Analysis of The Elements of a Successful Sci-fi Film in Avatar

Introduction

Science fiction films are based on imagination and characters that have not been scientifically proven to exist in real life. The choice of film in this review is Avatar by James Cameron. I chose this film because it extends viewers’ minds to a brand-new world that with techniques and scientific theories that are not supported by the mainstream science. Although it literally comes from the author’s or director’s imagination, it still has some important rules to develop a successful sci-fi film. James Cameron is well known for writing about foreign figures in a foreign land with enough fiction to enable viewers to question the actual existence of foreign beings. This article is to analyze one of his sci-fi work, Avatar (2009), as an example to explore the essential points of building a successful sci-fi film.

Avatar is a Science Fiction movie directed by James Cameron, released in December 2009. The film was so successful that there the sequels Avatar 2 and Avatar 3 scheduled to launch on December 2021 and December 2023, respectively. The plot of the film is set in the future. The film describes the year 2154 when humans have depleted the resources available on Earth, leading to a massive energy crisis. Humanity therefore explored and found Pandora, a moon that is very densely forested with an atmosphere that is poisonous to humans.

The Na’vi, known as “The People” in English, are a race of sentient beings inhabiting the lush jungle moon of Pandora; and an avatar, meaning the “dream walker” in English, is a Human/Na’vi hybrid who has a genetically engineered body that is meant to house a human mind. An avatar looks like a Na’vi when it is born, blue in color and as tall as 10 feet; it can live as comfortable as the Navi on Pandora; but has been cultivated with enough neurophysiology in ordedr to be used as an avatar by the human beings. Humans are their controller or “driver”; and each human driver will have an exclusive “key” to his or her avatar, known as the psionic link technology. They worship a goddess called Eywa. In Avatar, the primary protagonist is Jack, who impersonates his twin brother in the capacity of a bodyguard for a research expedition to Pandora. Having used a body link unit to connect to an avatar (a Navi lookalike body built for Pandora’s atmosphere), Jack is soon saved by a Navi girl, Neytiri, who introduces him to her clan. The clan spiritual leaders issue an order for Neytiri to initiate Jack into their community. The storyline follows this story of the two different beings from different worlds trying to survive and reconcile their differences and accept their different societies.

Sci-Fi films are normally fictional and depict lifeforms and gadgets that exist outside of actual science or the technology currently available. A good example, in this case, is the use of aliens and extra-terrestrial bodies by humans. Avatar depicts futuristic species and gadgets that have not yet been formed and, in some cases, seem to be based on assumptions that have not been scientifically proven. In the Avatar film, the origin of the film characters was from fictional novels Cameron had read since childhood, while he created the mystical Navi and Pandora’s many alien creatures using computer generated imagery (CGI).

The concept is ideal for a Science Fiction movie because the characters are alien beings who live by a certain set of rules that humans cannot. The film also offers futuristic concepts and technology such as interstellar travel and advanced technologies that make it even more intriguing. Therefore, in the film it is important to note that the Navi’s imitation, the avatar, is engineered and designed differently with the Navis. For example, the brains of avatars are modeled in purpose of matching their human operators. Avatar was filmed to show the existence of extra-terrestrial life and species of which humans may be unaware. It is inaccurate because most of the characters are computer generated, which is an element that caters to the strong Science Fiction current in the film.

Developing a Science Fiction film requires significant research. There should be a study of different cultures and the ways they could relate and affect the future. This might include identifying some activities carried out today by the humans that may cause certain consequences in the future and the likely outcome of the issue at the time. Before starting to write the actual film, the film maker should be able to identify with the species that they plan to create. The creation team must be comprehensive and creative to understand how the fiction will fit in, and the new species will be introduced into the film. The development of Avatar began with Cameron creating the Navi he had in mind and then deciding whether to use paint or technology to create these characters.

The decision to include the timeline that indicates when humanity met the Navi is a great addition to the development of the film. In development, the realization of the actual world and the backstory helps viewers to understand the story and relate to the creatures through understanding their reasons for being there. In Avatar, it is evident that Cameron was focusing on the angle of an alien, where the alien body was different, and so is the environment. Therefore, through developing the story around the creatures and allowing humans to inhabit the bodies and lives of the Navi through avatars, the movie became a successful Science Fiction film.

A sci-fi movie distinguishes from other types of movies by its assumption that is heavily based on speculative, fictional science, which has not been accepted or fully accepted by mainstream science. Its theme is either entirely Imaginate or more seriously with science and technology covered in the film. Inspiration should come from the author and lay a basis for the theme. The inspiration of the characters determines the kind of theme that is set up in filming, in make-up, in preparation of the characters and in managing the cast. The inspiration for the movie begins even before the writer starts to pen the script. In the case of Avatar, Cameron had the inspiration to use aliens as a theme. He had a rough idea about how the aliens should look, how he thought they lived, and what their home world was like.

All these factors were inspired by the books he read during his childhood. It instilled some form of creativity and curiosity about these fictional creatures. The primary fictional sentient creature in Avatar is the Navi people. They live under certain rules and guidelines. They have a hierarchy of leadership and all these factors combine to form how ordinary communities live, but with a little more twist and creativity included in the inspiration. Cameron put his ideas into writing and created a theme that brought the ideas in his head and the inspiration in his heart to an actual film that became Avatar.

When making a sci-Fi movie, the visual effects are essential. The reason is that most of the ambience and the environment have to be created and some characters must appear real. Being fictional, the imagination of the writer must come to life through the film. Therefore, visual effects are the most important factor in preparing and making a fictional film. Most of the content of the film is experimental, and therefore the visual effects are required to bring the life the characters. In Avatar, the visual effects included new forms of lighting to light up the jungle in Pandora; Cameron also used equipment that could record the facial expressions of actors for the characters in the film. Motion captures, and the animation of the characters required powerful equipment to bring about the characters to fit the roles issued. The visual effects in Avatar took up a lot of time, considering there was a need to accurately create and pre-record all the facials and the voice-overs before the actual filming could take place.

Music and soundtracks help bring about a certain mood in the movie or film. The sounds also define the location and engender an understanding of the experience and the feeling of a certain environments. In Avatar, the facts are similar: Cameron used a recorded soundtrack by James Horner, which was a recording of his song in the Navi language. He also created the music culture of the alien world, including such elements as how the Navi themselves sang within the film. Cameron also used ordinary songs in the film like “I see you” by Leona Lewis, a British Singer.

Conclusion

Cameron made a clear effort to craft and deliver the fiction to the viewers. He had extreme inspiration from the book he read in his childhood. He put his creativity to work and made a film that was loved by viewers to the extent that the demand for sequels got the writer and director to consider filming Avatar 2 and Avatar 3. The film is very creative as well as entertaining and evidently fits in the category of Science Fiction films.