By Jeremy Berg
After braving the 15 below zero weather, fighting people for seats (almost literally), finding clean 3D glasses and smuggling in pop and snacks, we were ready to experience James Cameron’s visually stunning world of Pandora filled with 8 feet tall blue people — or, as someone else put it, “warrior Smurfs.”
It’s always nice when a film lives up to all the hype. This movie delivers on it’s promise of matchless special effects and all the cinematic bells and whistles that will someday soon be in all films. I can’t imagine it will be more than 5 years before 2D films go the way of the dinosaur. To be honest, the visual experience is what drew me to see Avatar — not James Cameron’s storytelling.
How about the story? Well, I don’t think it’s inaccurate to say that Hollywood’s rewind button may be stuck. More than one person has called this movie the equivalent of Dances With Wolves in space. Another called it “Rambo in reverse.” Read a plot summary HERE. What I do know for certain is that this film was jam packed with all the hot-button religious and political themes so popular in Hollywood and the culture in general.
Where do we begin?
Daily Illumination movie reviews are focused primarily on the deeper religious, political and worldview issues and messages laden in such films. Thus, I merely highlight some of the more obvious in Avatar.
1. This is overt Eastern “pantheism” at it’s best. Cameron clearly depicts Pandora as a world where the sum total of creatures and nature are all part of the Divine. We are all one with nature, and mother earth is just sharing her life and energy with us. There is a cosmic harmony and interconnectedness to the natural order that must be maintained. If tampered with, for instance the sacred Tree they find their energy and well-being from, disastrous consequences will follow. But the message is not merely one of treating the natural world with all it’s creatures with dignity and respect; the land is divine and elevated to the status of godhood. We are not merely wise stewards and guardians of nature; nature is divine and ourselves as part of it. We are all part of divine All.
As Christians, we hold the natural world to be the magnificent handiwork of the Creator and our divine purpose as the imago Dei is to be his wise, caring stewards of it. There is a clear Creator-creation distinction that must be maintained. All is not divine (i.e., pan= all + theism = god). We have a natural God-given impulse to worship, and if we do not acknowledge the true God to whom all worship is due, we will by a natural instinct find some other lesser person or object or thing to worship. Thus, Avatar was 2 hours and 40 minutes of watching Romans 1 acted out before my eyes as the blue Na’vi people “exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator” (Rom 1:25).
2. Interestingly, in the movie it is not some religious teacher or shaman who points out this spiritual truth. It is the enlightened, reasonable and well-informed Scientists who must try to open the dull and barbaric minds of the reckless, power hungry military folk. Again, much like my review of the movie “2012″, Hollywood has little time for religious teachers and seems to enjoy making the Scientist the hero of the day — the most reasonable, most educated, most sophisticated and clearly most enlightened people around. Certainly, it not accidental that the more trendy and culturally vogue spirituality of Eastern pantheism is even given some scientific support in the film as we learn about the “energy” permeating all things, sustaining order in the world. While many today, when it comes to Christianity, like to drive a deep and unbridgeable wedge between faith and science, we see more willingness to entertain a harmonious relationship between the two when it comes to other (non-Christian) forms of spirituality.
3. The strong, clear nod to our nation’s less-than-pretty beginnings was well-deserved as we Americans indeed have a horrid past filled with cruel and inhuman treatment of Native American lands and peoples. Our country was born amidst such blind and ethnocentrically driven colonization efforts, not to mention on the shoulders of African slave-labor. I don’t mind being reminded of this stain on our country’s national conscience. Let us always strive toward a greater understanding of and appreciation for those different from us. Let us learn from our forefathers’ mistakes and, like Jake Sully, learn by inhabiting the different worlds, beliefs and values of our fellow beings in hopes of peaceful coexistence.
4. Likewise, and not surprising considering the “Green Revolution” and global warming buzz all around us, the movie sends a strong message to those who would rashly, blindly and stubbornly exploit and destroy the earth’s natural resources and ecosystem for power, profit and self-interest. The message was clear. Hopefully the message is getting through. Though many are taking the message too far — leading to the worship of the environment rather than wise, responsible care and stewardship of it.
5. Finally, I am not a military kind of guy. But even I thought the over the top caricature of the military soldiers as thick-headed, irrational, blood-thirsty warmongers was deeply disrespectful to good and decent soldiers who serve their country with honor, dignity and courage. I thought the part of the Captain with his southern accent and intimidating presence was casted well and very entertaining. But I think I would have been offended by Cameron’s portrayal of the military overall if I were in the military myself.
Make no mistake about it. This was an enjoyable film and I recommend seeing it before it leaves the 3D theaters. Alongside all these pervasive religious and political messages undergirding the action, you find a classic plot line filled with all the elements that make a good story: good guys and bad guys, heroes and villains, love and romance, breathtaking scenery, action and suspense and some good battle scenes with plenty of gunfire and explosions.
Book your ticket now for a trip to the strange land of tall, blue warrior Smurfs in Pandora! It’s worth the ride and price of admission!
posted February 5, 2010 at 7:15 pm
I really don’t see the point of the movie.
Eli needs to save the Bible. Why?
