I Finally Have A Reason To Buy A Blu-ray Player!

[Guest Robin Winter]

My wife and I've just finished watching Avatar, and oh my god, it was amazing!!!! It had the most amazing CG I've ever seen, it was almost flawless! The movement of everything looked so fluid and natural, I was absolutely blown away. And it was sappy enough to draw a few tears, which I always appreciate.

I think what I appreciated the most was the tribal feel to everything, it was very much in line with my own beliefs and connection with nature.

This movie alone has convinced me to finally buy blu-ray, so I can watch it properly when it hits the shelves.

[Carolyn Marie]

Yup, your review is pretty much in line with all the other ones I've heard.

I can't wait to see it. My family went to the theater today, 40 minutes before a mid-afternoon show, and it was SOLD OUT. Doggone it!

Its been out for 3 weeks and the crowds are still crazy. Oh, well, try again next weekend I guess.

Carolyn Marie

[Guest ChloëC]

ugh! It is so hard to keep up with current technology!!! I have a netbook and I've had an LCD monitor for my computer for about two or so years, but I just can't justify buying a new TV yet (we're connected to DirecTV) or blu-ray player. Just don't watch enough tv to care if I can see either wrinkles or facelift scars. I found the graphic opening to Saving Pvt. Ryan, now some years old, quite graphic enough. I surely don't need to see individual blood droplets or minute body parts spewing out of bodies, thank you.

Tho the last 3-D movie I actually saw was some piece of schlock from 1967 called 'The Bubble' which isn't even listed in IMDB!!! So, I guess I'll have to take a peek when the hoopla dies down. (I will not stand in any line to see a movie!)

But, Shilo, I'll probably get a blu-ray player eventually. Gotta keep the economy moving, don't we?

Chloë

(btw, I bought one of my daughters, an early mp3 player back in about 1998 or so, and not one other kid in her middle-school had the slightest idea what she had (a Diamond Rio300!) The Sony Walkman reigned supreme then! And the IPOD was still a gleam in Steve Jobs eye.

[Guest sarah f]

I want to see the movie too Shilo. I am waiting until the lines start to die down. I don't like to go to a packed theater. I like to have some chairs between me and my wife. Although it will be hard to drag my wife to watch Avatar. She doesn't like science fiction but I will try. If I don't get to see it at the movies then maybe I might have to buy a blue ray player before I watch it at home. Sigh

Love,

Sarah F

[Guest Robin Winter]

ugh! It is so hard to keep up with current technology!!! I have a netbook and I've had an LCD monitor for my computer for about two or so years, but I just can't justify buying a new TV yet (we're connected to DirecTV) or blu-ray player. Just don't watch enough tv to care if I can see either wrinkles or facelift scars. I found the graphic opening to Saving Pvt. Ryan, now some years old, quite graphic enough. I surely don't need to see individual blood droplets or minute body parts spewing out of bodies, thank you.

Tho the last 3-D movie I actually saw was some piece of schlock from 1967 called 'The Bubble' which isn't even listed in IMDB!!! So, I guess I'll have to take a peek when the hoopla dies down. (I will not stand in any line to see a movie!)

But, Shilo, I'll probably get a blu-ray player eventually. Gotta keep the economy moving, don't we?

Chloë

(btw, I bought one of my daughters, an early mp3 player back in about 1998 or so, and not one other kid in her middle-school had the slightest idea what she had (a Diamond Rio300!) The Sony Walkman reigned supreme then! And the IPOD was still a gleam in Steve Jobs eye.

I remember the Diamond Rio! Vaguely.

Even if you don't get it blu-ray, believe me, it's worth watching on DVD. But it's movies like this that Blu-Ray really shines for! The colors are so vibrant, and so much work was put into detailing the CG.

I want to see the movie too Shilo. I am waiting until the lines start to die down. I don't like to go to a packed theater. I like to have some chairs between me and my wife. Although it will be hard to drag my wife to watch Avatar. She doesn't like science fiction but I will try. If I don't get to see it at the movies then maybe I might have to buy a blue ray player before I watch it at home. Sigh

Love,

Sarah F

Um..we didn't go to the theater to see it *blushes*. But, I think we will be tomorrow. It was too amazing not to see it in 3D. I think your wife might be surprised at this one. It is science fiction, yes, but that's really a very small part of the bigger picture. The adverts glorify the combat and alien nature of it, but that's really not where the emphasis is placed for the majority of the film. I think the two strongest aspects are the romance and the harmonious way of life of the Na'vi people, how they connect with all other life on the planet. Ya sure there's a big battle at the end, but they had to make money too, right? And unfortunately, the two things that sell best are sex and explosions.

