Avatar: It's Not Easy Being Blue

In the last several months (or has it been years), I’ve heard so many descriptions of what to expect from James Cameron’s first film in over a decade: “Avatar.” My friends with inside knowledge on the project have tried to describe the story to me, but nothing has stuck in my memory. When James Cameron spoke about the film for twenty minutes at this year’s E3, I found myself even more confused at the end of his presentation than I was before he started. However, after seeing last night’s 3D IMAX presentation of 16 minutes of the film, I finally feel like I know what the movie is about. “Oh. I get it. The humans want to blend in with the alien tribe so they take on their form through avatar bodies and they slowly integrate into their culture, learning that they’re not so different after all! Right? Right?” Still not quite sure.

I don’t think that “Avatar” looks unlike anything we’ve ever seen before, at least in terms of technical wizardry and story. I don’t even know if it will be the best science fiction film we’ve seen in years, especially since I just bestowed that honor on “District 9” but a week ago. I will, however, give it credit for having a style and visuals that look unique and different from most science fiction films I’ve seen. I love the setting of the jungle planet, filled with vegetation and creatures that look familiar to ones found on earth, but with subtle twists to make them seem fantastical, yet almost believable. In the several scenes featured in the presentation yesterday, most involved confrontations with rhino-like charging beasts, vicious reptilian snarling dogs, and spectacular flying creatures that require taming before they can be mounted. If nothing else, “Avatar” should be a fun creature-feature, not unlike “Jurassic Park” or “King Kong.”

But speaking of those creatures, I’ve heard a lot of complaints that the film looks like it has too much CGI. I think it’s a fair complaint, though I must admit that the footage and animation looked very sharp and impressive in 3D IMAX. I would actually take the complaint a little farther, though I’m not sure yet if it really bothers me. It occurred to me after watching the footage yesterday, that once the humans adopt their avatar forms, they too become CGI creatures, and then are dropped down into the mostly animated jungles and surrounded by animated beasts. At that point, does the film then become simply an animated film? I’m sure the actors were motion captured for their roles, but I certainly hope the film doesn’t end up looking like just another “The Polar Express” or “Beowulf.”

I’m still quite excited by most of what I saw. The live action footage of Stephen Lang talking to his cadets had a B movie quality to it, not unlike the training scenes of “Starship Troopers.” The jungles and creatures used a color palate not often found in film, such as pinks, purples, blues, and greens, all with a kind of shiny, metallic tint. The 3D was very impressive, though one scene was so fast paced I could barely tell what was going on, what with all the trees and branches in the foreground. The story might be a bit too “Dances With Wolves,” but Cameron might also be aware of that and could be keeping it in check. There is, after all, a reference to that film in the footage I saw, when someone suggests that the lead avatar try to dance with one of the giant creatures that looks poised to kill him. It does still concern me a bit that the story might be more familiar and less original than we have prepared ourselves to expect. Even the central conceit of humans using avatar bodies has been borrowed by at least two other films coming out this fall, “Gamer” and “Surrogate.” I’m sure “Avatar” will be far better than both those films, but I hope we don’t have to look too hard to find what is still original and groundbreaking about this film.

What was the fan reaction? I suppose there was some moderately enthusiastic applause from about half the audience. I even raised my fist in the air and shouted “YEAH!” though I don’t think that was entirely sincere. The couple I was with was so split over it that they started fighting, with one of them getting so upset over his girlfriend being unimpressed that he threatened not to see the film with her come December. It was all very George and Martha in “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?” I’m still keeping my expectations and skepticism in check, though the fact that James Cameron is so excited for this film gets me excited too and I can’t wait to see what he’s been cooking in his brain for the last twelve years. I watched “Terminator 2: Judgment Day” last week for the first time in a long time and I was astonished at how great it still was and how many details I remembered after all these years. “Avatar” may not be the classic that film was, but when I stuck my ticket to the December 18^th midnight show on to my refrigerator, I got a very anxious feeling. Something is coming. Just a few months away. Could be big. Don’t know what’s going to happen, but I’ve still got some time to get ready for it.

