I just experienced the best movie ever seen in IMAX 3D at a theatre in Southern California. Avatar gets a big WOW vote! Using the oversized glasses, the movie becomes very real. I was constantly reaching out to touch floating objects or covering my eyes to avoid flying debris from explosions. Through the whole virtual experience, I felt as though I was one with the movie. After the movie, I was exhausted! Feeling as though I had personally experienced every fantastic encounter that Avatar offered.
As a hobby historian, what really amazed me more than anything was the storyline. The screenplay for Avatar is a carbon copy of a period in US history of European invasion on Native cultures for the past 500 years.
Taking place in 2154, a corporation is mining Pandora, a lush earth-like planet, for the valuable mineral called unobtanium. Pandora is inhabited by the Na'vi, a blue-skinned humaniod species. The Na'vi lead tribal lifestyles, use stone tools, live in harmony with nature and worship the goddess Eywa, similar to American Indians connection to Mother Earth. The bad guys are Earthlings who are heads of the mining operation and employed former marines for security, who happen to look a lot like US Military. This story mimics how the rare and expensive mineral gold played throughout American History.
Remember General Custer's cavalry and campaign in the Black Hills of South Dakota?
The best part about Avatar is that the ending is different. The Na'vi natives, riding flying horses, use bows and arrows to send the machine gun operating earthlings back home. A huge victory for the Indigenous tribes of Pandora.
America's First Nations history did not share a happy ending. They were unable to stop a similar greed for resources while fighting for their ancestral lands. Greed is the ruthless enemy that's made wars and battles throughout the past, present and will be in the future.
Avatar is highly entertaining and one of the must see movies of the decade.
What are your comments about the movie Avatar?
Photographs by: Marilyn Angel Wynn/Nativestock.com
I've read the comment about the movie AVATAR, and was pleased to find someone reflecting about it just as I did.
In my case I happen not to live in reverence to Indians or their culture in particular, as I am still German.
Nevertheless I am in terms of my religious self-perception maybe much closer to Indians then others within my confession would believe themselves to be.
I am a convert from catholic Christianity to Islam, and in any righteous religion should be the protection of life paramount to anything else. There are forces in this world which make it still the righteous followers of each creed difficult to understand.
Indians are in my eyes closer to interrelate to their deeds because they allow each other the measure of interventions and of submission to wisdom even if wisdom comes from unexpected sources.
And I do also admire the consequent preservation and conservation of life-values, which in that means to me the real Jihad.
People who guard not only their land, safeguard not only their children, defend the truth even if it means to lose our own lives, that is total selfsubmission and faithfulness.
Not blind, ignorant, and def destruction of what we are and what we are set into.
I myself saw the defeat of the "cavalry" in the movie AVATAR as a cinematic make-over for our world's history of mischief and exploitation.
And I must admit that those forces did not stop. They have only modern faces and technology, refined expressions, and call those who defend their rights not only as hostile but since 9/11 as t...... we know that should stand there.
AVATAR sends a clear message to all peoples:
we have to do something if we do not want to die in vain over the greed that destroys our lives, and enslaves us into the mechanisms of market and money.
Money does not make happy, does not let us become old.. and it does not provide us with a meaningful life.
That is why I already developed plans to establish an organization that steps up in front of those who manipulate so successfully all our lives:
REGNUM POPULUS MUNDI - RPM
And it shall strive off the veils of misunderstandings and differences to lead to a common life-understanding, a publicly and audible refrain to take charge in a world that is otherwise bound to its doom.
I am glad that Indians survived their struggle more or less, and soon it will be time again to step out of the shadow into the light of day.
WE ALL LIVE TOGETHER AND SHARE IN OUR INNER WISH TO BECOME VALUABLE IN FRONT OF OUR CREATOR, OUR ANCESTORS, AND OUR EARTH.
Thank you for your work.
Posted by: [Ameen] Thomas C. Mann | February 12, 2010 at 09:10 AM
Marilyn,
I too felt the same way after watching the movie Avatar. I saw an immediate connection between the Na'vi and Native North Americans. I posted a similar review on a popular discussion board and no one was willing to comment on the connection. It reminded me how few Americans are willing to acknowledge our Nations history from a Native Americans' perspective. Even after all this time... people choose to still wear blinders. Thank you for your comments, I now do not feel so all alone.
Sandy Fults
Posted by: Sandy Fults | March 30, 2010 at 01:00 AM
Yes, I too agree! Everyday in my business I have to educated many non-natives that American Indians are still alive and well in virtually every state. So much of the public believes that Native people are long gone. That's why I feel that my work is so very important, especially when used for education.
AW
Posted by: Angel Wynn | March 30, 2010 at 07:42 AM
I understand what you are saying, but you just seem to have forgotten that there are some other people in the world who view this issue for what it really is and may not agree with you. You may be turning away a lot of people who might have been fans of your blog.
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