Уроки Аватара

Lessons from Avatar

A wave of optimism swept the film industry into 2010 as the Avatar juggernaut clocked up record cinema-going numbers around the world. That’s a bonus not just for 20th Century Fox and its partners on the film — Ingenious Film Partners and Dune Entertainment — but for the beleaguered exhibition community which has been in need of a fillip after a year in which the death knell for theatrical movie-going was sounded repeatedly, despite apparently good gross figures. As Titanic also demonstrated 12 years ago, a hit of this magnitude galvanises people who have lost the habit to start going to the cinema again.

But what does Avatar teach us about today’s ailing film model? It certainly shows that the right mega-blockbuster — and this one cost somewhere between $235m and $300m to produce — will always be a magnet for audiences looking for a special out-of-home experience.

I say ‘the right’ blockbuster because these event movies are not easy to manufacture even with studio know-how and budgets. There are just a handful of film-makers who can manage the imagination, scale and ambition required by a film like Avatar, while also attracting the finance it demands. James Cameron is one of them. Steven Spielberg and Michael Bay are perhaps the other two. A film like Avatar is an extreme rarity.

“While the big screen and 3D are components of Avatar’s success, it wouldn’t be the must-see cinema experience of the new century without its storytelling”

Similarly, for all those cheering at the 3D element of Avatar, that needs to be qualified. While the big screen and 3D experience are components of Avatar’s success, it wouldn’t be the must-see cinema experience of the new century without its storytelling know-how which is part of the film-making process, not the exhibition cycle.

In an interview late last year, Peter Jackson spoke eloquently about the hype surrounding 3D: “There’s an overreaction to 3D at the moment,” he said. “It can be a wonderful additional experience to have in a cinema for the right type of film, but it’s not the magic answer to the industry’s problems.”