There was a comment on the Internet about the relationship between "Avatar" and anthropology. Relationship, I thought, there must be people with anthropological background in the writing team of this script. Because many bridges cannot be designed so well just by relying on the concept of "man and nature" understood by ordinary people. There are indeed anthropological research paradigms in the relationship between nature, the understanding of primitive tribes, and the description of religious ceremonies. Shadow, and someone with a basic understanding of anthropology, should be able to smell a subtle pedantic air in the film.
Thinking of this at that time, I suddenly shuddered, so I said in the school state: In the Oscar for Best Picture and Best Director, "Avatar" can only win one at most. In fact, what I really wanted to say at that time was that "Avatar" was very likely to lose both, but I always felt that, objectively speaking from the milestone position in the history of film development, if a single award was not given to "Avatar", would it be? So boring.
As a result, sure enough, Oscar is not very interesting.
But I still can't help but feel angry for the old card.
In a few words, it is difficult to explain the relationship between "Avatar" and anthropology. It is better to use a background description in a reading note from last semester to "hint" and "popular science". The basic theory book quoted the standard answer:
"In the 1860s, under the anti-colonial movement worldwide, a fierce social crisis and radical social thought broke out in Western society, reflecting on colonialism and empire from the perspective of Western-centrism As a discipline of anthropology, whose birth is closely related to colonialism and imperialism, it is not immune to criticism and questioning. As a result, anthropological research has produced an unprecedented theoretical crisis, but it has also begun to take an important turn. Anthropologists I began to question: Can non-Western traditional cultures be truthfully described by Westerners under the premise of cultural relativism? Is ethnography still meaningful in terms of methodology? Is it theoretically possible to communicate between different cultures?”
In "Avatar", the change in the protagonist's understanding of the planet Pandora is similar to the development history of anthropology for more than a century: first, as a "civilized man" in the modern sense, with an arrogant "self" and the colonial mentality of a conqueror. Entering the primitive society of "barbarism and backwardness", entering a world of "others", trying to help the invaders in ruling this land. When he began to truly enter and understand the culture of the "other", he began to doubt the original set of values of the "self", and the absolute opposition between "civilization" and "barbarism", "progress" and "backwardness" began. Reflection, dissatisfaction with the robbery behavior of the earth people on Pandora and the unequal power relations it created, as well as the sympathy and insight that brought the pain of losing their homes to the indigenous people, and finally turned against the water and led the "indigenous people" to defeat the "indigenous people". colonists". In reality, of course, anthropology has yet to fully resolve the predicament that has been perceived since the 1960s.
Most of the mainstream sci-fi films in Western society tell the glorious story of how aliens as "others" invaded the earth and how they were defeated by earthlings as "self". And few films reflect the true history of how the "self" Westerners invaded and bullied the "other" culture. In 2009 there were exactly two, "District 9" and "Avatar." "District 9" is still vague and extremely pessimistic, and "Avatar" is a happy ending, although the scientist supporting actress who is most like an anthropologist has died.
Well, having said that, do you think "Avatar" is still likely to win awards in mainstream Western society?
No, of course not. Because it does not conform to the ideology of mainstream Western society. Have you ever heard of a Western film about the actual extermination of North American Indians by European colonists - let alone winning an award - how similar the basic plot of "Avatar" is to this bloody history. Have you heard of the famous Western films describing how the European invaders were defeated by the anti-colonial and anti-imperialist movements of the peoples of Asia, Africa and Latin America? It is not easy for a book like "Uncle Tom's Cabin" that can reflect the history of this aspect to a certain extent in Western society. At present, most of the Western anti-war films we see are about the internal contradictions of Westerners. It is the housework of one's own people beating their own people and their own people being beaten by their own people, while "Avatar" is about their own people going to their own interests for their own interests. The story of how he was beaten down by others when he beat others, touches on the cultural essence of the colonial and anti-colonial struggles in the history of his fortune and the creation of unequal power relations from the perspective of Western-centrism. If such a film is on Pandora, it will definitely win countless awards. Unfortunately, this is on Earth.
Therefore, as long as it is not impossible to pick a better film, the judges will not be stupid enough to give the Oscar Award to "Avatar". In other words: other films can win awards, but not "Avatar". This truth, just like the Japanese film industry will not award the film award to even "Nanjing! Nanjing! "This is already very polite and gentle to the Japanese, or even a film like "Nanjing Massacre" made by Westerners that objectively describes the Sino-Japanese war is as simple. Precisely, "The Hurt Locker" appeared in a timely manner, in the words of an online film review: "The plot is atypical, and the main theme of consciousness", "As long as war movies are more or less responsible for conveying anti-war or pro-war political sentiments, "Demolition" The attitude of "Bomb Army" is not clear, it does touch the real life and part of the real thoughts of soldiers on the battlefield in Iraq, but the thinking about war does not go further than its predecessors." It won, the important thing is not whether it is true or not. The filming of "Avatar" is very good, but it does meet the conditions for confronting "Avatar", conforms to the mainstream ideology of Western society, and is also a direct weapon to suppress the value of "Avatar" in terms of plot concept. "The Hurt Locker" also talks about war, but it avoids the value judgment of the aggressor and the invaded in the war, and avoids the general harm caused by the war to the local people. Instead, it tells the heroic and sacrifice of the technical staff on the attacker's side , it is the real victims of the war - the local people have become the background of the KBism that lurks danger and threatens the life of the protagonist. What a successful political propaganda this is, I believe that after watching this film, the old Americans will definitely not reflect on whether it is right for us earthlings to attack others like watching "Avatar", but they are infected with tears and think. "For the sake of the liberation of all mankind, how brave and fearless, how noble, and how great our soldiers who went to such and such places!" Thinking of this, it is not difficult for the Chinese to understand why the majority of Japanese people treat JG shrine so much. With respect, I can't understand the historical complex of the Chinese people's memory of that period of suffering.
Therefore, I always thought that the unpopularity of this Oscar was not that "The Hurt Locker" won the big win, but that "Avatar" won the best picture and the best director. Unfortunately, I couldn't see the unpopularity after all.
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