Paige Johnston
Film Essay
Avatar
The critical acclaim that followed the box office destroyer, Avatar, out shined most films since the creation of Hollywood and the American cinema composition. Coming in at the second highest grossing film of all times only behind Titanic, James Cameron and his crew of artistic creators surely gave their audiences something to talk about. The film takes place in two separate worlds, the industrialized earth and the beautiful and plush avatar infested world of Pandora. The controversy of the film is centered on the humans mining the world of Pandora for a highly valuable element worth an estimated $20 million dollars a kilogram. The artistically drawn battle between the humans and the natives of Pandora, bring about a reminder of several classically organized stories that seem to follow along the same paths that Avatar treads upon. With this controversy that is being brought to light, the issue of race, racial tolerance and other problems dealing with color are brought up throughout the film in a multitude of ways. Whether it be embodied in the thoughts and processes of the characters, through the actual actions of the film, or the eerily similar comparisons that can be made between Avatar and other racially charged films, race is definitely a subject that was vividly dug up when the film crossed the minds of the viewers. Many reviews of the film Avatar put most of the racist charges and blames of inequality onto the writers of the film and the director, James Cameron. The argument presented states that even though the film is supposed to be centered on the idea of the natives saving the beautiful ancestry that was built into their land, it takes a white foreigner to come in and actually save the day from the destructive powers of his own kind. While this does position a valid point in arguing that the native Na'vi could have had one of their own come in to save the day, it also allows for an opening of thoughts about other famous saviors. While Jake Sully presents the classical white savior that enters and falls in love with the native girl, this exact comparison can be made with the stories of Pocahontas and John Smith. The thing with comparing the two different stories is that while race may have been a direct problem between Smith and his native lover, Sully and his native love crossed barriers of species, language, physicality and etc. Many African American critics and foreign background critics alike proposed the question in speaking of the film asking “Why can't we save ourselves?” The construct of the film alludes that it took foreign individuals turning against their own kind [whether it be Michelle Rodriguez's character sacrificing herself to save Mother Earth or Jake Sully deciding that he wanted to take the final step towards becoming an Avatar and living the life he felt destined to live] to save the native individuals that were inhabiting Pandora. Mr. Cameron didn't help against the racist undertones of the film by casting Avatar in the way that he did either. Jake Sully, as well as all of the other inhabitants of the natural world of the film were portrayed by Caucasian actors, while the voices of all the Avatar characters were played by African American individuals. This strong and definitive choice brings more racial barriers to the film than were first analyzed in the initial viewing of the film. The separation of the Na'vi people into tribe-like subcultures was another direct comparison between the natives of the film and an African tribal breakdown. The colonizer vs. colonized construction patterns of the film and story are what bring out the racial undertones that the film is accused of. Throughout the entire film there were specific examples where race did not have to be brought about, but was simply enticed for face value. The most tragic and blatantly destructive scene that most clearly presented racism throughout Avatar is difficult to put a finger on. One prime example of such is the destruction of the native tree of life, a staple of the beauty and meaning that the Na'vi live for. This very strongly exemplifies the colonial comparison of American settlers of North America and how they wiped out the Native Americans, with how the humans are destroying the world of Pandora. On the other side of the argument, certain writers and critics have said that Avatar presents a chance for hope. Hope that one day the differences, even if separated by planets, can be settled by those that have direct and passionate hatred for one another. While the Na'Vi are presented throughout the film as the colonized, it is quite possible that they live a more socially civilized live than those that do not inhabit the world of Pandora. Whether or not race is considered on a word by word analysis throughout the film, the general undertones of the film present the comparison of two strongly different groups interacting in ways that would lead viewers to believe the race was the primary cause of the confrontations presented. The simple construction of the film allows viewers to believe that whites are a supremely technological race, delving into great depths of science, technology, and other intellectually stimulating activities, while native colonies are trapped by spiritual awareness, athletic poise, and a guise of storytelling misfortunes. While satisfying critical analysts on the diverse backgrounds of the racism seen in the film, the story simply could not have been told in any other way according to James Cameron. Despite being called a “white messiah fable” and the staunch comparisons between the film and certain Disney made films, Avatar succeeded in what it set out to do. Tell a story of two individuals from different backgrounds that went past all the sources of pressure to solve problems across the lines of difference. Race, while an issue for most in the film, cannot stop the undying and perpetual connection between two beings who have found love.