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<\/a><\/span>By Jeremy Berg<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
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After braving the 15 below zero weather, fighting people for seats (almost literally), finding clean 3D glasses and smuggling in pop and snacks, we were ready to experience James Cameron\u2019s visually stunning world of Pandora filled with 8 feet tall blue people \u2014 or, as someone else put it, \u201cwarrior Smurfs.\u201d<\/div>\n
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It\u2019s always nice when a film lives up to all the hype. \u00a0This movie delivers on it\u2019s promise of matchless special effects and all the cinematic bells and whistles that will someday soon be in all films. \u00a0I can\u2019t imagine it will be more than 5 years before 2D films go the way of the dinosaur. \u00a0To be honest, the visual experience is what drew me to see Avatar \u2014 not James Cameron\u2019s storytelling.<\/div>\n
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How about the story? \u00a0Well, I don\u2019t think it\u2019s inaccurate to say that Hollywood\u2019s rewind button may be stuck. \u00a0More than one person has called this movie the equivalent of Dances With Wolves in space. \u00a0Another called it \u201cRambo in reverse.\u201d \u00a0Read a plot summary HERE. What I do know for certain is that this film was jam packed with all the hot-button religious and political themes so popular in Hollywood and the culture in general.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Where do we begin?<\/div>\n
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Daily Illumination movie reviews are focused primarily on the deeper religious, political and worldview issues and messages laden in such films. \u00a0Thus, I merely highlight some of the more obvious in Avatar.<\/div>\n
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1. This is overt Eastern \u201cpantheism\u201d at it\u2019s best. Cameron clearly depicts Pandora as a world where the sum total of creatures and nature are all part of the Divine. We are all one with nature, and mother earth is just sharing her life and energy with us. There is a cosmic harmony and interconnectedness to the natural order that must be maintained. If tampered with, for instance the sacred Tree they find their energy and well-being from, disastrous consequences will follow. \u00a0But the message is not merely one of treating the natural world with all it\u2019s creatures with dignity and respect; the land is divine and elevated to the status of godhood. We are not merely wise stewards and guardians of nature; nature is divine and ourselves as part of it. We are all part of divine All.<\/div>\n
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As Christians, we hold the natural world to be the magnificent handiwork of the Creator and our divine purpose as the imago Dei is to be his wise, caring stewards of it. There is a clear Creator-creation distinction that must be maintained. All is not divine (i.e., pan= all + theism = god). We have a natural God-given impulse to worship, and if we do not acknowledge the true God to whom all worship is due, we will by a natural instinct find some other lesser person or object or thing to worship. Thus, Avatar was 2 hours and 40 minutes of watching Romans 1 acted out before my eyes as the blue Na\u2019vi people \u201cexchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator\u201d (Rom 1:25).<\/div>\n
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2. Interestingly, in the movie it is not some religious teacher or shaman who points out this spiritual truth. \u00a0It is the enlightened, reasonable and well-informed Scientists who must try to open the dull and barbaric minds of the reckless, power hungry military folk. Again, much like my review of the movie \u201c2012\u201d, Hollywood has little time for religious teachers and seems to enjoy making the Scientist the hero of the day \u2014 the most reasonable, most educated, most sophisticated and clearly most enlightened people around. Certainly, it not accidental that the more trendy and culturally vogue spirituality of Eastern pantheism is even given some scientific support in the film as we learn about the \u201cenergy\u201d permeating all things, sustaining order in the world. \u00a0While many today, when it comes to Christianity, like to drive a deep and unbridgeable wedge between faith and science, we see more willingness to entertain a harmonious relationship between the two when it comes to other (non-Christian) forms of spirituality.<\/div>\n
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3. The strong, clear nod to our nation\u2019s less-than-pretty beginnings was well-deserved as we Americans indeed have a horrid past filled with cruel and inhuman treatment of Native American lands and peoples. Our country was born amidst such blind and ethnocentrically driven colonization efforts, not to mention on the shoulders of African slave-labor. I don\u2019t mind being reminded of this stain on our country\u2019s national conscience. Let us always strive toward a greater understanding of and appreciation for those different from us. Let us learn from our forefathers\u2019 mistakes and, like Jake Sully, learn by inhabiting the different worlds, beliefs and values of our fellow beings in hopes of peaceful coexistence.<\/div>\n
