Axiom's Edge Science Fiction and Fantasy

By John J. Joex

Even though wowed by amazing visuals, many viewers probably felt a sense of déjà vu while watching James Cameron’s newest movie Avatar as it freely lifted from sources like the Pocahontas story and the Kevin Costner film Dances with Wolves. But if you want to find a more recent film that followed a similar storyline, look no further than last Summer’s Battle for Terra. This film, also a CGI-animated entry, had a brief run in the theaters last May as it was quickly pushed out by juggernauts like Wolverine and Star Trek. But like Avatar, it gave us a film about humans invading an alien planet for their own purpose. Story-wise, though, Battle for Terra provided a more satisfying tale than the James Cameron affair.

While Avatar may have taken movie-making to the next level with its next-gen CGI effects, it gave us nothing new in the way of story-telling. The idea of a greedy corporation uprooting an indigenous population in order to strip the land of its natural resources has worked its way through any of a number of movies, television shows, books and even Dr. Seuss stories (The Lorax). And Avatar gives no fresh spin on the idea, it just makes it a whole lot cooler to look at (and one could argue that the message quickly gets lost in the visuals, or that people can more easily ignore it). The movie very quickly descends into a cliché-ridden story about an evil corporation backed by gung-ho jarheads versus the technically inferior noble savages whose purity of spirit eventually overcomes the specter of greed.

In Battle for Terra, we have a bit of a different spin on this well-worn story. In that movie, the last remnants of the human race are looking for a planet to settle on before their decaying starship gives out on them. They find a planet with a peaceful, indigenous population who lives at harmony with their land. The planet will suit the humans, but they must terraform it first, which will make the atmosphere poisonous for the natives. The humans do not necessarily want to harm the aliens, but they are desperate for their own survival. And while the leaders want to first consider other options, the nefarious General Hemmer prefers the more direct approach and forces the matter leading to an all-out conflict between the two races.

Battle for Terra had its fair share of clichés and copy-and-paste dialogue, but it also seemed to have more of a heart at its core. Coming to us from indy director Aristomenis Tsirbas, this movie, while still having a familiar feel to it, opened up a whole new fantastic world and avoided giving us a simple by-the-numbers good vs. evil plot. It actually presented some interesting moral dilemmas, and during the final battle the audience finds themselves torn over whether to route for the humans or the natives from Terra. Quite a contrast from Avatar where we all knew that the muscle-headed marines attacking the Pandorans at the end were the bad guys and needed to go down.

Battle for Terra delivered a time-worn message of the need to understand other people and their cultures and the need to find a peaceful way to coexist, but it did it without feeling to preachy or redundant from what we have heard before. Avatar, on the other hand, verges on the self righteous, which makes it that much worse. It seems somewhat ingenuine to try and deliver a message about the evils of corporate greed by way of a mega-blockbuster designed with the purpose of propping up a franchise intended to rake in the profits for its studio and creators for years to come. It’s almost like they just added the message just to give some validity and relevance to the product. Sort of like a “Go Green” Barbie doll, or a “Peace First” G.I. Joe. Not that I am necessarily saying that James Cameron does not believe the message of his movie, he has done an excellent job of infusing relevant themes in his movies in the past (most notably The Abyss). But this time around, it just does not hold the same weight.

Don’t get me wrong, I still liked Avatar and I recommend seeing it just for the cinematic spectacle it delivers (I rate it 3 out of 5 stars, mostly based on its technical accomplishments). It just seemed much less inspired and more calculated and I just do not feel that it lived up to the hype, nor do I agree that it has changed film-making on anything other than a technical level. And I do highly recommend that you check out the underrated and almost ignored Battle for Terra (which I rated 4 out of 5 stars) for a film that also delivered spectacular visuals along with a more genuine message.

Read Sam Christopher’s Review of Avatar

Read Johnny Jay’s Review of Battle for Terra

Buy Battle for Terra on DVD from Amazon.com: