The first trailer, a teaser really, of the second iteration of Avatar is finally here, unless you went to the theater to see “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness” where the trailer was first released.
Returning cast members Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Sigourney Weaver and Giovanni Ribisi are present for Avatar 2. There is also said to be a variety of new characters, a couple of which will be played by Kate Winslet and Michelle Yeoh.
There are some that are none too thrilled with the lack luster teaser…. Maybe because it didn’t really feel all that much like a “trailer”, or it could be, the original Avatar was a movie in which you went to the theater, put on special 3D glasses and was an experience. Watching the 2D video clip online didn’t pack the punch or awe-factor that many have been waiting for.
It’s a common theme with James Cameron movies – the plot and concept are so “perfect” but nearly generic is that perfection. Then all the effort and $$$$ is lavished on special effects and execution of that archetypal concept.
Will this, admittedly ultra-successful recipe work in 2022? Hard to say – this will be a big, huge, ultra-promoted blockbuster release no matter what. Little chance of besting Avatar ‘1’ but could be less than a disappointment even if it does not hit the $1 billion mark.
Check out the trailer below, the nearly 2 minute video clip, in glorious streaming 2D, doesn’t present audience with much in the way of a plot line besides showing the Na’vi in Pandora and having to defend their territory against invaders.
“Avatar: The Way of Water” is currently scheduled for a theatrical release at the end of the year on December 16:
from Gladiators to Olympians, meat is losing favor
In recent years, you may have noticed plant-based diets becoming a growing trend in the United States. A plant-based diet is a diet centered around foods originating from plants—essentially vegetables, fruits, seeds, and nuts. The term has become somewhat of a buzzword as it broadly encompasses both vegetarianism and veganism in its liberal definition.
These meatless dietary choices are particularly topical nowadays, for studies have shown that they have significant health benefits and that avoiding meat can hugely reduce one’s carbon footprint, thus making it a powerful weapon against climate change.
Unfortunately, even though plant-based diets seem to have become increasingly popular in the past few years, polls suggest that the percentage of vegetarians and vegans in the U.S. has hardly changed in the past decade. Only about 5% of the country identify as vegetarians and only 1-2% call themselves vegans. Compare that to the nearly 10% of Canadians who avoid meat products.
Photo / Game Changers Film, LLC
Despite the hype, the actual numbers may be less optimistic sounding than you’d expect. However, the widely talked about benefits that come from meatless diets remain true, and now, those who have decided to go the plant-based route have some strong allies in their corner.
For years meat products have been marketed as the quintessential food group for creating toughness and strength, making the word “beefy” a literal synonym for “muscular.” As Arnold Schwarzenegger makes clear in the new documentary “The Game Changers,” though, “you have to understand that that’s marketing; it’s not based on reality.”
“The Game Changers” screened at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year and it got a larger release earlier this week. The film focuses and deconstructing the myths that meat is essential to fitness and that plant-based diets are detrimental to athleticism.
To prove this point, “The Game Changers,” turns to some of the world’s best athletes, all of whom have benefitted from cutting meat from their diets. On top of former Mr. Universe, Arnold Schwarzenegger appearing in the movie to talk about these meat-eating-myths, the documentary also features track athlete Morgan Mitchell, strength athlete Patrik Baboumian, cyclist Dotsie Bausch, surfer Tia Blanca, and Olympic weightlifter Kendrick Harris among many, many others.
These are some of the fittest people on earth, and they all managed to attain their impressive physiques and athletic accomplishments without meat. In fact, as the documentary shows, many of them even found that their performances improved when they switched to plant-based eating.
Photo / Game Changers Film, LLC
The film looks to more than just these contemporary athletes for proof, though. It also investigates plant-based eating from a historical perspective, looking all the way back to gladiators. Based on scientific records, gladiators—some of the world’s earliest and most renowned athletes—were vegetarians. This shows that the meat-toughness correlation in our culture is not just biologically inaccurate, but the fundamental ideology that conflates animal products with manliness is based on a farce. Gladiators are symbols of strength in Western culture, but notions of them wolfing down meat at every meal could not be further from the truth.
“The Game Changers” also has a lot of fascinating, environmentally-minded folks on the other side of the camera. Louie Psihoyos directed the film. Known for his ecological documentaries, Psihoyos created the climate-focused“Racing Extinction” in 2015 and won an Academy Award in 2010 for “The Cove,” which exposed animal abuse in Japanese dolphin coves.
