A Bit More Mild.

So Avatar will soon be released in theaters. I'm speaking of the James Cameron science fiction movie, not the movie adapted from the cartoon, (seriously why did Hollywood decide to release two similar titled movies at the same time)? This is a movie that is apparently highly anticipated, yet somehow I had not heard of it's making until about a month and a half ago.

Regardless I'm excited, not just by the trailers, but by James Cameron's track record as well. Aliens, Terminator, Titanic, True Lies, The Abyss, each of these movies have something very unique about them and most are still referenced in pop culture to a degree that I'm sure M.C. Hammer and Pauly Shore envy greatly. The Aliens and Terminator franchises pretty much go without saying and, in my opinion, True Lies is one of the best action films made and by far the best Arnold Schwarzenegger film (yes that does contend with Terminator 2, but that's a close second). The Abyss is a different kind of film within the sci-fi genre, by essentially taking the suspense and action a story in space would have and placing it 2 miles under the surface of the ocean, not original, but in my mind a very good film. Colleen hates The Abyss, but I think that's because she was attacked by a worm like water monster as a child and that scene gives her nightmares. No. In all honesty I think she dislikes the love story, which I could do without, but then again I could go without just about any love story being told. Musicals suck.

While going over all this, it occurs to me the type of person James Cameron is. Not exactly the type of person he is, but more specifically his story telling. Not only does he have great ideas, he writes them well. This reminds me of someone else in the movie business, but his writing is far inferior and that is George Lucas. Lucas can tell a great story, but his writing is like the alphabet threw up. I could write better dialogue with the letters I get in alphabet soup. Which that in itself is not horrible. What really irritates me is that when it came time to write the screenplay for "The Empire Strikes Back" he had Lawrence Kasdan write it. I have no beef with Kasdan, "Empire" is a great film. The reason Lucas had Kasdan write the screenplay is because Lucas realized his writing was close to shit, and so wanted a bit more talent thrown into the film. Good job Lucas, awesome way to use various sources to tell your story. What I want to know is if Lucas realizes he's a shitty writer, then why did he write all three of the last Star Wars films. Why? It doesn't make sense. Episode I and II are pretty much crap. I thought of watching Episode I the other day, but I didn't want an annoying inquisitive little brat who can't act on my screen for two hours. The thought was just not appealing, like Brussels Sprouts.

So in summary James Cameron is pretty much an improved George Lucas. Maybe if we're lucky Cameron can give Lucas some lessons, but I doubt Cameron would stoop to such depths.