[Guest Donna Jean]

OMG! I SOoooo want to seethis movie!

But, I also hate full theaters. Therefore, I'll wait a bit for the hoopla to die down!

Huggs....

Donna Jean

[Sally]

Blu-Ray?

Is that some sort of weapon, a death ray perhaps?

I am waiting on each new technology as I had a Quasar Time Machine and a Betamax before they settled on VHS, LPs attempted two systems of quadraphonic sound, discrete and encoded (encoded won for the nearly six months that it lasted) - the LP itself was the winner over the 45 for high fidelity because of its longer playing time - I also own 8-track recorders (2 and 4 channel versions), reel to reel recorders 7 and 10 inch reels (2 & 4 track), super 8 mm film movies, then with sound then the big VHS pack with a camera attached, to 8mm video tapes, dvt recorders to the new generation of hard disc or memory card camcorders and let's not forget the RCA video player, Pioneer Laser Disc and DVD along the way...............what will be next?

I also have been selling off my paper weights (film cameras).

I'll wait for the lines to go away a bit and just watch the movie.

Love ya,

Sally

[Guest Robin Winter]

They already had that war with Blu-Ray and HD, Sally, and Blu-Ray won. They'll never stop advancing to new technologies, but for the next several years at least, I think Blu-Ray will be the standard. Especially since it has the capability of coding and reading 4 layers, at a whopping 100 gigs of data

[Sally]

I'm waiting for the cerebral implants that will allow Netflix to beam them directly into your brain bypassing all optical interpretation.

Love ya,

Sally

[Guest Robin Winter]

I'm waiting for the cerebral implants that will allow Netflix to beam them directly into your brain bypassing all optical interpretation.

Love ya,

Sally

LOL, I'm sure that's not too far off

[Guest NatashaJade]

I jumped the gun and bought an HD-DVD player...it now plays my old DVDs nicely. I then acquired a PS3, which is an awesome Blu-Ray player as well as a game machine (not that I have time to play games...except WoW now that my friends have forced me to play). But Blu Ray is a great delivery system. Not just for the picture, but for the sound. Of course, if you don't have an HD TV or a good sound system, your old DVD player will still be just fine.

luv

Gin

[Guest julia_d]

Ripoff of Dances with Wolves.. all cgi and no substance.. 1.5/10 .. same old dreary junk.. I turned it off and watched something else after 104 minutes.

Buy a blu-ray player for this?? .. outta your mind.. much better things to spend that amount of money on. In 6 months it will be something else is the big hyped up rave reviews blockbuster.. and 6 months more.. and 6 months more... and on and on.. Honest/. Takes James Cameron 10 years to rip off Dances with Wolves and then the whole media circus crawls right up inside his backside and sets up camp there.. with turkey and sprouts and all the trimmings.. Lucky it came out at the hoildays.. I don't think a summer release (when they were sober) would have got anything like the rave reviews.. because they are SO obviously bought and paid for it's unbelievable.. Am I the only reviewer on the planet who sees this overhyped heap of cgi junk for what it is? The kings new clothes anybody?? Yeah it very pretty.. ohh.. ahhh.. cgi.. oooo.. I want some dark meat please.. shuddup and eat your ersatz soya stuff.. it's wonderful.. look at the colour.

I stopped falling for this hollywood cgi junk years ago.. Watch I'm a cyborg but that's ok.. for instance.. or Amilie .. or something with an actual STORY instead of this "inside of a matchbox and a lot of cheap flashy cgi" rubbish that seems to pass as a "movie" these days.

Every hyped up film comes out and "breaks all box office records" .. forget these lie sold and reviewed films.. go watch the flops.. and see REAL films made to tweak a particular nerve or say something about people, society or a situation.. I look at the hollywood things now as very second rate parodies of films.. enough explosions and fast motion and people forget there isn't ANY story worth mentioning.. Good filmmaking is when you can put 2 people in one room for 30 minutes and have nothing but entertainment.. or perhaps 6 people total in a 2 hour film that is set in 4 rooms and a set of stairs.. and be gripping and engaging.. (name that film.. go on.. I dare you)

A couple of nights ago I watched "Requiem for a Dream" .. not easy going, but I lasted to the end and thought.. wow.. tells it like it is..

