I finally saw Avatar. The flu, catching up with everything I missed while I had the flu, and then New Year’s kept me from seeing it.

This review is going to have some spoilers because so many people have seen it already, and I also don’t think that the plot is that essential to the movie experience.

The Visuals

Stunning.

I’ve never seen anything like it. The physical design and creation of Pandora, was executed brilliantly. Each plant and creature had a distinct look and physiology.

The battle scenes were amazing. I felt completely engaged and invested in the battles. I was saddened by each fallen Na’vi; the indigenous people, and “good guys” of the film.

The 3D shooting was never gimmicky. Not once.

From a visual standpoint, this is without rival, the prettiest movie I have ever seen.

But that’s where my praise ends.

The Story

I don’t need my fiction, music, video games, or any other artistic mediums to agree with my worldview, so when I say that I found the plot thin and disappointing, it’s not because I don’t agree with James Cameron’s politics and philosophies.

The movie was obviously anti-Bush (I can’t stand him), anti-capitalism (I’m all about capitalism), and very critical of America (America’s a good place, but it’s not beyond reproach). I couldn’t care less about any of it, other than it felt dated. I know that James started this movie some eight years ago, and it really showed.

Unobtanium

Unobtanium; the ultra rare, excessively valuable ore that the evil humans were mining on Pandora.

Seriously, unobtanium? Are you kidding me? They took the time to design every aspect of every plant and animal in this world, and they couldn’t take ten minutes to come up with a name that doesn’t sound like poo?

In Joss Whedon’s web series Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog, Dr. Horrible sought to steal a substance called “wonderflonium.” The difference between these two corny-ass names is that Joss & Co. did it to be funny, while James did it because “oil” was already taken, and he didn’t take the time to think of something that was even remotely believable.

We are told that unobtanium is worth 20 million (whatever unit of currency they use in this future) a kilo, and that’s supposed to be a ton of money. If that is the case, why does the corporate head-honcho have a big chunk just floating on his desk? Unobtanium alone broke my suspension of disbelief.

Paper-Thin Characters

They developed Jake Sully, Neytiri, and Dr. Grace Augustine (Sigourney Weaver is a natural bad-ass), but the other characters were caricatures; especially the hardened evil commanding officer, and the moronic corporate hack in charge.

These characters were so obtuse that I never once looked at them and saw a fully formed human, making decisions based on a personality. The reason is because they weren’t people, they were straw-men for capitalism and American policy placed on Pandora for the Na’vi to prove incorrect.

The Straw-Man Plot

The Na’vi represent a humanoid species that lives in almost total harmony with the world around them. The problem is that this is unachievable for humans, even though it’s clear that the movie is promoting this idea as the human ideal. The Na’vi live in a world that is designed for them. They can literally link to the animals, plants, and even each other. Humans have no such link. Birds have wings, fish have gills, humans have reason, engineering, and higher thinking. That is how we live and thrive. We have to adapt our environment to survive, we don’t work any other way.

That’s just one of the straw-man arguments that emerged from this. Add in the comparison between the human/ Na’vi war, and the War on Terror. Whether or not you support that war, the differences are staggering. The simple fact that the Na’vi aren’t led by brutal rapist, murdering, warmonger dictators is a big difference.

How Could it Have Been Better?

In Starship Troopers, the humans are actually the villains. It’s done so subtly that a lot of people don’t even notice it the first time. That movie makes a very similar point about human nature, and it does it without beating the audience over the head with a club.

Firefly and Serenity, are filled with absurdest philosophies about the nature of the Universe and God. However, there was always a counterbalance. Sheppard Book was a significant character and man of God.

It’s possible to get a point across without forcing it down the viewer’s throat, and that point is usually more poignant when the viewer comes to the conclusion on his/her own.

The Bottom-Line

I recommend you see this movie in IMAX, because if you aren’t watching it in IMAX 3D, you aren’t doing it right. The visuals are exceptional, and are well worth the price of admission. The plot is thin, and I found it annoying, but I am happy I experienced it.

That being said, there are people I deeply respect who fell in love with this movie, so maybe you’ll like it.

I don’t think I will watch Avatar again on Bluray or DVD.

Here’s the deal

Reports are coming in that as a result of the most recent attempted attack on an airliner, the TSA is banning the use of all electronics on many inbound international flights.

That means no iPod, no Nintendo DS, no laptop, no iPhone, no Blackberry, no noise canceling headphones, nothing that runs on electricity.

It also seems that they are requiring everyone to remain in their seats through the plane’s entire descent.

The extent to which these new rules are being enforced seems to be varying from flight to flight without much of a pattern.

Initial thoughts

The facts are still coming in, so I’m not going to draw many conclusions, but there is a difference between not being allowed to use electronics, and having to check them.

If you can bring your electronics in your carry-on, and not use them, that’s a lot better than a forced checking of electronics.

Why you ask?

That being said, these restrictions are probably total bullshit. Does Israel’s El Al airline put their passengers through this shit? I’m pretty sure they don’t, and they have the best security in the business. Basically all of their flights are international, and everyone who wants to blow up American planes, wants to do the same to Israeli planes as well.

More Info

TGW – United Breaks Guitars – In Defense of United Airlines (Arguably my snarkiest post)

Gizmodo on the new TSA restrictions

BMI = weight in pounds / height in inches * 703 (to convert from metric)

Take a long hard look at that formula and notice that it can’t tell a damn thing about the condition of your body.

Missing a leg? That will help your BMI.

What about having a dense bone structure? That will hurt your BMI.

