Avatar vs Titanic: which is better?

[Elemental]

Which of James Cameron's two record-shattering movies do you think is the better film? Both are visually and musically stunning, longer than average, and have fairly predictable storylines. And of course they've both made a hundred bajillion dollars.

I'd have to say I think I prefer Titanic. Maybe it's the fact that it's more rooted in reality and deals with a real human tragedy.

 

[T'Baio]

They're pretty difficult films to compare, as they're so vastly different. I love both of them, but since I lean towards science fiction as a favourite genre, I lean towards Avatar.

 

[CaptainCanada]

Very different movies, but I voted for Titanic. I'm an unapologetic defender of this movie; still love it.

Avatar I liked, but it had a lot more evident flaws. I don't think there's any sequence in it that compares to the sinking of the ship, which is tragic and harrowing.

 

[clint g]

I went with Avatar. I was never a fan of Titanic.

 

[Thespeckledkiwi]

This is a science fiction board...Not really biased here.

 

[Harvey]

I'm not a huge fan of either, but I'll go with Avatar over Titanic any day.

 

[Starbreaker]

Avatar

 

[Reverend]

Personally? Avatar. Though it's not really a fair comparison given how dissimilar they are. You might as well compare Star Wars with Gone with the Wind.

 

[Gaith]

I'm a sucker for history and English chicks, so Titanic it is.

 

[RoJoHen]

Titanic, although I'm watching Avatar right now....

I'm a sucker for tragic romance.

 

[CaptainCanada]

Personally? Avatar. Though it's not really a fair comparison given how dissimilar they are. You might as well compare Star Wars with Gone with the Wind.

Star Wars totally kicks Gone With The Wind's ass.

 

[Kirkman1987]

^
Your post made me imagine what would happen if Gone With the Wind had taken place in the Star Wars Universe.

 

[Theonethatis]

Avatar= Giant robots enough said.

 

[Geckothan]

Neither.

 

[Elemental]

This is a science fiction board...Not really biased here.

I promise not to publish the data claiming otherwise.
It doesn't surprise me that Avatar is getting more votes.

Personally, my biggest problem with Avatar is not the simplicity of it's storyline, but the extremely cookie-cutter nature of all the characters. We have the blood-thirsty military guy with no morals, the money-hungry business guy with no morals, the tree-hugging protagonists/scientists (with morals); and could the Navi be any more of the classical stereotype of American Indians? The antagonists really irritated the hell out of me during the movie, distracting me from an otherwise beautiful picture.

 

[Valley Forge]

I have to go with neither.

Even had I been totally ignorant of history, I still would have guessed that the boat would sink. Avatar was equally as transparent.

My best piece of entertainment from either movie came from standing in line to see Titanic after my GF dragged me see it. I said in a mocking tone of voice to her "did ya year? The boat sinks at the end?!?".

The nit wit teenager in front of us turns around and said huffily "thanks for ruining it for us!"

Vf

 

[Rii]

^ I don't believe it. I can't believe it.

They're pretty difficult films to compare, as they're so vastly different.

Odd, I was struck by how similar the two films are. Both films are notable primarily for their unprecedented visual splendour and authenticity in realising their respective worlds; both explore their respective worlds via remarkably unsophisticated character-centric narratives that are - with the aid of the aforementioned world building - nonetheless executed competently enough to hold the viewer's interest. And both films are overly long, the pace suffering most at precisely those moments wherein the characters are least in evidence: when the boat really starts sinking in Titanic, and when the shooting starts in Avatar.

I was going to abstain from the poll as none of the options reflected my opinion, but upon further reflection I'm giving the edge to Titanic, primarily because - as Elemental suggests - as a portrayal of an historical event Titanic will resonate with viewers long after Avatar's glory has faded.

 

[startrekrcks]

I think both are great guess I'm weird for being a James Cameron movie fangirl,

 

[Cicero]

I found the main character unlikeable in Titanic, and didn't care for the primary story, but enjoyed the supporting characters and minor incidents tremendously. Conversely, I thought Avatar's central narrative was fairly interesting (if not in any way new), but felt that it lacked the supporting personalities and characters which had so helped Titanic.

On the whole, I much preferred Avatar, which was beautiful and stunning from a technical point of view. The problems I had with Rose and the story of her relationship with Jack take too much away from Titanic. If we were to discuss, however, which film was more culturally important, Titanic would certainly be the film I'd support.

(Quantitatively: Adjusted for inflation, Titanic made roughly 130% of Avatar's domestic gross.)

 

[23skidoo]

Titanic, for a few reasons:

1. It wasn't tied to a crass commercial gimmick that added nothing to the story and simply led to physical discomfort for many viewers.

2. It didn't take a political stand that bashed the viewers over the head with its obviousness every two minutes.

3. The love story, despite its awkwardness, worked better. Even though the Avatar romance developed more naturally -- over the course of weeks and months rather than just one or two nights in the case of Jack and Rose -- I found the characters in Titanic were simply more interesting and easier to relate to. It's possible this can be attributed to the uncanny valley effect of the CG and the fact it's slightly easier to relate to characters when your eyes aren't watering every few minutes and you're not being distracted by the 3-D smoke and mirrors.

4. Despite its length, I didn't want Titanic to end the first time I saw it. Avatar had me checking my watch after the first 2 hours.

5. Titanic had David Warner. Avatar simply didn't have any heavies of equal weight. When the "Angry American Colonel" (tm) got offed in Avatar, I was more of the opinion of "thank god he's gone" rather than any sort of "Yeah!" Fist-pumping moment. Not that I had that with Warner's character either, but at least I enjoyed his heavy.

6. Titanic didn't magically bring Jack back to life, or come up with a plot contrivance to keep him from being killed off. Cameron made the tough decision and stuck with it. Had the lead character in Avatar been allowed to be killed off, it would have actually increased my appreciation for the film. But of course Cameron wanted sequels, so he had to bring the guy back.

7. Titanic reaffirmed the value of human life. Avatar spent most of its running time working to convince the audience that humans are scum.

I could go on, but I'll hold at lucky 7. Since we're discussing the films' merits, I'll defer point #8 which would have been referencing the destructive impact the 3-D bandwagoning sparked by Avatar will have on the art of filmmaking and TV production and the further disenfranchisement of large segments of the audience. And point #9 about how having a big hit movie suddenly appears to have given James Cameron airs that he's some sort of political power now (this one means more to people here in Canada who've been watching the Cameron vs. the Oilsands saga).

Alex