A Movie Review (Or Two) for December

One of the things I really love about Christmas is the seasonal proliferation of movies. I watch far more than can possibly be healthy for me even when there's absolutely nothing good playing, so December really is one of my favourite movie-going months. Last week I went to see two very different movies, Avatar and Invictus. I've been looking forward to seeing Avatar since I first saw the trailer a few months back. I mean, blue people, how cool is that? I hate going to see a movie for the first time if I already know what's going to happen, so I didn't bother following the online hype. I enjoyed the movie for the most part, although at the end of the day I prefer a film that doesn't bash me over the head repeatedly with sanctimonious morals. I mean I think we all (except for a few square-headed oil execs who will no doubt all move to Mars once global warming destroys Earth) get that corporate greed and the wholesale destruction of the environment is evil... And that we'd all do well to remember that we depend upon our environment and as such should care for it. I gotta say though, our society has long (and erroneously might I add) romanticized aboriginal cultures and portrayed them as all that is good and pure. I hate to break it to you folks, but it just ain't true. And I couldn't help but think as I sat there in the theatre (munching popcorn that was likely grown in another country and harvested with very large machines) that at the end of the show most people there would be hopping into their fossil fuel dependent vehicles and driving off to their energy inefficient homes. I mean let's face it: we are all part of the problem. Not to put too fine a point on it.... And on a totally different note, the one thing that came close to completely wrecking the whole movie was one tiny inconsistency: near the beginning of the movie one of the characters makes a remark about the "jungles" in Venezuela, then later in the movie another character states that there is nothing green left on their (the humans') planet. Well which is it? You can't have it both ways... You'd think with all the millions of dollars sunk into this movie that somebody, somewhere along the way would have picked up on this. My mind gets stuck on stupid little things like that, it pulls me right out of the movie. Still, the special effects made up for a pretty thin plot. Invictus was another kettle of fish altogether. Based on true (or so they say) events, it tells the story of how Nelson Mandela fostered unity in South Africa by convincing the captain of South Africa's national rugby team (the Springbokke) that they could win the Rugby World Cup. Which they then did in 1995, against all odds. And in doing so they did unite their country, at least in that one matter at that one moment in time. The first part of the movie (which concentrates on Mandela's story) was brilliant. The rest devolves into a sports movie, but overall it was a very moving and well told story. What I liked best about the movie was that it was a reminder that change is possible, that we are all the masters of our own destiny and perhaps most important of all, that forgiveness will set us free. Plus it has one of my most favouritest songs ever: Shosholoza. So. Here's my verdict. If you want to see Avatar, then go see it in a theatre unless you have a massive-screen t.v. at home. I mean the story's pretty schmaltzy, but it's a big-screen kinda movie. That is, if you don't mind pietistic Hollywood movies... As for Invictus: Go see it. Do it. It'll make you feel good about being human... And that's something Avatar can't do.