Recognizable names also come up in the movie’s long list of producers. In addition to appearing in the movie, Arnold Schwarzenegger is also serving as an executive producer alongside fellow action movie star Jackie Chan. A familiar collaborator with Schwarzenegger, director James Cameron, is also helping produce the film.
Photo / Game Changers Film, LLC
Blockbuster Talent and Athletic Luminaries Join Forces
Cameron may be better known for blockbuster spectacles like “Titanic” and “Aliens,” but his short list of documentary directing credits include “Aliens of the Deep,” in which he explores the ocean’s uncharted depths. Clearly, the man has an interest in the natural world, and thus its preservation. Even some of his feature films can be viewed through an eco-critical lens. After all, both “The Terminator” and “Avatar” are essentially about organic beings combating industrial entities. It is not a stretch to see how they could be read as environmental narratives.
Louie Psihoyos’ picture may not be as enthralling as a war between man and machine, and it may not be as sublime as a journey to the bottom of the ocean, but as a documentary with a mission of deconstructing expectations and promoting a positive change in the way people see the world around them (and the food inside of them), it is effective. The project is powerful and passionate, and although it is only one in a long line of docs before it to champion environmentalism through sustainable eating habits, it offers an original angel, focusing on athleticism to tear apart the meat-myths and maybe inspire a few people to change their lifestyles for the betterment of all.
New Trailer Fleshes Out the Return of Sarah Connor
Earlier this week, Paramount Pictures released a second trailer for “Terminator: Dark Fate”, the latest installment to the Terminator franchise that began nearly thirty-five years ago. The sixth movie in the series, “Terminator: Dark Fate” appears to be trying achieve a critical rebound. While the franchise’s last film, “Terminator Genisys” fared well at the box office, it met less than ideal reviews. In fact, Dark Fate is coming on the heels of several critically underwhelming Terminator flicks.
Given that James Cameron’s initial 1984 “The Terminator” and his 1991 sequel “Terminator 2: Judgment Day” are hailed as a couple of the greatest action movies ever created, no Terminator movie has managed fill such big shoes since.
From 2003’s “Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines”, to 2009’s “Terminator Salvation”, all the way up to 2015’s Genisys, the Terminator sequels have missed the mark in one way or another.
While it may be unreasonable to expect that Dark Fate will live up to the first two films’ standards, the trailer suggests that the new film has a couple promising tricks up its sleeve that may make the movie rise above other attempts at rehashing the series.
Perhaps the biggest bump that Dark Fate promises its audience is the return of Linda Hamilton as Sarah Connor. Sarah Connor has become somewhat of a pop-cultural icon since her first appearances in “The Terminator” and “Terminator 2”.
She is a hardcore female protagonist, the mother of mankind’s future resistance leader, dead-set on killing cyborgs and saving the fate of humanity. While the character appeared in “Terminator Genisys”, she was recast in that film and played by the young Emilia Clarke. While Clarke held her own in the role, Sarah Connor and Linda Hamilton are inextricable in many fans’ minds. Thus, having the original actress reprise the iconic role is likely to draw greater interest.
Stars reprising old roles to play aged protagonists has been a successful trend in many blockbuster films lately. Given the large number of late sequels and additions to franchises to come out in the past few years, many actors and actresses have been returning to characters that they have not touched in decades.
Flash-forward for Stars of Yesteryear
Harrison Ford came back for “Blade Runner 2049” and “Star Wars: Episode VII- The Force Awakens”; Jeff Goldblum appeared in “Independence Day: Resurgence” and “Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom”; even Bill Murray made a brief cameo in the 2016 “Ghostbusters” reboot. Not to mention that Sylvester Stallone will be returning as Rambo this year, and 2020 will see a leather-jacketed Tom Cruise flying again in “Top Gun: Maverick”.
Evidently, Linda Hamilton’s return as Sarah Connor is not something entirely unexpected, but it is still alluring to see the actress back on the big screen playing her most recognizable character.
Hamilton is not the only Terminator veteran to return in Dark Fate, though. The face of the franchise and the original Terminator himself, Arnold Schwarzenegger will also be in the movie.
While Dark Fate’s initial trailer only showed a single shot of Schwarzenegger’s face, the second trailer offers a bit more exposure. We see Connor unsuccessfully try to kill Schwarzenegger’s character with a shotgun, and then, in a different scene, we hear him ask her “do you believe in fate, Sarah?” We also see a brief sequence of Schwarzenegger in action, firing machine-gun rounds into what is presumably an antagonist Terminator’s face.
