Avatar: The Way of...Whaling? Part 1
The first of a three-part series discussing the environmental implications of Avatar, as well as its commentary on the commercial whaling industry.
Part 1: A New Fantastic Point of View
Before 2022, the Avatar franchise was barely even in the back of my mind. To me, Avatar was just another one of the wildly popular movies I didn’t care to watch. Who would’ve thought that when the official teaser trailer for “Avatar: The Way of Water” popped up on my Youtube recommended that it would spark a newfound obsession for me, along with Pokémon, k-pop, and of course, whales. The trailer was absolutely stunning: the music, the scenery, the characters, the CGI. It’s well-known that Avatar’s visuals were profound, especially for the time it was released, but I never imagined it would have this big of an impact on me. In that moment, I wanted to know more about Pandora. So I watched it! Both movies. And it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say I was absolutely blown away.
Both Avatar films take place on the distant world of Pandora, a moon orbiting the gas giant Polyphemus in the Alpha Centauri System. Sprawling with nature, Pandora may seem to appear similar to Earth at first glance. But the more you look, the more wonders you’ll discover, wonders incomparable to those on our home planet. There are the floating Hallelujah mountains, a mystical landscape with huge columns akin to those of Zhangjiajie Park in China. You may even see dragon-like creatures soaring through the floating mountains: ikran, also known as mountain banshees. There are colossal trees as tall and wide as skyscrapers, home to the humanoid inhabitants of Pandora, the Na’vi. Look even closer, and you’ll discover animals resembling rhinos, jaguars, and jellyfish within the trees, and sharks, fish, and octopi under the ocean surface.
Pandora was mesmerizing the first time I saw it, and it is still breathtaking to this day, even if it’s through a TV screen. That’s what makes the Avatar franchise so distinct from other movies. James Cameron does something with Avatar that Star Wars and Marvel couldn’t: truly immersing us in this new world. It is clear that he wants the audience to understand how outstanding the natural ecosystem of Pandora is. One of the first main scenes of the movie is dedicated to introducing both Jake Sully and the audience to the unfamiliar Pandoran forest. We see Jake exploring to his heart's content, by touching the mushroom-like plants, shouting at the rhino-like Hammerhead Titanotheres, and even running away from Thanator. Once he encounters Neytiri, the presentation of the Pandoran environment doesn’t stop. Cameron explicitly shows Jake looking around at the bioluminescent forest, taking in the beautiful sight. And it sure is beautiful.
James Cameron didn’t develop the Pandoran environment so fully just for the visuals and aesthetics. By establishing this emotional connection between us, nature, and the Na’vi, the climax of the movie has an even more profound impact as we watch the natural environment we grew to love being swiftly destroyed by humans. It makes us angry, and consequently makes us more immersed in the story. Cameron’s development of Pandora is thus different from how other movies utilize their settings. While in other films the setting is just where the story takes place, in Avatar the setting is integral to the story. The plot revolves around the environment, just like it revolves around any other character. That’s why Pandora is such a memorable, impactful world. Its beauty is underscored by the deep emotional connection audiences develop with it.
Once the movie’s over, you may have found yourself sitting in silence, reflecting on what you just watched. You were just transported to a whole new world; a whole new beautiful, natural world. You experienced something you never thought you’d imagine experiencing before walking into the cinema: a deep emotional affinity with nature. You realize that nature isn’t something separate from humans. It’s not just plants and animals and bugs and dirt. It’s something alive, something just as alive as us. It’s amazing and majestic, something you don’t want to take your eyes off of.
Something that’s conveniently right outside your window, right here on Earth.
If you liked this article, please remember to subscribe! Watch out for Part 2 and 3 of my 3-part article series, Avatar: The Way of…Whaling?