James Cameron Once Again Finds Gold - This Time On Pandora

James Cameron’s “Avatar “ breaks the billion dollar mark with the help of some of my money, showing the decade that Mr. Cameron waited for technology to catch up with his dreams seems to be well worth the wait. Not to mention rewarding the patience of the fans that have been waiting since hearing about it after the release of his other monstrous Academy award winning hit “Titanic”. On a personal level, I completely enjoyed the film in 3-D and was pleasantly surprised to find out how fast 2 hours and 40 min could go by. The huge budget (rumored to be over 500 million dollars) could be seen in every minute in the film. Being a sci-fi blogger, and admitted geek, I have the pleasure and sometimes torture of watching the newest sci-fi and fantasy genre films and television shows Hollywood throws out. I am happy to say this was the former. I have waited to blog about this to see how long it would take for Mr. Cameron to recoup his investment. Not really – just procrastination on my part,also being the resolution I meant to do but kept putting it off. I’m taking a few lessons from my wife.
In my adventures, it seems more and more difficult to find sci-fi and fantasy based films. I sometimes think Hollywood producers and executives don’t realize what a gold mine they have in these niche products. Followers of this genre prove to be a dedicated and loyal fan base, who willingly part with their money even in this weak economy. A good example of this is seen in Joss Whedon and his TV show Firefly. After only 13 episodes, the series was cancelled. However the power of the fan base made possible the movie Serenity. And the dream of the Browncoats lives on, as anyone who has visited ComicCon or DragonCon can attest. If you don’t believe me, just attend a Browncoat Shin Dig or Battlestar Colonial Fleet party. (And if any of these terms are alien to you, (pun intended) it’s time to spend a bit more time in your mother’s basement with a Serenity/Firefly, and Battlestar Galactica Marathon. Or keep an eye on Nathan Fillion in Castle, especially around Halloween.)This is why Hollywood and its execs need to pay closer attention to those type of fans. Take a cue from Will Smith, who makes 2 movies a year: One for his art, and one (usually a sci-fi pic) for the fans. Guess which one makes more money. I will continue to trek on these adventures like the Indiana Jones of sci-fi, looking for that Holy Grail of quality science fiction and fantasy-based films and television to bring back and blog about.