Please.. you may like what you want. but see through all the hype and spin and turn the sound off and watch.. it's garbage.. the soundtrack is no better.. You should be able to follow a film with only one or the other. In the case of Avatar even with both it's hard to see what the point of any of the characters is.. oh.. and theres a lot of cgi.. did I mention all the cgi?? .. just so nobody is in any doubt.. there is a lot of cgi here. Why would you want to buy a blu-ray player to "watch it properly" anyway.. You have been to the cinema.. that IS seeing it properly.. it may have escaped peoples attention but films come out FIRST in the cinema (unless they actually have a story and some substance in which case they go straight to disk.. can't have the cinema going audience THINKING can we?) and to disk later.. THE film experience is the cinema.. it's where they are made for and designed to be seen.. Take it from me.. In 6 months when this comes out on disk chances are you will have forgotten it and be on about something else.. and then something else.. and 6 months later something else..Last film that dragged me to the flicks (it was a paid outing because the studio didn't send a disk for review) was Taxi.. more junk.. and probably the last time I will bother with the cinema. and it was even worse on TV a few weeks back... drivel.. but that was a "box office record breaker" as well..

If you want to buy a blu-ray player do so by all means.. you need a 2-4k HD tv and a good 300+ sound system to go with it to make it worth while.. sorry.. I would buy a car or get my nose done...... but do it for the right reasons.. not for some film that 6 months down the line will be another "forgotten over hyped lump of junk" .. remember.. those of us who watch films (I used to write the reviews for the local paper) have seen it all before .. Transformers 2.. ewwwwwwwwww. The day after tomorrow (at least that had some acting in it and a bit of a story) and a raft of things whose name defeats me because they are so 5 minute wonder nothings. 4 weeks from now the movie press will be raving over the next "breaks all records" smash.. and this lump of garbage will be forgotten where it should be till it hits free tv in 24 months or so..

[Guest NatalieRene]

I bought a blueray player from Samsung when I found out that I could stream netflix videos with it. Ironically I no longer buy blueray videos but stream mostly everything. I'm more apt to call my device a netflix streamer that can also play bueray except that no one else would know what the heck I'm talking about. lol

I haven't seen avatar yet. I've heard it is good but I can't afford to spend ten dollars to go watch a movie. I'll have to wait until I can add it to my netflix list.

[Guest Pól]

I really want to see it, but I can't justify spending $18.50 to go. I'm not joking. That's how much it costs here. Grrr....

[Guest Melanieshaman]

Ripoff of Dances with Wolves.. all cgi and no substance.. 1.5/10 .. same old dreary junk.. I turned it off and watched something else after 104 minutes.

Buy a blu-ray player for this?? .. outta your mind.. much better things to spend that amount of money on. In 6 months it will be something else is the big hyped up rave reviews blockbuster.. and 6 months more.. and 6 months more... and on and on.. Honest/. Takes James Cameron 10 years to rip off Dances with Wolves and then the whole media circus crawls right up inside his backside and sets up camp there.. with turkey and sprouts and all the trimmings.. Lucky it came out at the hoildays.. I don't think a summer release (when they were sober) would have got anything like the rave reviews.. because they are SO obviously bought and paid for it's unbelievable.. Am I the only reviewer on the planet who sees this overhyped heap of cgi junk for what it is? The kings new clothes anybody?? Yeah it very pretty.. ohh.. ahhh.. cgi.. oooo.. I want some dark meat please.. shuddup and eat your ersatz soya stuff.. it's wonderful.. look at the colour.

I stopped falling for this hollywood cgi junk years ago.. Watch I'm a cyborg but that's ok.. for instance.. or Amilie .. or something with an actual STORY instead of this "inside of a matchbox and a lot of cheap flashy cgi" rubbish that seems to pass as a "movie" these days.

Every hyped up film comes out and "breaks all box office records" .. forget these lie sold and reviewed films.. go watch the flops.. and see REAL films made to tweak a particular nerve or say something about people, society or a situation.. I look at the hollywood things now as very second rate parodies of films.. enough explosions and fast motion and people forget there isn't ANY story worth mentioning.. Good filmmaking is when you can put 2 people in one room for 30 minutes and have nothing but entertainment.. or perhaps 6 people total in a 2 hour film that is set in 4 rooms and a set of stairs.. and be gripping and engaging.. (name that film.. go on.. I dare you)

A couple of nights ago I watched "Requiem for a Dream" .. not easy going, but I lasted to the end and thought.. wow.. tells it like it is..

