horner’s score is brilliant.

Negative buzz:

• Avatar is said to have an almost maddeningly simple story and dialog.  (But, so did Star Wars.)
• Did we really need a song by Leonna Lewis on the soundtrack?

Final Thoughts on the Buzz:

Based on all the reviews I’m reading, Avatar will be 100% worth seeing in 3D on an IMAX screen.  Don’t settle and see it in 2D first time out.

I’m happy to say that all my doubt is gone and I’m now sorry I doubted James Cameron in the first place.  Now…where did I put my blue body paint?

The Reviews from people I respect:

David Chen via Slashfilm: “In the end, I found what I was looking for in Avatar, a sense of wonderment at the novel, and a feeling that what I was seeing is the beginning of something exciting in the world of cinema.”

Brendon Connely via Slashfilm: “You need to see Avatar in 3D just as much as you need to see The Red Shoes in colour, Apocalypse Now in surround sound or Casablanca on a screen larger than an iPod.”

Todd Gillcrest via Cinematical: “Cameron’s latest is scary and exciting and entertaining as hell, even if it’s far too early – and too conventional in too many ways – to herald it as any kind of masterpiece.”

Neil Miller via Film School Rejects: “[James Cameron is] not worried about you thinking that it feels like Dances with Wolves meets Ferngully, or that it is an allegory of oppression that has been done before. Where he gets you is in the execution of creating Pandora, a vast world that is familiar, but also completely fantastic.”

Brandon Lee Tenney via FirstShowing: “Watching it made me feel like a child, like anything and everything is possible. Like it’s all just one nudge of the imagination away. It feels great to be so amazed. But Avatar isn’t just amazing – it’s magic.

Read more reviews at RottenTomatoes.com.

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Let’s get this out of the way. I love James Cameron’s movies. Aliens, Terminator 2, and The Abyss are 3 of my favorite movies of all time. However, I think the marketing for his new, highly anticipated “game changer” film, Avatar has jumped the shark by announcing in a recent TV spot that Avatar is “the greatest adventure of all time!”

I think the over-hype by the studios and James Cameron himself are casting bad Ju-Ju on the potential of the film. Costing an excess of $500 MILLION (after marketing expenses), Avatar has the potential to be one of the greatest movie gambles of all time. Disaster is easily on the horizon.

I’ll be in the theater with my 3D glasses on opening day, but let’s all try to keep the hype down. Avatar will most likely disappoint as the “the greatest adventure of all time,” but I think it will be a pretty enjoyable Sci Fi/Fantasy ride.

Avatar will be in theaters December 18, 2009.

In order for more of us to drink the Avatar Kool Aide, a featurette has been released to hopefully quiet down the “Geek Hate” of James Cameron’s new “Visionary Masterpiece” Avatar.

It’s pretty interesting. I’m still looking forward to seeing Avatar in 3D with no pre-conceived expectations. Everything new I’ve seen has helped wash the bad taste of the first Teaser trailer that was rushed out earlier last month.

Yahoo! has the full theatrical trailer for James Cameron’s Avatar. I’m more sold than I was with the first trailer, but there’s so much hear that reminds me of so many other movies.

I’m not impressed with the plot, but dang the visuals look tasty.  I plan on catching this in 3D during a matinee showing, for sure.

Yahoo has the clip in HD, or you can watch the embed above.

This is brilliant. Watch now.

Well, here it is. The first trailer for the much-hyped-by-James-Cameron, 10-years-in- the-making sci-fi fantasy film Avatar.

To get the full effect, head over to Apple to see it in HD. However, I must say for all the hype surrounding the film I’m a bit underwhelmed (even in HD). And as far as the “You HAVE to see it in 3D for it to look good!” arguments go, any movie that relies on a gimmick to be good is bullshit.

3D gives me massive migraines, so I’m going to have to pass on the “3D Only” mentality. Is it too much to demand that something look good in 3D as well as 2D.

Avatar looks interesting, I’m looking forward to seeing it. But all this talk of “Photo Real CGI” and “Game Changing Technology” really has me unimpressed. District 9 showed us that Photo Real CGI is possible, and for only $30 million.