Give us back our Avatar!

Since the announcement that Avatar was being yanked from 2D screens across the country, there have been outcries across  Chinese internet from angry fans – many of which believe that it was rather to promote the new release of Chow-Yun Fat’s latest movie, ‘Conficius’, which unlike Avatar, is most definitely patriotic.

It’s not like it’s a real issue however, as already there would be millions of pirated copies of Avatar on the streets of China. Take your local Blockbuster store; full of dvds – take away those dvd’s and replace them all with pirated copies, and you’ll have the kind of stores that you can find in practically every location. It’s actually quite amazing the level of work that goes into creating the packaging for these pirate copies – particularly when you consider how cheap they are to purchase.

Avatar – thought provokingly dangerous.

Over the past few weeks, the release of Avatar has seen yet another James Cameron movie storm to the top, pulling in over a billion dollars and possibly (if not already) becomming the highest grossing film in history. James Cameron seemingly cant lose when it comes to making movies, having created some absolute classics, and I can say that I too am a fan of his work.

Having been somewhat sceptical myself of this latest blockbuster, I was refreshingly surprised by just how good Avatar actually was. I was certain from the trailers that it would be all fx, no substance; not unlike George Lucas’s abortive Star Wars prequels. The opposite was true however, and whilst the story wasn’t particularly original, it was suitably epic, and the world that James Cameron created was simply mind-blowing.

Now Avatar also had the honour of being one of a small selection of foreign movies to be released in China. Every year only a certain amount are allowed to be screened in what I assume is the result of vigorous censorship. I saw Iron Man whilst living in China and it was heavily edited in parts – and since seeing an unedited version, some of the removed scenes were completely odd, and this particular whitie cant make sense of it.

Avatar was released in 2D and 3D (go see it in 3d, seriously!) across China, and as of the 23 January, will cease playing on 2D screens in China. As only a handful of cinema’s in China are equipped for 3D, this effectively means that the general release across the country has been canned.

Why do you ask? Well supposedly, the plight of the native Na’Vi in Avatar is a little too close to comfort for the Chinese government. As the blue skinned race is in danger of losing their homes from power hungry mega-corporations, it is drawing uncomfortable parallel’s with reality, with the millions of Chinese who have been forcibly removed from their homes by developers. As with all issues that can possibly invoke feelings other than those of a dog on a leash, the government has stepped in and pulled the plug. Sometimes, I can only shake my head at the antics of the Chinese government. I only hope that one day, the people really do wake up and realise that their lives are being dictated from above – though considering it’s been that way for thousands of years, it’s possible that will not happen anytime soon.

For everyone else who can see Avatar in cinemas, I highly recommend it.