Are you in awesome shape? I mean really jacked, like the Governator circa Conan the Barbarian? Yeah, the BMI can’t differentiate between muscle and fat.

BMI says that Arnold was a fatty.

The BMI is a horrid measure. There is no room for debate on this one. It can’t tell the difference between fat, muscle, blood, bone, or anything else in your body. It can’t differentiate between two people who are both 5′5 and 140 lbs, but one of them is missing an arm.

Want to read more about the stupidity of the BMI?

Check out this excellent article from NPR – Top 10 Reasons Why the BMI is Bogus

Penn & Teller also did a superb episode on this in Season Five.

The MythBusters website offers a ton of quizzes to test your ability to determine fact from fiction.

Here are some geeky ones worth a few minutes of your day.

Computer Myths

Going Green Myths

Music Myths

Tech Myths

A ton more are available on their website.

This is a “WTF?” story if I’ve ever heard one:

Apple has refused to fix two registered AppleCare (Apple’s protection plan) users’ computers because they are smokers.

No shit.

Apple claims that the machines’ exposure to tar from the cigarettes makes them both uneconomical to fix, and a health hazard to handle in accordance with OSHA regulations.

Both excuses are clearly a crock of poo.

Either Apple is looking to save some money by cutting a few corners, or they are trying to social engineer their users’ health choices. Neither option is good.

I can’t stand smoking. I’m an asthmatic, I don’t understand the practice, I think it’s a waste of money, it smells dreadful, and it is a generally poor health choice. That being said, it’s a personal choice. Leave smokers alone, and fix their damn computers if they paid for the AppleCare protection plan.

Source: The Consumerist

One of my favorite advocacy groups, the Electronic Frontier Foundation has launched a new website called Copyright Watch. The site allows users to see the latest news in copyright law. The effort is to inform the general public about the threat that looming copyright laws poses to individual freedom, and maintaining an open Internet.

In other related news, here’s a quote from BoingBoing for you… I can’t improve upon their words:

“Two US Senators, Bernie Sanders (I-VI) and Sherrod Brown (D-OH), have written to the US Trade Representative demanding that the text of the secret Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement be made public. This is the treaty that allows for criminal sanctions against noncommercial file-sharers, demands border-searches of laptop hard-drives and personal media players and phones for pirated material, requires ISPs to spy on their users, and gives movie and record companies the right to take whole households off the Internet with unsubstantiated allegations of piracy.”*

This secret copyright treaty is pretty black and white to me; we must crush it. The consequences of this treaty are unimaginably dreadful.

For more information you can visit the following links:

The Geek Whisperer: Scary Secret Copyright Treaty: From Music to Purses, This is Bad News

Copyright Watch

The Electronic Frontier Foundation

* BoingBoing: Two US senators demand publication of secret copyright treaty

This guy is accused of attempting to rob a bank. He allegedly handed a note to a bank teller demanding money. The video picks up with his arrest and subsequent search.

Enjoy.

Dr. Neil deGrasse Tyson is the Director of the Hayden Planetarium at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City.

Aside from being a very knowledgeable guy, Dr. Tyson is a top-knotch communicator. He has the rare gift of being able to break the most complicated scientific concepts down into very simple language. I started following his writing and presentations because explaining the complex in digestible language is what I always strive for.

Here are some choice selections of Dr. Tyson from YouTube. The guy really is a master of explanation, and he’s funny too.

On UFO’s:

On 2012:

On Death by Meteor (this one is kind of scary):

On Intelligent Design:

Who is more pro-science, Democrats or Republicans? The answer may surprise you:

Dr. Tyson’s credentials

My favorite book of his is Death By Black Hole and Other Cosmic Quandaries.

To followup yesterday’s post, Copyright, teh Internets & the Future, here’s a bit on the secret international copyright treaty known as the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA).

ACTA is an international copyright treaty that is being negotiated in secret; although a lot of details have been leaked. The sections regarding the Internet are obscenely draconian; three strikes and you lose your right to connect to the Internet for a year. If this passes, I want that applied to major media conglomerates as well. Three misuses of intellectual property and the whole company loses it’s connection.

This video explains the treaty as it exists today, it’s origins, and it’s potential impact. This isn’t the best video, but it does the job. You are on the Internet, and you are reading a blog, so this treaty will harm you. You should watch the video, don’t be ignorant on this issue.

Make no mistake about it, ACTA will impact everyone. We all handle intellectual property on a daily basis, and current copyright law just doesn’t make sense in a post-Internet world (see yesterday’s post for more on that).

How can the US Government participate in secret negotiations for a treaty that will directly impact so many American’s? This isn’t some right wing thing pro business thing, this is the Obama Administration (not that I care for either side, but some of you do).

Current copyright law turns everyone into a criminal.

Kill ACTA. Reform copyright law.

My friend Laurie shared this on Facebook a few weeks ago and I almost forgot to post it. Basically it shows how much media hype surrounded a potential cataclysm… then it show’s how man deaths actually occurred as a result of this apocalyptic problem. In each case, the hype was infinitely more intense the the problem.

Click for a larger view

The total deaths from killer wasps, killer wifi, mobile phone cancer, Autism vaccinations, asteroid collisions, the Millennium Bug, Mad Cow Disease, video game violence, SARS, Bird Flu, and Swine Flu total somewhere in the range of 3000 people. I don’t mean to diminish the deaths of those who did die from killer wasps, Mad Cow, SARS, Bird & Swine flu, but the amount of attention we give these problems isn’t worth it.

The one in red is video game violence… I think I will be revisiting that one soon.

Data is a wonderful thing.