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4. Likewise, and not surprising considering the \u201cGreen Revolution\u201d and global warming buzz all around us, the movie sends a strong message to those who would rashly, blindly and stubbornly exploit and destroy the earth\u2019s natural resources and ecosystem for power, profit and self-interest. The message was clear. Hopefully the message is getting through. Though many are taking the message too far \u2014 leading to the worship of the environment rather than wise, responsible care and stewardship of it.<\/div>\n
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5. Finally, I am not a military kind of guy. \u00a0But even I thought the over the top caricature of the military soldiers as thick-headed, irrational, blood-thirsty warmongers was deeply disrespectful to good and decent soldiers who serve their country with honor, dignity and courage. I thought the part of the Captain with his southern accent and intimidating presence was casted well and very entertaining. \u00a0But I think \u00a0I would have been offended by Cameron\u2019s portrayal of the military overall if I were in the military myself.<\/div>\n
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Make no mistake about it. This was an enjoyable film and I recommend seeing it before it leaves the 3D theaters. Alongside all these pervasive religious and political messages undergirding the action, you find a classic plot line filled with all the elements that make a good story: good guys and bad guys, heroes and villains, love and romance, breathtaking scenery, action and suspense and some good battle scenes with plenty of gunfire and explosions.<\/div>\n
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Book your ticket now for a trip to the strange land of tall, blue warrior Smurfs in Pandora! \u00a0It\u2019s worth the ride and price of admission!<\/div>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Friday Night at the Movies: Avatar Review<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"By Jeremy BergAfter braving the 15 below zero weather, fighting people for seats (almost literally), finding clean 3D glasses and smuggling in pop and\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/jesuscreed\/2010\/02\/05\/friday-night-at-the-movies-avatar-review\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Friday Night at the Movies: Avatar Review\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"By Jeremy BergAfter braving the 15 below zero weather, fighting people for seats (almost literally), finding clean 3D glasses and smuggling in pop and\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/jesuscreed\/2010\/02\/05\/friday-night-at-the-movies-avatar-review\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Jesus Creed\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2010-02-05T23:42:42+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/jesuscreed\/assets_c\/2010\/01\/Avatar-thumb-250x150-11093.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Scot McKnight\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Scot McKnight\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/jesuscreed\/2010\/02\/05\/friday-night-at-the-movies-avatar-review\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/jesuscreed\/2010\/02\/05\/friday-night-at-the-movies-avatar-review\/\",\"name\":\"Friday Night at the Movies: Avatar Review\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/jesuscreed\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2010-02-05T23:42:42+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2010-02-05T23:42:42+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/jesuscreed\/#\/schema\/person\/5919e847c58ffe6efb5899fb61797252\"},\"description\":\"By Jeremy BergAfter braving the 15 below zero weather, fighting people for seats (almost literally), finding clean 3D glasses and smuggling in pop and\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/jesuscreed\/2010\/02\/05\/friday-night-at-the-movies-avatar-review\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/jesuscreed\/2010\/02\/05\/friday-night-at-the-movies-avatar-review\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/jesuscreed\/2010\/02\/05\/friday-night-at-the-movies-avatar-review\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/jesuscreed\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Friday Night at the Movies: Avatar Review\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/jesuscreed\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/jesuscreed\/\",\"name\":\"Jesus Creed\",\"description\":\"Scot McKnight on Jesus and orthodox faith in the 21st century\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/jesuscreed\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/jesuscreed\/#\/schema\/person\/5919e847c58ffe6efb5899fb61797252\",\"name\":\"Scot McKnight\",\"description\":\"Scot McKnight is a recognized authority on the New Testament, early Christianity, and the historical Jesus. 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By Jeremy Berg After braving the 15 below zero weather, fighting people for seats (almost literally), finding clean 3D glasses and smuggling in pop and snacks, we were ready to experience James Cameron\u2019s visually stunning world of Pandora filled with 8 feet tall blue people \u2014 or, as someone else put it, \u201cwarrior Smurfs.\u201d It\u2019s […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":197,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1784],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6600","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-movies-and-film"],"yoast_head":"\n