-Johnny Pomatto

Ernest Goes To Jail. What Was His Crime? Being Too Lovable.

There was an all too brief time when Jim Varney’s Ernest P. Worrell was a cultural icon. At first he was limited to State Fair appearances and car dealership commercials, but somewhere along the way, he became the star of four successful theatrical films, and later, five direct to video follow-ups. I’ve taken to regularly asking my friends which is their favorite Ernest movie. I get a lot of “Ernest Goes To Camp,” and a few misguided bastards who defend “Saves Christmas” and “Scared Stupid. But very rarely do I hear people mention what is far and away Varney’s greatest film.

“Ernest Goes To Jail” is the most classically influenced Ernest film to date. His role of a night janitor in a bank harkens back to memories of W.C. Fields in "The Bank Dick." The bank itself offers an exciting set piece and the opening scene in which Ernest becomes electromagnetic is inventive and exciting, as Ernest is attacked by filing cabinets, staplers, and safety deposit boxes. It is a completely original scene, not featured in a film before or since. The film also includes another wonderfully hilarious sequence in which Ernest starts to chew on a pen, only to have it explode, covering his mouth and face in black ink.

So far, so good, but how is sweet, simple-minded Ernest going to get to jail? We keep seeing ominous scenes of a prisoner known only as Mr. Nash. We always just see him from behind. Who is this mysterious stranger and what could he possibly have to do with the A story? It isn't until Ernest is hilariously and proudly serving his civic duty on a jury when we learn that Ernest is the exact double of Mr. Nash. That's right. In a move that can only be described as Shakespearean, Jim Varney plays a dual role!

Now it would have been easy for him to play a really funny villain, but he doesn't. Mr. Nash is an evil, murdering, hardened criminal. A nice stretch for Varney. This adds a real sense of suspense and danger once Nash is out and disguised as Ernest. In his attempts to rob the bank that Ernest works for, we never know if he's going to kill one of Ernest's friends Chuck and Bobby, (the hilarious and expressive team of Gailard Sartain and Bill Byrge, reprising their roles from most of Ernest’s other films), or even rape his potential girlfriend. It is the Mr. Nash scenes that confirm this to be Varney's greatest and most layered performance.

The set piece of the prison is also delightfully surreal. It's not the least bit realistic but rather is washed in nightmarish colors of purples, pinks, and greens. Ernest’s prison uniform magically becomes an inmate-green version of his signature costume. The prison guards are dressed in cartoony broad shouldered uniforms. Every scene in the prison feels more like a dream sequence that Ernest might wake up from at any minute… but of course he never does.

Most of the humor is derived from Ernest's many escape attempts, including one in which he dresses up as his famous alter-ego, Auntie Nelda. It is also in jail where seemingly just for fun, he stands in front of the mirror and does a spot on James Mason impression. Now people write off Ernest as a character geared towards children and rednecks, but clearly Mr. Varney's cultural horizons expand far beyond that, plucking out an impression of an actor that most children have never even heard of. In fact, you won’t find a single child in the whole film. How refreshing that we are able to watch adults do stupid comedy, without having children present to announce to the audience that this is indeed a family comedy. This notion would already be completely abandoned by the time “Ernest Scared Stupid” came around, with Ernest and a bunch of kids working together to stop a troll. At that point, he was just paving the way for his Saturday morning variety show.

This still is a movie for kids, though it does go into truly dark territory at the end when Mr. Nash, (though really Ernest), is sentenced to death by the electric chair. These are high stakes, people. The threat is real here, and the danger is thrilling to the point that we actually see Ernest sitting down in the chair, about to die. Of course he does not, but the switch is pulled, with the executioner showing little remorse in his eagerness to kill our beloved, redneck icon. Due to his magnetized state from the beginning of the film, the electricity doesn't kill Ernest, but rather turns him into Ernest P. Worell: Electro-Man, giving him the power to shoot lighting from his hands. If the film was starting to lose anyone, this is the point where it wins us back.

