08 January 2010

Entertainment or Agenda?

There are two topics I try to avoid like the plague─religion and politics. However, a recent trip to the movies has brought a few opinions to the forefront of my mind.

Last weekend, I went to see the movie Avatar, which certainly is pulling in the dough with top honors at the box office right now. Prior to seeing it, I was warned the movie was actually a strong message. Its underlying meaning was how the big, bad United States tries to take over other countries/races. The takeover starts out in a diplomatic/humanitarian manner. When that doesn’t work as planned, force is used.

Even with this in mind, I went to see the movie. Though I kept my mind focused on the story as being “entertainment” one scene chilled me to the bone. It involved destroying something dear to the planet’s indigenous race. What played out on the movie screen was, in my opinion, a parity of the destruction of the Twin Towers. To me, that was a low blow. My heart squeezed as I watched, and yes, even though I knew this was a movie, I cried.

The fact the movie is raking in the money clearly shows people find it very entertaining. I only hope the majority are seeing it as just that, an entertaining movie with action, and a hero and heroine who save the day. Not the agenda behind it.

What happened to doing such things as watching a movie or reading a book to escape the real world? Isn’t that why romance novels are written? Readers want to delve into fiction and be swept away, if only for a short while. There may be some out there, but thankfully I have never come across a romance novel with any other agenda than just that.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on this. Have you seen the movie? What did you think about it?


D. McEntire author of The Watchers series


Latest Release - Midnight Savior, The Watchers - Book Four

1 comment:

Carolan Ivey said...

I think the movie must be striking a chord, otherwise it would be just another special effects blockbuster. I've heard Avatar compared with Dances With Wolves, only this time the natives win in the end. :)

I need to see the movie a few more times to let it sink in. I liked Titanic the first time I saw it, but the more I watched it, the more I found to mock. :) (Now, it's like, "Jump, Rose, jump!")

Like it or not, James Cameron has a knack for striking that chord - the Terminator series, Titanic, and now Avatar. The white hats and the black hats in Avatar are pretty obvious, and I wish the villains had been more well rounded. I wish the story and characters had been given as much attention to detail and subtlety as the SFX, but I guess you can't have everything. :)