James Cameron’s Avatar Trailer: What Went Wrong?
By Krystal Clark
Yesterday morning, the first Avatar teaser trailer hit the internet and after all the hype that has been built up for longer than we can remember, fans appeared to be unimpressed (check out the results of our Avatar poll). For fans of James Cameron, the trailer was an opportunity to finally see a product that’s been over a decade in the making. The overall response to the footage was less than stellar, but what makes no sense is that critics and fans were all ecstatic over the 22 minutes that they saw at Comic-Com.
So, what happened? How did something so highly anticipated and previously so loved receive such a backlash from viewers? More on my theory below.
There are two types of viewers whose interpretations have shaped the reception of the trailer…
The first group, is filled with us lucky ones who got to see the clips You have those who saw it at Comic-Con and were completely blown away. I personally saw the Comic-Con footage in 3-D and on the big screen and thought the clip they showed was amazing. After that, there’s no way that a 2 minute clip on my 13 inch lap top monitor could do it justice.
Those who weren’t predisposed to Avatar were in for a rude awakening. The visuals for this film were put on a high pedestal way before a photo or frame was even released from it. You kept hearing the words “game breaking” and “future of filmmaking” tossed around in conjunction with the movie. When it finally came down to seeing anything from it, people were let down, partly because their standards were so high, but also because the trailer wasn’t really that good.
Either way, both parties were disappointed…
In all honesty, I do have some issues with the look of the Avatar’s. The designs just not as original as I thought it should be.
Does this combination look familiar? I’m just throwing Delgo out there. I’m not even going to mention the FernGully backdrop they had going on. But after seeing how good this film can be, all I can say is, this is a crap trailer that doesn’t do it justice.
Now that Avatar Day has finally arrived, I think there will be a reverse Comic-Con situation. There will be a group of people who previously saw the footage on their computers, being exposed to it in theaters, and having their minds blow. Seeing it in the original 3-D format may be the way to cross over some of these unimpressed fans. I think the presentation of the trailer had a lot to do with the negative reviews its received.
What’s your theory on why the trailer was so poorly received? What do you think happened with the trailer?
Read up on the latest now!
Saturday, August 22, 2009 2:01AM
To tell you the truth, I think Avatar is going to flop. The majority of movie goers aren't going to embrace it, because it looks too out there. All this hype for an "original" movie involving characters nobody has heard of is a put off. FOX is making it seem like it's the next installment of Nolan's Batman series. James Cameron should just stop claiming this movie is an industry-changing epic. He's had more than a couple of hits, and he should be grateful for them. No director can make every film he or she directs a critical/financial success. Look at Speilberg's latest Indiana Jones movie, George Lucas' last three Star Wars movies, Bay's Revenge of the Fallen-people were disappointed with them and the only reason they made money is because people wanted to see more of the iconic characters in action.Avatar has nothing going for it. And okay, it might look better in IMAX 3D than in computer screen, but in this economy moviegoers aren't exactly wanting to pay more for a movie they could just as easily see in 2D. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if FOX blames Avatar's failure on the economy. Everybody else seems to be doing it. Furthermore, Avatar seems to be relying on its "innovative" technology than on its actors or story.
Saturday, August 22, 2009 4:06AM
I completely disagree, I hadn't seen anything about this film and I thought the trailer looked spectacular. I don't know exactly what the plot of the movie is, but I am very interested now. Out of dozens and dozens of trailers Ive watched this year, Avatar was the first one I immediately re-watched. Its looks amazing! But having found out about this film this week and the fact that it comes out in a little over 3 months makes me wonder why they havnt been advertising this along time ago. I mean we saw a star trek teaser a year before it came out.
Saturday, August 22, 2009 5:07AM
What is the point of this website?
Why doesn't anybody edit or proof read the articles?
Saturday, August 22, 2009 12:42AM
aww man!! you see this really sucks because i think after this film flop's "and i know it will" poor cameron is gonna be discouraged from making BATTLE ANGEL ALITA which was said to rely on the same tech to make. and well……that just makes me sad,,been hoping for that gem fo 7 years running…guess mainstream media just ain't ready
Saturday, August 22, 2009 11:15AM
With all due respect, that'snot the reaction I'm seeing and hearing. It looks incredible and I think it just might be one of those movies that changes the way we look at mainstream cinema.