Please.. you may like what you want. but see through all the hype and spin and turn the sound off and watch.. it's garbage.. the soundtrack is no better.. You should be able to follow a film with only one or the other. In the case of Avatar even with both it's hard to see what the point of any of the characters is.. oh.. and theres a lot of cgi.. did I mention all the cgi?? .. just so nobody is in any doubt.. there is a lot of cgi here. Why would you want to buy a blu-ray player to "watch it properly" anyway.. You have been to the cinema.. that IS seeing it properly.. it may have escaped peoples attention but films come out FIRST in the cinema (unless they actually have a story and some substance in which case they go straight to disk.. can't have the cinema going audience THINKING can we?) and to disk later.. THE film experience is the cinema.. it's where they are made for and designed to be seen.. Take it from me.. In 6 months when this comes out on disk chances are you will have forgotten it and be on about something else.. and then something else.. and 6 months later something else..Last film that dragged me to the flicks (it was a paid outing because the studio didn't send a disk for review) was Taxi.. more junk.. and probably the last time I will bother with the cinema. and it was even worse on TV a few weeks back... drivel.. but that was a "box office record breaker" as well..

If you want to buy a blu-ray player do so by all means.. you need a 2-4k HD tv and a good 300+ sound system to go with it to make it worth while.. sorry.. I would buy a car or get my nose done...... but do it for the right reasons.. not for some film that 6 months down the line will be another "forgotten over hyped lump of junk" .. remember.. those of us who watch films (I used to write the reviews for the local paper) have seen it all before .. Transformers 2.. ewwwwwwwwww. The day after tomorrow (at least that had some acting in it and a bit of a story) and a raft of things whose name defeats me because they are so 5 minute wonder nothings. 4 weeks from now the movie press will be raving over the next "breaks all records" smash.. and this lump of garbage will be forgotten where it should be till it hits free tv in 24 months or so..

This....LOL

In all seriousness, I have heard through sources i trust, that's exactly as Julia says... Dances with wolves only flashier. Dances was a incredible movie, and didn,t need the flash to tell a story. Sad that people are blowing up the theatres to see this drivel. Don't get me started about Transformers 2 lol Yes, Avatar has broken all those box office records..yadda yadda, the only reason was because of the flash, look at what the Dark Knight did... yes it's a comic book movie but look at how dark it was. Didn't need flash (minus a few explosions) it was a pretty cerebral movie for a comic book movie.

Maybe it's a on demand rental, but that would be it for me.

[Guest ChloëC]

julia,

I decide to watch a movie for only 2 or 3 reasons - see what all the hoopla is about so I can join in discussions, or be entertained, or be forced to do some thinking. It has to be a really important movie to meet the first, a really appealing one for the second, and a practically impossible one for the third (though movies like Ma Vie En Rose are pretty good)

Several things I do get tired of - disaster movies showing a broken or semi submerged Statue of Liberty. It was interesting in the original Planet of the Apes (btw, the real book story was much more shocking), but by Day After Tomorrow and AI, it was so yesterday. I happen to like fantasy movies either animated or live-action, but without much moral behind it (I don't like being preached to), and with an admission (or wink to the audience) that it is pure fantasy. You know, brain candy. Like comedies.

I hate movies that are fantasies masquarading as serious introspections into the human condition. Like most non comedies - people doing things that nobody would ever do, scifi movies that bring in a deus ex machina every five minutes (because the director thinks it's cool). Titanic for example was a pure fantasy movie, every character, every action was totally unbelieveable, but let's face it, Leonardo and Kate gave it an appeal...to some. Or Daniel Day Lewis in Last of the Mohicans bursting through the underbrush with muzzle loading flintlock muskets blazing away. Pure hokum, but a nice spectacle.

I just fear Avatar is a fantasy masquarading as drama masquarading as fantasy. Like it's supposed to be taken seriously. Please. It's a fantasy. Don't ruin it.

Chloë

[Guest julia_d]

I get that.. homest.. I loved the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Very well made with a good cast and probably one of the greatest stories of the last century. I'm waiting for The Hobbit.. if it ever gets made.

I don't have any objection to "fantasy" or whatever genre, what I do object to is the over selling of one or two movies during a release run while much better (to my eyes) films get completely ignored.

I watch most everything that comes out (I'm a lucky person who still gets loans of the screeners a week before they hit the cinema) and I get to see some wonderful films. The last few weeks I have been impressed by St Trinians 2 (more Ealing style madness.. nice sequal), Sherlock Holmes and Law Abiding Citizen. Pure fantasy with action, some laughs and plenty of drama. They have enough of a story to hold my interest and want to know the outcome. I'm saying no more.. but those are my picks for the cinema that are running right now. Waiting for later this week are Daybreakers, Book of Eli and Nine..

It's Complicated just made me think of You have mail.. but without the quality cast.

[Guest Robin Winter]

Ripoff of Dances with Wolves.. all cgi and no substance.. 1.5/10 .. same old dreary junk.. I turned it off and watched something else after 104 minutes.

