Phroobar
Well-Known Member
Seabase Delta with underwater tube coaster with real fish. The subs are just a preshow to get into the Seabase. Relate the whole thing to Horizons 2.0 in the Innovations building.
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Avatar in Tomorrowland
- Thread starter britain
- Start date
Disney Irish
Premium Member
Its true, all I heard when Pandora opened in AK was that no one cared about a film from 2009 so why waste money on it. Same when the sequels were announced. And yet here we are with it likely to be the highest (or close to it) grossing film of the year.
mlayton144
Well-Known Member
Just a bunch of haters that’s all
Professortango1
Well-Known Member
Avatar has a few things going for it. Firstly, everyone knows the plot/script is not the reason for seeing the movie and the effects are the main draw. This means that anyone remotely interested knows that they need to see it in theatres to appreciate it unlike even a Marvel movie or other blockbuster which has characters and plot to excite even on a small screen.
Secondly, the ticket price is higher for Avatar due to the 3-D format which everyone is opting to see it in. We paid just shy of $20 per ticket for a matinee, almost $10 more than a regular ticket. A large theatre of 100 seats that's an added $1,000 in ticket sales per showing per theatre. Multiply that by 5 showings a day times 3 theatres and you have the potential for an extra $15,000 in ticket sales per day for a single cinema. Obviously not every showing is going to sell out, but you are still likely looking at each cineplex reporting an additional $2,000-$8,000 in sales per day.
Lastly, there is nothing else out. My dad and I grab lunch and a movie each weekend and neither one of us had any interest in seeing Avatar. We would groan when the trailer would play. However...this past weekend it was either than or Puss in Boots or I Wanna Dance with Somebody. There is a severe lack of December films to see, especially for a family demographic. People like going to the movies over Christmas break and there is virtually no competition for Avatar, so Avatar is naturally going to soak up those audiences. And its just going to get worse as January is known for being a barren wasteland for film with the only solace being prestige movies that move into wide release in January. This year? We have A Man Called Otto (meh) and that's it.
truecoat
Well-Known Member
I went to see it for the story like many other people. If this wasn't the case, Transformers would outgross Avatar.
Professortango1
Well-Known Member
Tranformers had big visuals, but the visuals were ugly and violent. It was loud and juvenile. Also not shot in 3-D. Avatar is selling beauty and nature and landscapes. The first one was okay. This new one is a bit dumber and talks down to its audience a bit more. But the visuals are better.
Most people can't name the characters in Avatar and fully admit that the plot is paper thin. Avatar is all frosting and no cake. Its gorgeous frosting (when not changing frame rates back and forth for some dumb reason) and I can understand the appeal of it.
Disney Irish
Premium Member
While I appreciate this opinion, if it was such the dead property that many posters on Disney Fan Boards claimed it was it wouldn't be the top grossing movie of 2022.
The point is that the Disney Fan community, the ones that claimed that Avatar doesn't have cultural staying power, were just dead wrong on this one.
mickEblu
Well-Known Member
Yeah I’m confused at how people didn’t see it being a huge hit from a mile away.
Disney Irish
Premium Member
Sarcastic comment?
Avatar 2 has shown (which was kinda already known if one just paid attention) that its an IP that is long lasting. The plot might be simple, but there is nothing wrong with simple plot driven stories in movies. They tend to be the ones that grasp the attention of movie goers long term.
Rich T
Well-Known Member
Avatar can certainly make tons of money as a big screen spectacle event. It’s still a boring franchise with characters few remember or care about once the theater lights go up. But the pretty visuals did make for a fun land and an outstanding flight sim in AK… as well as the most boring, pretentious boat ride in theme park history (though it deserves credit for being… different…). But, in DL? No thank you. I still think DL should be the ONE Disney park with as much Walt and as little outside IP as possible.
Professortango1
Well-Known Member
I agree, people severely over-estimated the merit of audiences. I knew my opinion of the first film was below the public response and I assumed as tech grew old people would have their opinions change. And it was true as people tended to disregard the first film. Then this sequel came and people have been returning to the same well. Its like doubting McDonalds because they aren't quality. Regardless of social changes, and rising qualities from competitors, people will continue to eat up those burgers and fries. The only saving grace is that the sequel is tracking below the original when adjusted for inflation.
