Nature Porn

**Not actual Pornography in this blog, just a movie review of Avatar**

**Possible Avatar Spoilers **

I liked Avatar a lot. Sue me. I don’t care. It was a fun movie! I was thrilled by the setting, story, characters, and effects. While I can acknowledge what detractors say: it’s *just* a special effects marvel, it’s costs were out-frigging-rageous, it’s story line has been done a thousand times over, and it was a bit smug and simplistic…I certainly had the most fun I’ve had at the movies in a long time!

And actually, I don’t completely buy into the critical opinion that Avatar is just a frivolous movie. Whether intentional or not, the movie got me to thinking…..

First of all, I thought: wow, white people really hate themselves a lot!

Second of all I wondered: do any members of the armed forces feel saddened by their portrayal in the movie?

Maybe it has to do with Christian dogma, maybe with technology, maybe with the basis of western civilization itself, but people do not feel connected to nature, and I believe this can cause a great deal of fear. It made me imagine a person setting out for a camping trip: pack the tent, the plastic bottles, the packaged food, the special insulated blankets, and so on. We want to wrap ourselves in plastic before we even enter nature. At best nature was subdued by a generation or two before us, at worst, nature has yet to be subdued. Yet, we fetishize nature like we would fetishize anything we fear and covet. There is an urge to commune with nature, but a fear of the messiness and danger that nature presents.



Additionally, there is a gut feeling that nature has been wronged, and humans (especially privileged humans) are to blame. For doing wrong, there is an underlying feeling of guilt for not receiving due punishment for these transgressions, and this leads to a sort of thrill when punishment arrives. For example, when the Na’vi fight back against the humans and win, it got my heart pumping. It felt right. It felt legitimate. It was justice. Seeing the carnage of human kind felt good, because darn it, we deserved it. We want our punishment for going too far.



Watching the movie also reminded me of my juvenile fixation with nature shows. I absolutely loved watching the documentaries; although, I learned early on there was a pattern: ¾ of the show was about how amazing, cute, or precious nature is, and the last ¼ was how humans are messing it all up. Avatar used this formula too, except at the end nature fights back, and **phew** not a moment too soon, humanity is stopped. That was quite a sight to see: all the thrill of retribution, without actually having to be punished (because the audience is on nature’s side of course).

Furthermore, the Na’vi have so much dang integrity and wholesomeness too. Isn’t that something? They mate with one partner for life, they can directly communicate with their ancestors, they can physically connect to many animal and plant lives, and we never see a flaw in their lifestyle. They live in balance with all life, and all their needs for sustenance, community, and spirituality are satisfied in their world, without the need to suffer any fear or doubt. Additionally, they are sleek and sexy and can comfortably dwell in the nature that surrounds them without the aid of plastic wrappings.

This movie is like an exotic pornography for people who want to thrive in and connect to the natural world. If only life could be as pure and simple for us as it is for the Na’vi.