Buy a blu-ray player for this?? .. outta your mind.. much better things to spend that amount of money on. In 6 months it will be something else is the big hyped up rave reviews blockbuster.. and 6 months more.. and 6 months more... and on and on.. Honest/. Takes James Cameron 10 years to rip off Dances with Wolves and then the whole media circus crawls right up inside his backside and sets up camp there.. with turkey and sprouts and all the trimmings.. Lucky it came out at the hoildays.. I don't think a summer release (when they were sober) would have got anything like the rave reviews.. because they are SO obviously bought and paid for it's unbelievable.. Am I the only reviewer on the planet who sees this overhyped heap of cgi junk for what it is? The kings new clothes anybody?? Yeah it very pretty.. ohh.. ahhh.. cgi.. oooo.. I want some dark meat please.. shuddup and eat your ersatz soya stuff.. it's wonderful.. look at the colour.

I stopped falling for this hollywood cgi junk years ago.. Watch I'm a cyborg but that's ok.. for instance.. or Amilie .. or something with an actual STORY instead of this "inside of a matchbox and a lot of cheap flashy cgi" rubbish that seems to pass as a "movie" these days.

Every hyped up film comes out and "breaks all box office records" .. forget these lie sold and reviewed films.. go watch the flops.. and see REAL films made to tweak a particular nerve or say something about people, society or a situation.. I look at the hollywood things now as very second rate parodies of films.. enough explosions and fast motion and people forget there isn't ANY story worth mentioning.. Good filmmaking is when you can put 2 people in one room for 30 minutes and have nothing but entertainment.. or perhaps 6 people total in a 2 hour film that is set in 4 rooms and a set of stairs.. and be gripping and engaging.. (name that film.. go on.. I dare you)

A couple of nights ago I watched "Requiem for a Dream" .. not easy going, but I lasted to the end and thought.. wow.. tells it like it is..

Please.. you may like what you want. but see through all the hype and spin and turn the sound off and watch.. it's garbage.. the soundtrack is no better.. You should be able to follow a film with only one or the other. In the case of Avatar even with both it's hard to see what the point of any of the characters is.. oh.. and theres a lot of cgi.. did I mention all the cgi?? .. just so nobody is in any doubt.. there is a lot of cgi here. Why would you want to buy a blu-ray player to "watch it properly" anyway.. You have been to the cinema.. that IS seeing it properly.. it may have escaped peoples attention but films come out FIRST in the cinema (unless they actually have a story and some substance in which case they go straight to disk.. can't have the cinema going audience THINKING can we?) and to disk later.. THE film experience is the cinema.. it's where they are made for and designed to be seen.. Take it from me.. In 6 months when this comes out on disk chances are you will have forgotten it and be on about something else.. and then something else.. and 6 months later something else..Last film that dragged me to the flicks (it was a paid outing because the studio didn't send a disk for review) was Taxi.. more junk.. and probably the last time I will bother with the cinema. and it was even worse on TV a few weeks back... drivel.. but that was a "box office record breaker" as well..

If you want to buy a blu-ray player do so by all means.. you need a 2-4k HD tv and a good 300+ sound system to go with it to make it worth while.. sorry.. I would buy a car or get my nose done...... but do it for the right reasons.. not for some film that 6 months down the line will be another "forgotten over hyped lump of junk" .. remember.. those of us who watch films (I used to write the reviews for the local paper) have seen it all before .. Transformers 2.. ewwwwwwwwww. The day after tomorrow (at least that had some acting in it and a bit of a story) and a raft of things whose name defeats me because they are so 5 minute wonder nothings. 4 weeks from now the movie press will be raving over the next "breaks all records" smash.. and this lump of garbage will be forgotten where it should be till it hits free tv in 24 months or so..

I can assure you my opinion of this movie has naught to do with hype. I saw an ad for it twice. That's the extent of the hype I was exposed to. I'm never given to forming an opinion until I've seen something for myself. And as a matter of fact, I'm rarely impressed with CGI, this is pretty much the first film that has impressed me for CGI.

And as I mentioned earlier, I have not in fact been to the cinema to see it. Though I'm seriously considering it tomorrow, in 3D. I can understand why you wouldn't like this one, after reading your post, but I have this uncanny ability to find something I can appreciate in almost any film. I'm confident that in my movie collection, everyone registered at Lauras forums could find at least 6 that they would enjoy. Yes, even you.

I have seen for myself how Blu-ray looks on a television with specifications to match mine, and I can positively say that it would indeed be worth while, as a blu-ray player now costs significantly less than $200 for a basic model.

Just because you personally don't see worth in a film doesn't make it garbage, it just means you don't like it