I will say that I do think Avatar makes for good theme park ride fodder. The characters are unimportant and the experience is the draw, perfect for a theme park ride. We just want to be immersed in that world. I wish the blue people were present in the land itself as it feels like the military killed them all off when visiting, but the rides themselves show how the world itself is the attraction. I'd fully welcome an Avatar replacement for the subs. It would be far more imaginative and awe-inspiring than what we currently have.
mickEblu
Well-Known Member
Disney Irish
Premium Member
Whether you feel its a boring franchise or it has characters that couldn't be cared less about is irrelevant.
The point is that its still a relevant franchise in the public consciousness, especially internationally.
As for whether it belongs in DL or in DLR at all. Well I wasn't really getting into that topic, but I'm inclined to say sure it can be added. How or where, I don't know. Tomorrowland just doesn't seem right, but right now honestly anything would be better than its current condition, even Pandora.
Disney Irish
Premium Member
My point was and has always been about its cultural relevance, which clearly it has. As we've had posters here claim for years that Avatar has no lasting power, that its forgettable, that no one cares about it, no kids are wearing blue avatar halloween costumes so must not be relevant, etc. The box office proves that all not to be true.
Whether its an overall quality film or not is a personal opinion based on ones taste in films.
Professortango1
Well-Known Member
Yes, I know your point which is why I responded to it. That we severely over-estimated the merit of film-goers and that the sequel is doing business that is almost as good as the first film despite the gap in time.
I wouldn't necessarily confuse Box Office with popularity through. The film is successful and looking to turn a good profit in the next month or so and will likely be the 2nd highest grossing 2022 film for US audiences. However, I would also agree that we don't see the Box Office success translated into merch and cultural phenomenon. Frozen was EVERYWHERE for years. T-Shirts, memes, parodies, radio, theatre, etc. Same with Harry Potter. So far, we haven't seen this really occur with Avatar as an IP. Not saying it won't happen, but that we haven't seen it become part of the zeitgeist. No slight against it for that. Maverick is the #1 US film for 2022 and will likely remain so, yet its not a cultural phenomenon either. Its just a really entertaining sequel.
Consumer
Well-Known Member
Avatar is not a bad movie, it just lacks any depth outside of its 3D effects. There is never a hint of a larger world that leaves us longing for more, everything James Cameron has to say and show is all laid out on the table. There's nothing else beyond what's on screen, and that applies both to the themes and the worldbuilding. Avatar and its sequel are both very shallow movies.
That said, I hope Avatar 2 makes morbillion dollars and Buzz Lightyear is replaced with a blast-em-up dark ride through the jungles of Pandora where we get to shoot Navi and their animals.
That said, I hope Avatar 2 makes morbillion dollars and Buzz Lightyear is replaced with a blast-em-up dark ride through the jungles of Pandora where we get to shoot Navi and their animals.
PiratesMansion
Well-Known Member
There's also been an explosion in bad faith, obtuse, or otherwise lazy film criticism that started right around the time the OG Avatar film came out.
An explosion that has shown no sign of going away.
Rich T
Well-Known Member
I would say that it’s in the public consciousness as an “event” to see on the big screen. But that’s where it ends. The characters are forgotten and nobody cares about the story.
But it’s also great material for a themed land. While I agree it’s hard to imagine TL getting any worse, I do hope whatever they come up with is from Walt Disney Studios and not James Cameron. Heck, I’d rather see Tron there, and I can’t stand Tron aside from the undeniably awesome lightcycles and recognizers.
I also hope Pandora remains exclusive to AK, because AK, one of the most beautiful and under-appreciated theme parks on Earth, deserves to have sole proprietorship of the best flight sim ride on Earth.
Disney Irish
Premium Member
I'm not sure I understand your point on "over-estimated the merit of film-goers".
If anything it was under-estimated the amount of global interest in the Avatar franchise by many in the Disney fan community.
As for it being a cultural phenom that results in merch sales, neither of us have numbers so can't say anything with any certainty. But Pandora in AK appears to be a pretty popular land and is selling merch daily. So not sure if one can say it for sure that its not a cultural phenom just based merch sales.
Basically one can extrapolate out that box office success of a sequel to a 14 year old film appears to put the IP into the cultural phenom status. I know some people hate the franchise, but its clear that is an opinion not shared by the global audience.