"Avatar - the movie - will it be classic sci-fi?" Topic

Actually watching it now, and I think most of you are wrong. It has possibilities. It has a message, the story is good, and the journey is wondrous.

Discovery. I don't care about the effects. It's a journey of discovery.

Fantastically better than the latest Star Trek.

Another brother to join the ranks!

Amen!

:)

I enjoyed it, thought it was well worth seeing but classic? I doubt it. Once you get past the prettiness the storyline is pretty basic and in places has all the subtly of a kick in the head. Still I wouldn't rule it out, if the planned sequels at least hold steady in terms of quality they might be collectively regards as classics.

How many lines from Avatar are being repeated around the water cooler?………

None.

Off the top of my head (not all SF), lines my friends and I use as a sort of "picture painting shorthand":

"I'll be back"

"How much money?" "Well…more that you can imagine." "I dunno, I can imagine a lot."

"I love the smell of napalm in the morning."

"KHAN!!!"

"I'm afraid I can't do that, Dave."

"Nuke it from orbit, it's the only way to be sure."

My vote:
It will have the same impact as Titanic.

No classic.

The plot was entirely forgetful. The only redeeming quality this movie has, is the graphics innovation.

(Dances with Wolves, in space.. blech!)

That is an interesting train of thought.

The impact of a particular line within a movie, ingrains itself in our collective memory.

But does this imprint reflect a clever turn of a writer's fifteen minutes or is it a direct finger print of a great movie?

And as for lines that you remember from movies, my wife and I were just talking yesterday and this one popped up "I see you".

Now it may not be as memorable to everyone else, but I do not think a line makes a classic.

Not to diminish your argument, I appreciate the thought behind your comment.

It is an interesting point of reference; do we remember the line or the movie?

That is an outside the box process…but a good process.

Even if I do not agree with you, I like the way you think :)

Good one.

PS
As for the "dance with wolves in space"…even in that reference, adding space/aliens/an alien world makes it that much better IMO! :)

Like putting crispy bacon on a ham and cheese sandwich…it just gets better! (or tofu/vegi strips if you swing that way)

"I can smell you."

How many lines from Avatar are being repeated around the water cooler?………

None.

[…]

My vote:
It will have the same impact as Titanic.

No classic.

Hmm, using your own criteria, Titanic IS a classic, as a line from it, "I'm the king of the world!", made it to a list by the American Film Institute of the top 100 movie quotes of all time.

And of course catchy lines from movies don't make those movies into classics. People often quote things from movies because the line is ridiculous or over the top (like the line "Love means never having to say you're sorry" from Love Story, a crap movie if there ever was one, and certainly no classic). Conversely by your criteria The Grand Illusion and Lawrence of Arabia would not be classics.

porfirio rubirosa wrote:

And of course catchy lines from movies don't make those movies into classics.

28mmMan wrote:

It is an interesting point of reference; do we remember the line or the movie?

My intent is not to say that a single good one liner makes a classic movie. 28mmMan is closer and makes the effort even when he doesn't agree (Thanks for the courtesy). A good line is simply the marker (or payoff) to characters we are invested in and/or scenes that have pulled us in.

A good line brings me back to that point in the movie with all of the interwoven context and situational drama. The line is just a subject header.

AFI may think that the line from Titanic was good, that doesn't mean I must "use my criteria" or own it. That line doesn't compel me to think of anything other than some bohemian layabout slacker ignoring basic rules of self preservation. OTOH, Oracle Jones yelling "Now I see it!" (HALLELUJAH!) in "The Hallelujah Trail" brings a huge grin to my face every time. YMMV.

People often quote things from movies because the line is ridiculous or over the top

Of course they do. Where do I imply that as part of my thesis? Straw man argument.

Conversely by your criteria The Grand Illusion and Lawrence of Arabia would not be classics.

"We can't all be lion tamers."
Classic line from a classic movie! The laconic delivery is just awesome. I think of that line anytime some braggart comes out with an overblown war story or someone argues from a point of a deluded overly serious sense of expertise.