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Avatar's James Cameron refutes rumors, offers update
Avatar director James Cameron wrote Ain't It Cool News to shoot down several recent rumors about the movie, including one that he had rejected eight proposed trailers and another that he planned to unspool a trailer at the upcoming ShoWest convention in Las Vegas. Cameron also updated the site on the secretive film's progress.
"As usual the rumor mill is grinding out mostly spurious stuff," Cameron wrote AICN. "I have no plans at present to go to Showest, and in any event we have decided not to unveil material there."
Cameron added: "As to the trailer story, I have no idea where that came from, but I haven't rejected any trailers (yet), since I haven't seen any yet. They're still working on them for presentation, which presumably will be soon. I'm sure I'll reject a couple once I have the chance. Right now I'm just focused on having a movie to sell."
More than 10 years in the making, Avatar marks Cameron's return to fictional feature-film directing for the first time since 1997's Titanic. The 3-D Avatar centers on ex-marine Jake Sully, who is torn between duty and honor when he finds himself caught in a battle between the heavily armed forces of Earth's most powerful star-faring consortium and an exotic, noble alien race whose entire world is threatened by the human invaders.
"The cut is shaping up nicely and the stuff coming in from Weta Digital is astonishing," Cameron wrote AICN. "Every once in a while, as we are absorbed in some intensely detailed discussion about sub-surface scattering or the way a tail is moving in the animation, I'll just stop and have this moment of clarity, as if seeing it for the first time. And I realize that's what the lunar astronauts must have felt like. They'd be in the middle of some complex set of procedures, and they'd look out the window and go, 'Oh, yeah. That's the frickin' moon!' It feels like that."
Avatar stars Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana and Cameron's Aliens star Sigourney Weaver. It opens Dec. 18.
By syber_jedi at 4:37 AM ON 03/12/09
Man, this sounds awesome, but the plot sounds very similar to Timothy Zahn's book "Manta's Gift".
By CJ at 8:27 AM ON 03/12/09
The premise of the film actually isn't that interesting. It's only the reputation of James Cameron that is carrying the momentum for this movie. Ten years is a LONG time to produce a movie. This one had better be good. Not even Alan Moore and Kevin O'neill take this long to get a series of LOEG out.
By Scott at 9:50 AM ON 03/12/09
Of course it will be good. Even if the plot is not staggeringly original, that is not the only aspect of a good film. Cameron is a fine craftsman and he will create an excellent film, as he always does.
By Nausicaa'sLover at 1:38 PM ON 03/12/09
This movie is going to blow the masses away.....it will truly usher in a new era of film-making. Leave it to James Cameron to accomplish such a task. We all know he's capable-- after all he DID write and direct just about the best sci-fi movies ever made. And it's about time he's returned to form-- almost 20 YEARS since his LAST science fiction film (T2 of coarse)! I hope this means that he's here to stay, and not digress into other genres and docu's again. As for the story of Avatar itself: It may not be the most original concept ever, but I'm supremely confident that Cameron's execution of it will certainly make it SEEM like it is! "Planetary Romances" as they're technically called are a staple of science fiction literature, but the sub-genre has NOT been brought to the screen very often ("Dune" comes to mind, but films like "Star Wars" don't actually count because they're considered SPACE OPERA, the difference being Planetary Romances take place one a SINGLE alien world). Besides, with Cameron's superior imagination and art direction, having Jackson's WETA Digital on board, and filming in super-cutting-edge 3D it will be like nothing you've ever seen. We'll all be beyond pleasantly surprised-- guaranteed. I especially can't wait to explore this complex alien world he's created-- we RARELY get to glimpse such exoticism in a science fiction film (some of the only scenes that come to mind are a few quick glimpses of alien worlds near the end of "Revenge of the Sith", the planet of "The Dark Crystal", perhaps planet LV-426 in "Alien/Aliens" and Crematoria in "Chronicles of Riddick", and most recently the planet of the Moorwens in the new film "Outlander"). Anyway, I obviously can't wait to see Avatar. It's just too bad that the ALL TOO similarly themed 3D animated "Battle for Terra" comes out before it in May.......go figure.
By Seanbtwo at 7:14 PM ON 03/12/09
It's way past time for a trailer of this film to be released.
By Skippy at 1:01 AM ON 03/13/09
I hear Kevin Smith is making the final cut.
Seriously though doesn't the plot sound just a little lame? Also seems his ego is still going full speed - "moon landing" - it is a MOVIE it won;t save the world or get you in the hisotry books. If you want to do a good thing ofr mankind stop making movies and do something valuable.
By X-ung at 8:34 AM ON 03/16/09
I'm a big fan of Cameron...well, except for Titanic. Don't get me wrong, Titanic is a good movie but not as good as the Abyss, Aliens or the first Terminator.
I can't wait to see this movie...but...for Christ's sake, WHEN WILL WE BE ABLE TO SEE A ****** TRAILER??????
I remember watching The Lord of The Rings first trailer 2 years, 2 ******* YEARS BEFORE THE MOVIE WAS RELEASED!!!
The only stuff I've seen on the net is shitty art-work (which by the way sucks big time) about some ugly-Na'Vis who remind me of some stupid Thundercats, and i don't know if this conceptual art-work is actually official or not coz my little 3 year old brother could draw better aliens than those ones.
By Merritt at 11:04 PM ON 07/23/09
He's just setting the bar high... let's hope he lives up to it.
By nano X at 7:40 PM ON 01/13/10
Cameron -long rich and decades stale
-has obviously been actively sucking-up to
the most awesomely genocidal regime
the world has ever seen across the pacific
---for junk financing and VAST market access.
SEE AVATAR! ---SUPPORT GENOCIDE!
------------------COOL!
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nano X:
Cameron -long rich and decades stale -has obviously been actively sucking-up to the most awesomely genocidal regime...More »