Avatar: The ultimate Druid movie

[Lithreal]

My boyfriend and I went to the premier of Avatar, and WOW! I could not believe how strong the connections to druidry were. There are so many parts that I want to elaborate about...but I'm going to attempt to keep it vague as to not provide any spoilers. However I will say this....this movie exemplifies the definition of Druid. The Na'vi people have such an intimate connection with their planet and mother Goddess, Eywa (I think that's the proper spelling). It was so incredibly moving that I felt both awe and uplifted along with utterly crushed at times as well (this is hard to not give anything away). I think that this movie was such a great example of the fundamentals of Druidry that I highly HIGHLY recommend seeing it!

[Davin Raincloud]

Welcome to the forum Lithreal.

Yes, I really enjoyed the film on so many levels.

Eywa must be some derivation of Awen.

I would recommend this for Druidic folk.

[Dryadia2]

Greetings and Welcome Lithreal!
Thank you for the recommendation.
The trailer looks awesome! I'll definately go see it!
http://www.avatarmovie.com/
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0499549/

Peace and Blessings,
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[Magrathea]

Hi Lithreal, welcome
I didn't know what this movie was "about". All I knew was that James Cameron had made a VERY VERY expensive film and I fancied seeing it in 3-D.
I still don't know what it's "about". I think he's dusted over the story of a spiritual journey with special effects and toys. (ha ha sounds familiar)
There must be a good half hour of wasted shots just looking pretty in 3-D. For crying out loud, the stuff they were mining was called unobtanium. Didn't know wether to laugh or cry.

However, I loved the story, the journey he had to go on, the connection with the planet and the animals. I just can't see this movie being remembered for its story (well, not by the masses anyway). They are gonna be force feeding kids all of the toys, for all of the wrong reasons. I really hope I'm wrong.

It's not just pagan voodoo, it's real!!! Only Sigourney Weaver can get away with that

[Lithreal]

Well, James Cameron seems to have a thing with going big on his movies and this one was no exception. True, it will be remembered more for its visuals than its plot. After all, it is a plot that has been done many times over (anyone remember Fern Gully?). However, to those of us who understand the depth and complexity of the spirituality of the people, I think that it will hold a higher place than just a sweet looking movie. And yes....3D was AWESOME. It was the first movie that I've seen in 3D and it was great! It gave the movie so much more depth (visually) and yes, while there were lots of pretty ooooh and ahhhh moments, I'd rather have time wasted on that as opposed to time waster on sex scenes as in "The Watchmen". Also, there were a few other elements that I had considered. Perhaps I was reading too much into it, but here's what I've come up with.

- The na'vi were blue, which could symbolize two things, one being the fact that the celts were known for painting themselves blue during wartime, or also the fact that Krishna is an AVATAR of Vishnu and usually represented as being blue

- I enjoyed the interjection of native American religion when Jake shot an animal and said a prayer over it stating that "your soul goes to be with Ewya while your body stays with the people"

-Tree of souls = Tree of life?

- Could the marines be representative of Christianity?

How I wish that we could be as literally connected to the earth as the na'vi were. It's too bad that the inner meaning of this movie will be lost in all the visuals. I understand making the point of how beautiful nature is when it is embraced by the people and not ruled by them. However, in this superficial world, most people won't see past that into WHY everything was the way it was. Also...I cringe at the toy pushing

[Magrathea]

DAMN, an IMAX cinema has just opened not far from where I live. That is what Avatar was designed for
Don't think my backside could take another 2hrs 40 mins of that.

Saying that, i still don't think it's the right story for a 3-D IMAX extrvaganza.

I don't think the marines totally represent christianity as they used deceit to get pagans on there side. I feel they are more representative of, the likes of early rome and the colonists of America, the British empire...the use of force.

Ah well, could talk till I'm blue in the face about this one


Don't be knocking Watchmen

[lotuswelcome]

I agree with Lithreal. We went to see Avatar last Friday and it' s definetely a very druidic movie. I absolutely loved it.

xx

Maca

[willowcrow]

I was on the fence about seeing this, but I think I will go see it after reading these posts. Thanks!

[chadly]

I absolutely loved it! I definitely saw the nature spirituality present in it, and the naturecentric, environmentalist themes. Fern Gully came to my mind, as well, at one point.

