That's the one, Warrior. It stars Kevin Costner as a post-US Civil War officer in the Old West. I've heard the same description for Avatar, and I'm planning on seeing it tomorrow so I should have more to say then.
Today I saw The Blind Side starring Sandra Bullock (another familiar name is Kathy Bates as Michael's tutor). It's inspired by the true story of Michael Oher, who is a rookie this year in the US National Football League, who was adopted by Leigh Anne (Bullock) and Sean Tuohy (Tim McGraw).
It helps to be a football fan (the movie title is a reference to the game), but it's mostly about his adoption by the Tuohy family. I've a soft spot for adoption, with nieces and nephews from China and Korea, but while this movie was enjoyable enough it just didn't jump out and grab me.
But all night, Aslan and the Moon gazed upon each other with joyful and unblinking eyes.
Posted : December 20, 2009 4:06 pm
Ah, Avatar...... I've been wondering when a discussion about this would start up. I'm planning on waiting and watching the film on DVD (if I even watch it at all). The only two things that have interested me about the film are 1. the score and 2. the special effects.
@ Warrior. Yes, Dances with Wolves was 1990. 
Speaking of that comparison, I mentioned to my Mom that the plot of Avatar sounded like "Dances with Wolves with aliens instead of Indians" a few weeks before everyone started making that comparison. 
*yes, a little pride in making that comparison ahead of people* 
Avvie by the great Djaq!
http://bennettsreviews.blogspot.com/
^ Short tribute to James Horner (1953-2015)
Posted : December 20, 2009 4:10 pm
I'm not sure Avatar will have the same impact on DVD as it would in the cinema. It's really made for 3D screens.
Currently watching:
Doctor Who - Season 11
Posted : December 20, 2009 5:38 pm
PrinceCor, to reiterate what W4J just said, if your interested at all in seeing Avatar I really would recommend seeing it on the big screen. In my opinion the real reason the movie is so amazing is the special effects and the 3D technology, neither of which can really be fully realized through watching on DVD. As others have said, and I mentioned briefly, the plot is not anything groundbreaking or revolutionary (you've probably seen the story dozens of times) but the effects and technology truly are.
Posted : December 20, 2009 5:42 pm
Unless one has a 60" Plasma screen Home Theatre TV system, I don't know why one would wait for the DVD. Special Effects Action/Sci Fi/Fantasy Extravaganzas are made for the Big Screen .
And why is comparing Avatar to Dances with Wolves a bad thing? 
That was a great film with a great message that we could frankly have a little more of these days.
GB 
"Absence of Evidence is not Evidence of Absence" -- Carl Sagan
Posted : December 20, 2009 8:15 pm
And why is comparing Avatar to Dances with Wolves a bad thing? That was a great film with a great message that we could frankly have a little more of these days.
It wasn't intended to be a bad thing, just a means of summarizing the movie with as little wording as possible. A lot of plots tend to get recycled in Hollywood and so one tends to see the "same movie" repeatedly over the course of years. Alien was described as "Jaws in Space" while Under Siege was termed as "Die Hard on a battleship". They run out of ideas and just scrub up old plots lines or premises, change some characters around, and you end up with a movie very similar to its "root material". The only real detraction from such films is that they're not wholly original because they borrowed so much of their plots from other movies. Still many of them are done so well that one doesn't really mind if they don't look into it too deeply.
Kennel Keeper of Fenris Ulf
Posted : December 20, 2009 9:00 pm
I get you Shadow . I guess I'm responding to all the "Dances with Smurfs" jokes people have been making, which implies some sort of Negative Connotations 
.
GB{/b]
"Absence of Evidence is not Evidence of Absence" -- Carl Sagan
Posted : December 20, 2009 9:17 pm
Meh, I think I'll pass on Avatar. Pretty special effects aren't enough to get me into the movie theater.
Posted : December 20, 2009 10:00 pm
Has anybody seen Me and Orson Welles? I've heard it was very good, but haven't been done to see it yet.
Sheldon: A neutron walks into a bar and asks how much for a drink. The bartender replies "for you, no charge".
Proud sister of an Aspie (Aspergers)
Hannah's Scribblings
Posted : December 21, 2009 12:53 am
I went to see Avatar last night with my family and I was not impressed. Sure it had AMAZING visuals, but that was not enough to sustain me or my brother's interest for three hours. We were all dying to get out of there, and, judging by the other people in the theater's reaction, so were they. The story was so predictable my brothers nearly guessed it right from the get go (I had known the plot prior to seeing it) and I groaned inwardly more then once at the cheesy cliche plot points. Quite a disappointment; I had thought someone who had made such a deep, emotional story as Titanic would realize that you need more then good visual effects to carry your movie, but apparently I was wrong.
I'll always be a,
NL101
Rest in Peace Old Narniaweb
(2003-2009)
Posted : December 21, 2009 4:18 am
narnialover101: I saw the trailer for Avatar and I thought to myself, "that movie looks boring!" judging from your reveiw, I would say that I was right!
NW sister - wild rose ~ NW big sis - ramagut
Born in the water
Take quick to the trees
I want all that You are
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EADBC57vKfQ
Posted : December 21, 2009 9:24 am
Avatar was a movie I was very skeptical of, the previews didn't impress me... that is until I finally saw them in 3D.
I saw the movie on Friday and absolutely loved it. I recommend it! I wouldn't wait for DVD to see, the impact, as has been said, won't be the same at all.
Me and Orson Welles,
I saw that movie a couple of weeks back and also thought it was great.
I traveled about an hour to see it and gotta say it was worth the trip.
I'd recommended, alot, but not as much as Avatar
Posted : December 21, 2009 10:48 am
I think that the special effects in Avatar look awesome, and the acting from the previews looks great, but I will not watch as someone tries to get me to cheer for troops that though non-American look are similarly dress, are killed.
The story is extremely anti-God.
I bid you all adieu.
The surest way for evil to triumph in the world is for good men to do nothing. - Sir Edmund Burke
Avvy and sig by Erucenindë.
Posted : December 21, 2009 1:30 pm
(immediate edit: MereChristian, you make some excellent points about this movie. I started writing this review before I saw your post, so please don't feel I'm ignoring your post!).
Minor spoilers here:
Crazy as it sounds, I went in to Avatar fully aware of at least some of the criticisms against it (recycled plot, cardboard villains, limited character development), and I think it may have helped me enjoy it for what it was - perhaps by lowering my expectations.
For those to whom this movie sounds vaguely interesting, but you're thinking of waiting for the DVD, I would encourage you to see it on the big screen - at least at a matinee price, like I did.
The first half of the movie is visually stunning. Pandora orbits a gas giant and has a spectacular sky scape day and night - just the sort of thing I geek out on.
The planet has some very interesting and incredibly colorful native life; I was reminded of the background undersea scenes in Finding Nemo, which were so colorful. The Na'vi have a very interesting way of "interfacing" with the animals they've (sort of) domesticated.
There are some familiar faces/voices: Zoe Saldana (Uhura from the recent Star Trek), Sigourney Weaver (a natural in these space/alien movies ), and Michelle Rodriguez (Ana Lucia Cortez from Lost).
But all night, Aslan and the Moon gazed upon each other with joyful and unblinking eyes.
Posted : December 21, 2009 1:52 pm
The reason I probably won't see this movie is b/c of the spiritual elements and the nudity. Blue skin or any other color, CGI or real, it still doesn't need to be shown. 
Posted : December 21, 2009 1:57 pm