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[Bond]

Originally Posted by Typhoid

In the writers' defense - what would you rather they said? I didn't see it as anything to do with the Iraq war. Fighting terror with terror is a good strategy. And it's the new "Fight fire with fire." And since when does the phrase "Shock and Awe" directly refer to Iraq?

Like I said, if anything - it's more of an allusion to Native Americans than the Iraq War.

"Shock and awe" is an American military term. From Wikipedia: "The doctrine was written by Harlan K. Ullman and James P. Wade in 1996 and is a product of the National Defense University of the United States." This might be an American thing, but the term is very heavily associated with the Iraq War.

"The battle plan is based on a concept developed at the National Defense University. It's called "Shock and Awe" and it focuses on the psychological destruction of the enemy's will to fight rather than the physical destruction of his military forces."

It's interesting you point out the Native American angle, though, as I saw the movie with one, and he also thought it alluded more to Native Americans than the Iraq War, but I'm not so sure.

[Vampyr]

Personally I got more of an anti unregulated capitalism message.

[Bond]

Originally Posted by Vampyr

Personally I got more of an anti unregulated capitalism message.

Got this from the Blackwater allusion?

[Typhoid]

It's called "Shock and Awe" and it focuses on the psychological destruction of the enemy's will to fight rather than the physical destruction of his military forces."

I didn't know that.
Maybe I don't associate it with the (current) Iraq War because the phrase has been around for 15 years.

It's interesting you point out the Native American angle, though, as I saw the movie with one, and he also thought it alluded more to Native Americans than the Iraq War, but I'm not so sure.

I don't see how it couldn't, really. I mean, sure - there is a mineral they're trying to get (to be fair, they're not after oil in the Iraq War), but I mean - the indigenous race of the planet is pretty...native-esque. Everything is sacred, everyone is connected, everything has an energy. I don't know about you - but Iraqis are a little more civilized than some bows and some talk about life energy.

But that's just me.

[Typhoid]

[Bube]

So that's why it felt so similar..

[KillerGremlin]

Fuck! Typhoid beat me to posting how Avatar = Pocahontas, Dances with Wolves, FernGully, Etc.

Average story/George Lucas-esque dialogue with amazing special effects. I enjoyed it quite a bit but had more fun at Star Trek this summer.

I was totally immersed in the world of Avatar and was feeling quite euphoric when he walked through the forest and things started glowing, and the part where he rode the dragon thing for the first time. The movie may or may not had racist undertones, and the whole story where the civilized white people destroy then save the savage natives is pretty fucking cliche (and racist...?...).

All in all it was good cinema, although it dragged on 40 minutes past its welcome. And the interspecies fucking was weird.