[DJ Droood]

6.8 out of 10...average Hollywood cowboys and Indians movie, except set on another planet. Seen it about 200 times before. Pretty to watch, though.

afterthought:

What did you make of Sigourney Weaver's line that the planet's energy wasn't just "pagan voodoo", but real, measurable biological phenomenon? Was it Cameron trying to make a statement about scientific realism?

[chadly]

I kinda wondered about that too. It was almost, to me, as if Cameron knew that some kind of comparison would be made to actual Pagan/New Age religions, and wanted to point out "no, it's not like that at all". I wonder why.

[Kernos]

I won't be able to see this until the DVDs are out, but I am full of anticipation. I found this op-ed about the movie.

Douthat: Avatar and the Appeal of Pantheism
Ross Douthat: Avatar is [James] Cameron's long apologia for pantheism -- a faith that equates God with Nature, and calls humanity into religious communion with the natural world. Pantheism has been Hollywood's religion of choice for a generation now. It's the truth that Kevin Costner discovered when he went dancing with wolves. It's the metaphysic woven through Disney cartoons like The Lion King and Pocahontas. And it's the dogma of George Lucas's Jedi, whose mystical Force "surrounds us, penetrates us, and binds the galaxy together." A recent Pew Forum report on how Americans mix and match theology found that many self-professed Christians hold beliefs about the "spiritual energy" of trees and mountains that would fit right in among the indigo-tinted Na'Vi.

Full article: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/21/opini ... .html?_r=2

[Avariel]

My first reaction to the movie was that it was an obvious paralell to the treatment of American natives, especially in the initial statements made in the movie from the corporate bigwigs that "They don't seem to want anything from us." I know that during the expansion of americans westward, a lot of government officials would offer natives money, trade goods, etc, in exchange for them moving from their ancestral homes so that settlers could settle on it. Most natives refused, for reasons similar to whats portrayed in the movie; the land, or areas within the land, were sacred. The Na'vi had a connection beyond sentimental to the world around them, and places like the Tree of Souls and Hometree were a real, measurable direct connection to EVERYTHING around them...to Eywa, to the memories and souls of their ancestors. This means that simply up and "moving" is impossible and there is nothing you can give them that would replace this and thus make moving worth it. I think Cameron's ability to show that connection visually helps people understand WHY natives and various other cultures that have been uprooted around the world refused to simply leave.

I was a Marine, myself, and being a druid also, the movie was just...intense, for me. Jack Sully's transformation from "americanized" to "native" is a transformation I myself went through, and recognizing very druidic ideas (the bio-energy that travels between the trees in the movie...nwyfre anyone?) right off from the start was just incredible. I was so emotionally caught up, seeing the military personalities act either apatehtic to the destruction they caused, or revelling in it (I broke down in tears right before Hometree was destroyed, because even after the organic complexity of the forest was explained the corporate junkies simply didn't care.) it just infuriated me, because I know that that's not a dramatization; military leaders and most politicians around the world are like this, where a tree is just a tree, an animal is just an animal, and it's all there to be pissed on for the sheer pleasure of it. And because I know this level of destruction has happened, is happening now, and probably will keep happening as long as these sorts of people are calling the shots.

I'm seeing it again tonight; I highly recommend it to everyone that's ever even glanced at the awen with passing interest, much less those of us going through training.

[Malkin the Muse]

Hi all, I went to see it on Tuesday. It was fantastic. I kept irritating my mother my whispering "Roger Dean, Roger Dean," all the way through. Anyone who is familiar with Roger Dean's work will know what I'm talking about - the floating islands, the crescent rock formations and the landscape. Someone's obviously a Roger dean fan!
Check out his work (www.rogerdean.co.uk) and you will see the similarities between his paintings and the film cinematography.

[Aelfarh]

I just love the film, really!! not only the story, the visuals were impressive! Only a little disappointed by the soundtrack.

- Could the marines be representative of Christianity?

Don't think so, It's more simple and literal than that. Military represents.... well the military states. It's very obvious that there was a critic on that, remember just some quotes:

"when someone is on top of something you want, you make them your enemy, then you take it from them"
"Our only security is in a preventive strike"
"We will fight terror with terror!"
"I was a warrior who dreamed he could bring peace, Sooner or later, I had to wake up."

Also a critic to rampant capitalism. "Killing the indigenous population looks bad, but if there's one thing the shareholders hate more than bad press, it's a bad quarterly statement."

