Avatar

Well...I've just got back from the cinema and I'm snuggled in bed with a purring cat and a bowlful of my Auntie's homemade rice pudding. I can't think of a comfier way to begin my post on Avatar.

Read the rest...

I've seen Avatar three times now; first in 2D with my boyfriend, secondly another 2D viewing with my dad, and earlier this evening my dad and I went back to see what it would be like in 3D.

Since I invested in my Cineworld unlimited card I've been taking a notebook along with me every time I go to see a film so that I can make notes of anything that particularly impresses me. I made half a dozen pages of notes the second time I went and I didn't even write all the way to the end, because the latter part of the film is so climactic that it drew my undivided attention. I'm sure that if I sat down and really thought about all the things I find remarkable about this film I could pen an entire tome. I'll try not to do that right now but I would like to talk about some of my favourite parts of this film, and invite any readers I might have out there to do the same.

The Language

I'm a language buff (I've just opened a new language-based blog today, as a matter of fact) so this particular aspect of the film absolutely fascinated me. The Na'vi language sounds like a mix of the South American rainforest languages, African languages, and Native American. I can't be sure about the likeness because I don't have much experience beyond European languages but that's what it sounds like to me. Perhaps the creator drew on these other languages. Yes, that's right - James Cameron involved a professor to create a language for his characters to speak in the film. That's something that I've only come across before in Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings universe and I think it adds an incredible depth to the foreign culture that we step into alongside Jake Sully.

I will carry on this post over the next few days but right now I am extremely tired and need to get some decent rest to be ready for uni in the morning.

Apocalypto

Mel Gibson's Apocalypto was on BBC 2 on Saturday night. I sat down to watch it with my mum and my boyfriend and we all became fairly well engrossed.

Apocalypto tells the story of a Mayan tribe attacked by foreign warriors, and the efforts of one particular tribesman to escape and rescue his pregnant wife and son from a cave in which they seek refuge during the attack.

Now I wasn't too impressed by the summary and thought that it sounded fairly implausible but it's much more realistic and gripping than you'd think. Be warned though that this is a very violent film, containing rape, slaughter and human sacrifice. (I enjoyed watching for the plot and filming, but did have to look away from the screen for some of the particularly bloody moments.)

Apocalypto is available on BBC iPlayer for four more days, if you want to watch it.

Read the rest...