comment #1

C is for cookie says ...

Everybody talks about the plot of Avatar borrowing from Delgo and Dances With Wolves but nobody seems to mention the plot that Avatar most closely resembles in my humble opinion, and that is Frank Herbert's Dune.

A planet whose indigenous population is being exploited by an imperialistic, militaristic government because among its natural resources is a substance essential to the workings of the universe. And after being rallied by an outsider who was formerly associated with that government, the native population rises up and drives out their oppressors. That's the basic plot of Dune and everything I've heard or read about the plot of Avatar sounds like more or less the exact same thing.

And I know that Cameron at least saw David Lynch's film version of Dune because he trashed it a lot in interviews during the period in his career after Terminator had been released.

It sounds like he owes quite a bit to Herbert. Maybe the executors of his literary estate will take him to court the way Harlan Ellison did over The Terminator, and the video copies of Avatar will have a credit acknowledging the works of Frank Herbert. Okay, probably not, but them's my two cents.

comment #2

Gordon27 says ...

I think people calling it out for specific plots that it's "ripping off" are missing the point; it's like saying 'Titanic' was a rip off of 'Love Story'. 'Avatar' sounds to me like it's just combining a few basic sci-fi/fantasy stories that have been around since pulp novels. Even as far back as 'Terminator' seemed like the same thing; I think that Ellison only won that because Cameron was careless in a few public statements.

comment #3

THE MovieBob says ...

It strikes me funny that "Delgo" has been singled-out as the primary Avatar-rip-accusation for looking kinda-sorta similar (which is to say they both have a generic serial-scifi-paperback-art thing going on) when "Battle For Terra" which was telling LITERALLY the same damn story is forgotten.

comment #4

Bilge says ...

Yeah, I keep thinking of BATTLE FOR TERRA as well. It really is the same story. And it was pretty trite then, too.

comment #5

Renfield says ...

Anyone questioning Cameron's antics in plagiarism should talk to Harlan Ellison.

comment #6

markj says ...

At least Cameron borrows from intelligent sci-fi, which is more than can be said for McHack or any of his cohorts.

It says a lot about the culture we live in when a massive sci-fi action-adventure epic, which a filmmaker has spent the best part of 5 years of his life on, is about to open and this is the best commentary the media can come up with - blah blah Delgo, blah blah Harlan Ellison etc.

For anyone who is seriously interested in Avatar here is by far the best media interview with Cameron, from a French company:

tinyurl.com/y8cbadb

comment #7

The Winchester says ...

Moviebob, I want to forget BOTH Delgo and Battle For Terra. But you're absolutely right about the parallel. Even the smaller details seem to be just the same. Here's hoping I forget this when the Fox logo pops into my brain in IMAX 3-D!

(Which according to their ads, will change everything about movies EVER).

comment #8

Jonathan Spuij says ...

I don't see the comparison from those trailers.

comment #9

Fortunesfool says ...

Anyone not sold on Avatar yet? Watch this.
http://player.canalplus.fr/#/297591

comment #10

Rich S. says ...

Except for the fact that the plot of Dune is lifted almost directly from the exploits of Lawrence of Arabia (and, truth be told, Flash Gordon). And, really, it goes back even farther than that.

Harlan Ellison called Dune "King of Kings with sandworms." That's not an inaccurate description.

comment #11

bents75 says ...

(Which according to their ads, will change everything about movies EVER).

Speaking of the ads marketing it as "the greatest experience ever" I just happened to stumble upon a teaser poster for The Abyss the other day and I noticed they pitched it as, "There's everything you've ever known about adventure...and then there's the abyss."

It's a pretty bold statement, and in retrospect, The Abyss is certainly not outside the boundaries of everything I knew about adventure. In fact, I'd struggle to even categorize it as an adventure. But I thought that was an interesting comparison in terms of Fox building its own hype.

I'm going in with pretty low expectations on the story, but I was sold on the 3D after the 15 minute preview. I think the film will be a high water mark, technically speaking.

comment #12

Tristan Eldritch2 says ...

I agree with bents75. I was really sold on the 15 minute preview. Fingers crossed, Avatar should restore some degree of class and magic to the blockbuster, and raise the bar from the kind of Transformers/GI Joe junk level its decended to in recent years.

comment #13

chad_pole says ...

The Matrix ripped off Dune. Dune ripped off The Bible. Both films were about the main character becoming the saviior/messiah. Who cares? All sci-fi is pretty much the same story, and it's usually based on religion.

If Delgo came out in 2008, hoe could Cameron rip it off, seeing as how Avatar has been in production for several years?

comment #14

le corbeau says ...

I'd link it to all the sort of liberal Cold War westerns in which there's one white guy who sees that the Indians aren't just savages, and winds up taking their side to some degree against his much more vicious white fellows. Broken Arrow, Apache, etc. There's probably one that's even closer (besides, of course, Dances With Wolves).

comment #15

Telemachos says ...

Cameron has been very upfront about his inspirations: AT PLAY IN THE FIELDS OF THE LORD, DANCES WITH WOLVES, the swashbuckling stories of Burroughs, etc. The basic story of someone "going native" also goes back quite aways: LAWRENCE OF ARABIA, LAST OF THE MOHICANS, etc. It's an archtypical story... all these "Cameron ripped off X!" outcries miss the point that it's not about the basic story elements (which go back hundreds if not thousands of years of storytelling), it's the specific elements (which we don't know yet) that will determine whether it feels like a story that stands on its own or not.

comment #16

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