[Florian]

Blessings all!
This film is just awesome. I watched it for the second time yesterday and I will definitely go see it once more.

I think that the Na'vi represent exactly what druidry is all about. The connetion they have to their planet, their understanding of plant and animal being a part of Eywa...

This film has so many strong scenes. I nearly cried a river when the hometree fell.
Or I got so deeply angered when the military commander said "we fight terror with terror". I mean, who was the first?
And the ritual for the female biologist at the tree of souls. I mean... wow... still shaking by thinking of it.

First of all, I didn't want to see it because there's far too much propaganda around it, specially the useless toy stuff... ugly...
but all my friends said I should watch it and I'm glad to have done so.

I'd like to recommend this to everybody because it just gives inspiration to move on and that what we do is right.

With all the best wishes
Florian

[lughna]

It appears I may be one of the few who didn't really enjoy the movie - the story was very predicatable and some key concepts and plot highlights seem to be lifted directly from other movies (eg. Mononoke Hime). The visual effects were pretty good but even they failed in some spots though that could be because I saw it in 3D. It's very much like dances with wolves or the last samurai - soldier goes in or gets captured, enemy helps said individual, soldier learns about culture, develops love interest, then changes teams and helps defeat his original team... and gets the girl ofcourse

As for specifically druid references, I think in all fairness many nature based religions or concepts could say the same thing.

Cheers,
Lughna.

[Twig]

OK, you guys. I was thinking that I didn't want to see this movie because: a) I didn't want to contribute to all of the commercialization around it (Avatar lunch boxes, anyone?), and b) I thought I was too old to relate -- a movie for the 30 and under crowd. But now I'm going to figure out how to drag my old arse out of here to go see it. How could I resist after reading all of this?

Is there any real bloody violence? If so, will I know when it's coming so as to avert my eyes? I tend to store stuff like that in my head like a bad song you can't get rid of.

[Corwen]

You'll be fine Twig, its a 12A in the UK which means that even little kids under 12 can see it if there is an adult with them, so I doubt it will disturb you.

I very much enjoyed it, and if anyone is going to wait for the DVD, don't (unless you have a 3D TV...) because the 3D effects are stunning. This is the first film I have seen where I thought CGI has finally come of age, the hyper-real visuals are just perfect, and it there were only one or two little things I didn't find convincing (mostly to do with the physics of large objects moving- everyone who works in Hollywood special effects should do a engineering apprenticeship followed by a period as a demolition worker so they learn how large objects move in the real world).

I'm not sure its a Druidic film, modern Druidry all too often seems to be about our 'personal growth' or cultural heritage rather than our place in the community of all beings, but I did find it a deeply Animist movie. I was especially moved when Neytiri saves Jake from the attack by the pack of dog like animals, and then apologises to them, and attacks him for causing their unnecessary deaths by making himself a target unnecessarily. Now that's Animism!

Lithreal, its not just Native Americans who apologise to their dinner, its pretty much all primal peoples.

As for the plot, yes it is a familiar story arc, it would have made for a better and more meaningful film IMO if the Na'vi had lost the battle, after all that's what always happens on our planet, the reality would be that 100 battleships would turn up as soon as the price of space petrol dropped and blast the whole place to oblivion...

The symbolism, this drama of land grabbing corporate exploitation at the cost of tribal peoples is happening now all over our little planet, for uranium in the Kalahari, oil in Nigeria, oil in Siberia, cattle land in the Amazon, timber in Indonesia, palm oil in Malaysia etc etc etc.

And as for who the Marines represent, its you and me. Every time we pull out our wallets and unthinkingly buy illegally grown palm oil or Nigerian gas or mahogany or rain forest beef or many many other things we put a bullet in a gun somewhere.

If this film has moved you please read this little book, which would be funny if it weren't true:
http://www.survivalinternational.org/thereyougo

and check out Survival's website:
http://www.survivalinternational.org

[Dryadia2]

I thought "Avatar" was Awesome! Best movie ever! (in my opinion)
It has a strong message about environmentalism, and the effects were outstanding.

As for the commercialism...I've even bought 4 Na'vi action figures, and 3 creatures, and I plan on buying more when I can afford it. (I love toys)
And I'll go see it again (hopefully in IMAX), then buy the DVD when it comes out.

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