Ernest goes on a rampage and successfully escapes from prison just in time to attempt to stop Nash from robbing the bank and blowing up his girlfriend. However the electric powers fade away, but new powers arise. Suddenly he is given the ability to be weightless and Ernest begins to bounce around in zero gravity. Between this and the Electro-Man scenes, this is the first introduction of magical-realism in the Ernest universe. It’s like Calderon’s “Life is a Dream” with toilet-plunger jokes.

After a spectacular finale of Ernest fighting Nash and flying around the bank, he flies the bomb high into the air and seemingly explodes. As everyone is mourning Ernest's death and hailing him as a hero, Ernest falls down to earth and utters the immortal phrase, "I came, I saw, I got blowed up." Truer words were never spoken. Most films would have some sort of a coda or an epilogue. Not this one. Funny line, face-first fall, and roll credits. Any more of a wrap up would just be filler, but we do get the nice moral lesson a little earlier when Ernest gives his cellmate friend a chance to escape and he refuses. The probable violent offender (and likely racist) states that he belongs in prison and that at the end of the day, prison is a pretty nice place for a guy like him.

This would be the last truly great Ernest movie, though the direct to video "Ernest Rides Again" comes close. After that it would all be visits to Africa and chance encounters with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Sure, his adventure at camp is pretty good, but I think you'll now agree that this film truly pushed boundaries, at least as much as an Ernest movie can. "Know what I mean?"

-Johnny Pomatto

Who Could Be "Revolt"ed By This "Youth?"

America seems to be cooling to the hilarious young man that is Michael Cera. On "Arrested Development" he seemed to reinvent the very notion of the awkward teen. But after seeing variations on the same character in "Juno," "Superbad," and the unbearable "Nick and Nora's Infinite Playlist," people know what to expect and they're starting to tire of it. I'm a bit on the fence though. I would love to see Cera play George Michael once again for an "Arrested Development" movie, and then maybe see him channel the character once more for a good indie comedy just to say goodbye. In the meantime, I look forward to him playing a different set of roles, as I see a lot of potential and range in him. I would love to see Cera play an unlikable asshole. I'm very excited to see how he fares as the title role in Edgar Wright's "Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World." Cera has a film coming out this fall called "Youth in Revolt." I knew absolutely nothing about this film, nor its tone. A friend of mine saw this a few weeks ago. He wrote up a review and submitted to Aint It Cool News. They never posted it however, so he sent it my way and after reading it, I thought I'd post it here for you all to read as well. I don't think I'm violating any rules or embargoes by putting this online. I'm even protecting my friend's identity. Hope you all enjoy.

-Pomatto

Youth In Reviolt

I’ve just had the privilege of seeing what was introduced as “one of the first” screenings of the upcoming romantic comedy Youth in Revolt, which is evidently due for an October release. The film, starring Michael Cera, features a veritable “star studded cast,” including supporting performances by Jean Smart, Steve Buscemi, Fred Willard, Ray Liotta and Zack Galifianakis. Miguel Arteta directed, which surprised me, since I didn’t think he would have the gall to make any new films after The Good Girl (2002), which, I must admit, I saw once when I was sick with the flu.

The film is a sort of mixed bag. We have the typical story of a youth attempting to transition into adulthood, though of course he finds no easier recourse for achieving this apart from getting laid. He meets a girl, falls in love and becomes intent on romance. The film follows his growth into the character he thinks will best woo the object of his affections.