I do agree that the hype may well work against it, though.
Saturday, August 22, 2009 7:13AM
This is just a teaser trailer. One or two to come before the theatrical release. Will be interesting to see how well the 3D effect is going to work out.
Saturday, August 22, 2009 3:11PM
I saw the Imax preview and that is where the difference lies. I understand why he didn't want to release footage in a standard format for just this reason. When it is released in Imax 3D it will be a huge hit, word of mouth will guarantee that. Everyone who saw it at the preview was applauding after it was finished. I am skeptical of most 3D movies but I came away very impressed with what I had just experienced.
Sunday, August 23, 2009 8:09AM
The negative reactions to the trailer surprised me. I have my own theories.
I too saw the Comic-Con Reel and was blown away by it. When I watched the trailer within the hour they released it, I thought: "Cool! Now the world can see what awesomeness they're in for." And then, everybody's reactions started pouring in on the internet. "Horrible effects," "Avatars remind me of Jar-Jar," "I can totally tell it's CG" — I was thinking to myself… did we just see the same trailer?
And then, while taking a ponderous morning tea, I remembered back to my own viewing at Comic-con. Back then, I was ready to watch "the next step in cinema evolution." I was ready for the "photoreal aliens". I was etc etc etc– and then I watched it. It was almost a little disappointing at first. Sure, the effects were great, stellar even. But I could still tell it was CG. He didn't fool me into believing these things were filmed live action. But then I started to get into the characters… I started to get into the plot… I forgot I was watching a CG movie; it became photoreal, through my own suspension of disbelief. By the end, I was excited. I loved it!!
And THAT'S what went wrong. With the trailer at least. My guess… Cameron cut it himself. Not that it's a bad teaser per se, but you get a feeling while watching it that Cameron was thinking, "I've been getting brilliant reviews on the effects from the private showings; I'm gonna show the world what this film is made of, then my efforts will be fully vindicated." And then, like a magician at the beginning of a bad show, he pulls the rabbit out of the hat and expects the audience to clap and cheer. My point… it's not just about the rabbit. We all know the rabbit was in the hat to begin with. What's important is the show… the story… the characters. These are what make us believe the magic.
What Jim needs to do is "fo-get all dat chit". Let the characters and story be the reason to see the movie, not the effects. He's really made something special, and he's spent a lot of time developing the effects for this movie, it seems counterproductive to put all that in the background, but that's exactly what he needs to do. Remember, a magician always distracts the audience with showmanship before he does the trick.
"Ta-da!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"… silence… clap… clap.
Sunday, August 23, 2009 5:55PM
Part of the problem is that people assume others don't like it for (writel your favourite excuse here). They say that your brain doesn't accept the CGI characters as real because there is no reference to them. Well, I could tell some shots in say Spiderman had bad CGI imaginery and I DID have a reference on how Spiderman should look. I think I can imagine how a tall blue elf alien could look/behave and, to me, Avatar looks like a tall blue elf alien DOLL/cartoon character.
But let's get past that discussion. Avatar is, by Cameron's own admission, an ANIMATED FILM (like i.e. Pixar's) with very few real-life elements/shots embedded in it (Cameron said something like 90%-10%).
Since the animation DOES NOT pass for real to … well, anyone, then we just classify this as an animated film and be done with that discussion.
Is it gonna be a good or bad animated film? Who knows. Good animated films are rare, with UP and WALL-E being to recent good ones. But in the Sci-Fi genre, they mostly sucked, like with the Final Fantasy series. When it comes to 3D animated films, perhaps Polar Express and Beowulf comes to mind as similar.
Tuesday, August 25, 2009 8:27AM
[...] to agree with his point about seeing the footage in a theater. I even addressed this issue in our James Cameron’s Avatar Trailer: What Went Wrong post. I think the overall consensus is that the look doesn’t transfer well on to a computer [...]
Thursday, October 29, 2009 11:49AM
[...] Avatar Trailer What Went Wrong? [...]
Wednesday, September 7, 2011 3:22PM
WHOAAAAAAAA someone was wrong jajajajaj IDIOT