Subsequently, at the trailer’s very end, Connor tells him matter-of-factly, “when we’re done, I am going to kill you.” In response, Schwarzenegger simply shrugs. It is most likely that Schwarzenegger is reprising his role as the T-1000, the Terminator model that has appeared throughout the franchise as both an antagonist and protagonist. However, given the character’s aged appearance and the various timelines in the franchise, we cannot confirm anything.
Nonetheless, it seems pretty certain that Schwarzenegger will be on the heroes’ side in Dark Fate, which happily paves the way for some quality humor.
Cameron’s Back, with Mojo?
That being said, the movie looks like it will maintain an overarchingly darker tone, one reminiscent of the first couple films in the franchise. Unlike Salvation and Genisys, which watered themselves down to PG-13 ratings, Dark Fate has promised an R rating, and the trailer’s sinister tone suggest that it will return to the uncompromising action-packed energy of James Cameron’s original installments. After all, the trailer boldly states “Producer James Cameron Returns.”
While Cameron will not be directing Dark Fate—that responsibility has been handed off to Tim Miller—his involvement in the project is a promising advantage over the previous sequels. Not only is he one of the producers, but he is also credited as a writer, implying that the film will be following his vision more so than other additions to his franchise.
Another text-card in the trailer perhaps confirms this, reading, “Witness the new chapter, in the original Terminator saga.” This diction is somewhat curious. Defining Dark Fate as part of the original Terminator saga suggests that other additions to the franchise may not have been part of the same storyline. If this is the case, does that make them outside of the canon?
If so, which parts of the story are real and which aren’t? Because all of the movies play with time travel to different degrees, the saga has the ability to create various narrative timelines, but because of that, lingering questions now remain regarding what has and has not actually occurred in the franchise’s diegesis.
“Terminator: Dark Fate” will come out on November 1st. Only then will we be able to tell if Linda Hamilton, once again fighting alongside Arnold Schwarzenegger in the visionary world of James Cameron, will be enough to save the franchise’s fate, and whether or not the “original” saga is part of a timeline audiences still want to continue moving across.
Terminator: Dark Fates reunites Linda Hamilton (Sarah Connor), Arnold Schwarzenegger (The Terminator), and the film’s original director James Cameron in the Producer role. This time, Deadpool director Tim Miller guides the action and the David Goyer (Dark Knight), story.
Photo / Paramount
The story centers around a half-human/half-robot (Mackenzie Davis) who is assigned to protect a young girl from a liquid metal Terminator (Gabriel Luna). The liquid metal terminator isn’t too different from the T-1000 played by Robert Patrick from T2. Hence, Sara Connor (Linda Hamilton) joins the fight. We also see Sara Connor meeting with a T-800/T-850 played by Arnold Schwarzenegger.
“It has been nearly 30 years since I last stepped into the shoes of Sarah Connor, a character who definitely changed my life,” she said. “And only a script, a story, a director like this could bring me back into this world — a perfect confluence of events. Once in a lifetime, or maybe twice, an event comes along that you cannot turn away from. And for me, this is that moment.”
The Terminator franchise has had a bumpy go at it. Three films were made without James Cameron’s watchful eye. This is the first film since the 1991 film Terminator 2: Judgement Day that will include Cameron’s creative guidance. The three films made between 1991 and now will have no role in Dark Fate’s continuity.
A couple things to note regarding the Terminator timeline: Although the first film was made in 1984, the events in T2 took place in 1995 (it was actually released in 1991), this was the first appearance of future Skynet resistance leader John Connor, as a teenager. (Skynet is the company that somewhat accidentally caused the machines to take over). The timeline can get confusing, and this newest installment will take place in 2022.
Photo / Paramount
Both films consist of a cat and mouse road movie, where a Terminator from the future is sent to “terminate” a human, who is destined one day to hatch the resistance. The first film had Schwarzeneggar as the pro-Skynet Terminator hunting the mother of John Connor (who isn’t concieved yet) . Connor sends a human (from the future) named “Kyle Reese” to protect Sara Connor…and concieve himself. Yeah, I know.
The second film is about Skynet sending another Terminator, this time a liquid metal T-1000 to “terminate” the now conceived, born, and teenage John Connor. But, John Connor sends a reprogrammed T-800 (once again played Schwarzenegger) of his own, to protect himself.
Photo / Paramount
So, with Skynet failing to ‘terminate” it’s targets in the first two movies, we are wondering who the Terminator is going after this time. In the teaser trailer we see a young girl, protected by her own Terminator. A relative of Kyle Reese? I don’t know. See movie for the answer… ;-t