Michael Cera plays this impossible, youthful – and virginal – aesthete called Nick Twisp who is marooned with a dysfunctional family in Berkeley/Oakland. After his mother’s boyfriend gyps a group of naval officers, the motley crew embarks on a claymated journey to a trailer in the woods, where he meets the equally snobbish Sheeni (Portia Doubleday), who more or less shares his lonely despair, and quickly falls in love. The two share a passion for literary culture, but Sheeni, with her posters of JP Belmondo, fantasizes about an eventual French lover – though she is dating some d-bag named Trent.

To meet her romantic ideal of a manly man, Nick creates for himself a second personality: Francois Dillinger, a pastiche of a French tough-guy anti-hero, chain-smoking, snappily dressed and of few words, most of them obscene. Francois, assuming the sort of Tyler Durden role, encourages Nick to act out in order to get the girl. The film follows Nick/Francois on the path to wooing Sheeni.

It was nice to see a romantic comedy aim for something so absurd and capitalize on the (often awkward) personae of its actors. The humor is quirky and generally on the mark, though there was often a lot of laughter at moments that I did not think were intended to be funny, as well as moments where the audience was expected to laugh and there was nary a chuckle. Some standout scenes include the first introduction of Francois to Nick’s mother, Francois and Nick wreaking havoc in Berkeley and – most potent of all – the impeccable sequence wherein Nick attempts to fake his own death.

However, there are several elements of the film which stumble or flat-out fail. Firstly, Ms. Doubleday’s performance is simply awful, though this is no indication of her acting ability as much as it is a symptom of the mostly unlikable character she is portraying. Unlike Nick, Sheeni’s snobbish demeanor feels coquettish, unfair and annoying; at one point she chides Nick for being a virgin, but has herself only had one sexual experience. While Nick’s interest in literature seems deep-seeded and meaningful to his character, her love for French culture feels affected and false, serving no character development.

The supporting cast, though impressive, is similarly, almost startlingly, misused. Jean Smart plays a whorish, white trash mom who lives on the child support payments from ex-husband Steve Buscemi and the kindness of her boyfriends, played by Zack G and Ray Liotta. Smart has enough screen time to make her character work well enough, but the remaining supporting cast appears only briefly and often meaninglessly (though both Fred Willard and Justin Long drawing huge laughs in their respective short screen times).

It’s also impossible to review this film without making mention of a scene involving psychedelic mushrooms. This sequence, while book-ended by two very funny gags (courtesy of Francois, as well as the helpful sexual advice of thankfully underused side-character Lefty), sort of struggles along, causing dim-witted fits of laughter among only the most dim-witted of audience members at the simple presence of psychedelic mushrooms.

Finally, there is the point of Michael Cera. On one hand, with Nick, he plays the same character we have come to expect – a gawky, nerdish type. Francois, however, is an interesting case; we don’t really ever feel that he is supposed to be a completely independent character from Nick, but we get the impression that he is the character Nick imagines Sheeni wants. So it is still Michael Cera playing his gawky, nerdish type, only this time there is a subtle shift in the performance worth noticing. This is probably not enough to distract anyone critical or bored with a typical Cera performance, but it was slightly refreshing to this viewer.

The film screened tonight was a work print, which was, as anyone who has attended an advanced screening can attest, introduced as an unfinished version. However, it seemed to me to be pretty much complete, and I wouldn’t be surprised if this was the final cut of the film. In a brief group afterward, I learned that there potentially exists a different version of the ending, which I can only hope does not see the light of day. Though there are a few dragging moments, the ending of the film provides a perfect cap to the previous events of the 110-ish minute runtime, pulling us back into reality.

It will be interesting to see how this film is marketed in the coming months; I imagine it might make a really good trailer, but find difficulty in TV spots, due to its slightly weird plot devices. The film, which is absolutely deserving of an R-rating, might be too light for older audiences, but too sophisticated or intellectual for the young’ns. Overall, despite its occasionally darker depiction of teenage angst, Youth in Revoltis recommended to fans of lighter-fare comedies or fans of Michael Cera.

-Proust