They're undeniably good looking, even for Na'vi
Made to appeal to humans? Their facial bone structure is so interesting; particularly their noses; particularly the bridge.
On New Years Eve, I saw Avatar again in theatres with my younger sister and some family friends. It's the first movie I've ever seen twice in theatres, so that's saying something! The second time, I could recognize the flaws more -- overly caricatured characters, repeated/obvious underlying storyline, weak dialogue -- but I also appreciated everything else it is (a visually explosive, wonderful journey into their world) for a second time. And it was fun to watch it again with someone else for their first viewing. I wonder how the 'fanboy' network is receiving this film, because that'll somewhat determine if and how the Pandoran world lives on in ours.
The amount of research gone into creating this film is admirable, down to the linguistically sound Na'vi language created especially for Avatar, as explained in a Vanity Fair article. "Avatar Linguist Wants Na'vi Language to be the Next Klingon," summarizes another article. Now that is probably up to the fanboys and fangirls.
Clearly I was very affected by this movie. Anyone else? It's not just me, right?
No, I was affected by it as well.
ReplyDeleteHere's what I think: the Na'vi form certainly reflects the ideals of (modern) human aesthetics: slender bodies, long legs, feline facial features, symmetry. The added "blue" feature is just to make us think they're different, but really, they are just fantasies of human beauty. But isn't that a theme of the movie? A different body as being a fantasy, something inherently unreal? I won't give away any of the plot, but the film does play with the reality of achieving perfection and crosses between the possible and impossible.
As for the language, I don't know if it's going to be the next Klingon. If it were a series of movies, like LOTR, you might get a following, but otherwise I don't think it's established or used enough for it to have a serious speaking cult.
If I could suggest a one-word classification for what the Na’vi really are (provided they have human and feline features), maybe they could be labeled a Felentaur (lol, with respect to the noteworthy Greek mythological "Centaur" race). I guess the only edge-case in this Felentaur is that they don't have "large talons"...they do 'hiss' though!
ReplyDeleteNot sure if the Na'vi Felentaur Avatar (lol) will ever develop a following worth comparing to the dedicated, sometimes eccentric and "Elvish" speaking LOTR fan clubs (or Star Wars fan clubs) ...even if they make multiple films. I'm not denying that they won't grow business horizontally in ways similar to that of Disney films (eg. Avatars on Ice, lol).
It's fun looking back on Toy Story 1, 15 years ago in (1995 A.D.) and seeing the cinematic advances in Avatar. I'd certainly suggest watching it.