According to the back story, after 2000 years of the Bible on earth, we still descend into hell after a worldwide religious war, which apparently the church is totally ineffective to prevent, or maybe even helps cause. It doesn’t sound like having the Bible around has had any transforming effect for 2000 years. So why save it?
And then there is the church. You know, the thing Jesus established, to be guided by the Holy Spirit, to be a “light unto the world”. I wonder if all the people flocking to the movie understand just how powerless it makes today’s church appear if the movie’s premise about the future is accepted.
The film has a standard Hollywood boilerplate plot, based on the myth of redemptive violence. The twist for this film is bibliolatry. You can substitute the Bible for “the Force” in Star Wars and “Eywa” in Avatar. Align yourself with the good force and when your enemies attack you, you will be able to kill your enemies (oh… but Eli only kills when he really has to. That makes him a “pacifist”. Uh-huh).
Nothing unique in that “gospel”.
posted February 5, 2010 at 8:39 pm
The Na’vi aren’t ‘people’. The soldiers were mercenaries, not military. Pandora can’t support nature or earth worship because it’s not the earth. It’s not worship because it’s a biological connection that they are tuned into. I find it funny that so many Christians need to view everything through the crutch of a fairy tale book rather than thinking and taking ethical responsibility for themselves. For goodness sake. Its a movie with some common HUMAN themes. Read the humanist manifesto and maybe the movie’s broad universal appeal will begin to make sense.
posted February 5, 2010 at 8:44 pm
scot,
i’m not sure i could get past that rewind button. I darn near fell asleep. contrary to all my excited friends, looking at the 3-d is like a cheap version of a rollercoaster ride, only too long. with its less than subtle plot, i could only yawn. something that is this preachy with no clever communication (more like in-your-face) can’t hold my attention.
on your commnent of ‘eastern’ religious theme, i’m not sure that pantheistic idea is exclusively eastern. i thought the inspiration was more from native American religion. anyway, i appreciate your analysis. my personal view is, call it ‘dances with smurfs”.
posted February 5, 2010 at 9:18 pm
Observe! Scot McKnight did not write these movies reviews.
posted February 6, 2010 at 12:31 am
I did a review of the movie as well here:
http://wondersforoyarsa.blogspot.com/2010/01/god-who-takes-sides.html
The main point I’d make, while agreeing with Jeremy mostly, is that while the message of the movie is pretty pantheistic, the structure of the story is deeply Judeo Christian. Much unintended irony there indeed.
If Eywa doesn’t take sides, then the God of Avatar is none other than the Lord, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children’s children, to the third and the fourth generation. The God of this movie is a God who has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts; he has brought down the mighty from their thrones and exalted those of humble estate. He is near to the Na’vi when they call on him. When in the time of their suffering the Na’vi cried out to him, he heard them from heaven, and according to his great mercies he gave them a savior who saved them from the hand of their enemies. His servant was slow of speech and tongue; he had no form or majesty that they should look at him, and no beauty that they should desire him. He was despised and rejected by his people when he sought to warn them of the folly of their ways, and strung up on a tree. He was then left for dead. But then before all the people he was revealed in glory, that at the name of Jake all the Na’vi would bow, and every tongue confess that he is their savior. In him their arrows would slay gunships, like David laying low the giant. The proud and the powerful would be cast down, and the meek would inherit Pandora.
posted February 6, 2010 at 2:27 am
I found Avatar’s pantheism to be somewhat of an mess-up. Although it explicitly makes some pantheism comments in the beginning (yes, in spite of trying to explain it biologically) it also seem to have been influenced by good old American evangelicalism, seen in the prayer to help us in the war we are going to fight, and then suddenly the pantheistic god that doesn’t take sides turns up to fight the war. Some weird combination of pantheism and supernatural-theism combined with naturalism seem to be a more accurate description of Avatar’s idea of god.
posted February 6, 2010 at 11:09 am
Interesting review. One of the best I have read lately was inspired by Scott. See it here:
http://www.missional.ca/2010/01/avatar-review/
posted February 6, 2010 at 9:50 pm
Jeremy,
Your assessment of the depiction of military soldiers in Avatar is based on your misunderstanding of their role in the movie.
First of all, there are no military soldiers depicted in the entire movie; not a single one. On the other hand, there are many representations of mercenary soldiers in the movie.
The “captain” is the leader of a corporately owned mercenary force not a military leader.
The clear presentation of “thick-headed, irrational” soldiers was directed toward those who chose to become “blood-thirsty” mercenaries.
posted February 7, 2010 at 1:47 am
Scott #8 – Thanks for the clarification and helpful distinction.
posted February 7, 2010 at 11:08 pm
Actually, the “scientists” aren’t the enlightened ones. The natives speak contemptuously of them – along the lines of “it’s hard to fill a cup that’s already full”, the idea that the scientists are too full of their own theories to learn from the people who actually know something about it – and even though they find evidence of the ‘interconnectedness of things’ they don’t grasp even a fraction of the full picture until the end.
They’re certainly portrayed more positively than the typical ‘mad scientist’, and they pick the “right side” at the end… but while they’re the “most educated”, I can’t really see them as being any other of the “mosts” on the list.