Last night was the American premiere for James Cameron’s epic sci-fi movie Avatar. (see TrekMovie review). The film stars Zoe Saldana as the blue-skinned Na’vi Neytiri. We have photos from the LA premiere below, plus the latest interviews and videos of the actress (including some Trek talk).
Photos from LA Premiere
Zoe blows a kiss
Zoe strikes a pose
Zoe with the special Life magazine cover
Zoe with co-star Sam Worthington
Zoe and co-stars Sigourney Weaver and Michelle Rodriguez
Zoe on her way into premiere
Zoe shows her publicist Gary Mantoosh some love at the after-party
INTERVIEWS & VIDEO
Saldana was interviewed by the LA Times, had this to say about sci-fi fans:
GB: This has been quite the year for you after your duty aboard the USS Enterprise and now your major role in “Avatar. ” You’re going to a queen of the Comic-Con tribe…
ZS: I’m very happy about that! I can’t think of better fans. These are people with a passion, and I love that. And science fiction is wonderful. We can’t limit our imagination and that’s what science fiction never wants us to do.
Saldana on red carpet from last week’s London premiere
Saldana on Late Night with David Letterman on December 14th (talks a little Trek)
Bonus image of Zoe arriving for Letterman taping
Official Avatar video with Cameron, Saldana and Worthington
Saldana on Moviefone ‘unscripted’ (again talks a little Trek)
Avatar continues with strong reviews
In the Avatar London premiere article last week we noted that the first reviews were positive. Now with many more in, the film is still getting strong notices, with a 96% rating for the Rotten Tomatoes Top Critics (and 82% with the full list). Saldana also continues to get good marks for her performance, such as this note from Rolling Stone:
Props to Worthington and especially Saldana for igniting sparks, given that their scenes together are all digital (the actors wore sensors so the camera could capture their movements). How do Jake and Neytiri get it on? Oh shut up and see the damn movie because what you see is thrilling.
she has a very beautiful face and wonderful legs…BUT she should definetly put on some weight. I despise this skinny pseudo culture that embraces women these days.
Let’s see…. This movie has several things going for it. Zoe, kick-a$$ special effects, action, Sci-Fi. But on the down side I heard it beats you over the head with its ‘man is evil’ plot for far too long. I’m on the fence about seeing this one.
I dont understand how you can be a fan of Sci-Fi and NOT go see this movie? I’m not exactly excited about it but I really can’t see myself not seeing it at least 2 times. I’ll probably see it tomorrow. I’m pretty excited.
She’s beautiful, but distressingly thin….to an unhealthy degree.
Obviously has a High metabolism – but aside
from her thinness, her acting talent is perfection.
She was fantastic as Uhura and I can’t wait to
see Avatar!
Zoe is so cool, I am very happy for her, great spirit/person.
She should be in the next Kill Bill with Megan Fox and Uma Thurman.
She is just so delicious! Trek is blessed to have her!
This film looks like it has way too much CG.
#2
You basically sealed the deal. I’m NOT seeing this movie. It looks like utter garbage. The last film I saw was Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day. I loved it and that will be the end of my movie viewing for the year because it was so good and it’s a good film to end on.
I’m going to see this movie tomorrow. Looks like a long and successful career ahead for Zoe. As for her weight, it’s not relevent at all. The first comment mentioned her weight and there were a couple of others that followed and we’re not even ten comments deep. It is sexist and immature. All that matters is talent. And judging from what we’ve seen of her already, she has loads of it. The fact that she is beautiful is a bonus. Nothing more, nothing less.
#8 Perhaps you should see “Avatar’ before judging it. Sometimes one might be surprised by the quality of the film after going to see it despite their hesitance at first. As for “Boondock Saints: All Saints Day”, while I haven’t seen that movie, a lot of people consider that film garbage. But to each his own I guess.
i saw it and i went in skeptical, and cme out giving it an 8.5/10 review. As for too much CGI, you honestl don’t really notice, i mean the whole thing does literally look real, except for one part near the beginning, but it has an amazing journey, it really takes you places physically in the movie and just by ways of how the story flows, and the characters. it’s a very well done film, one of the best for this year. one thing, al you who see it when it come out on home video will be disappointed. it can only be seen in a 3d cinema. if you see it in anything less, you will be grossly disappointed.
I was there last night(wed) at the prermiere
Zoe is SMOKIN’ HOT!!! <3
Amen.
Zoe’s almost scary thin. Hopefully its a natural state for her. Gorgeous and talented lady in any case. I look forward to seeing a lot more of her in the future – [puns apoppin’] ;-)
#9 i definitely agree with you. ppl comment on zoe’s weight here like they personally know her. go back and look at her other films, she’s always been really thin. my mom was her size when she was younger. jesus, it’s most likely natural, and its sad the FIRST comment mentions her weight instead of her acting abilities. i wonder how many ppl here comment about bill shatner’s weight whenever theres a post about him here instead of kissing the ground he walks on??? i guess that means you should demand he lose LOTS of weight if he appears as captain kirk right? because his weight is very unhealthy right? i hope zoe doesnt read these posts because if trek fans who comment about you think of your weight first, it would definitely give me a complex about those fans. basically, chill out!
#9 and #16, I think most people make the observation about Zoe’s size out of concern, not out of aesthetics. As the father of a girl who struggled with anorexia, I understand the reaction. That said … I agree with you that we should celebrate her talent first.
17. RTC – December 18, 2009
Exactly. It has nothing to do with aesthetics as far as I’m concerned. I mention it because I was anorexic for a year or two when I was a bit younger, and it’s fairly obvious when someone is not ‘naturally’ thin. I think she would be naturally thin, but then the industry demands even more to be trimmed off…it’s just wrong. She’s a beautiful young girl. Zoe looks like she’s on the Hollywood diet….just the nature of the industry I guess.
I haven’t been thrilled about anything I have seen regarding Avatar. However, since Zoe is in it, I’ll probably go see it. Who knows, maybe it’s great and my impressions are wrong? The thing that I find interesting, though, is that NONE of my students are even talking about going to this movie AT ALL. Very unusual. If my 7-12 grade students are an indication of all kids that age, it may not bode well for Avatar.
On a side note, several of my students were talking about Star Trek and went to see it, or are seeing it now on dvd.
Since Avatar opened, it has received higher reviews than Star Trek. The “real” critics on Rotten Tomatoes have given this film a 96% review. Compare that to the 92% critical praise from the same group of professional critics.
I find it interesting that the same group who cited Star Trek’s glowing reviews as a reason to see it, are dismissing Avatar when it is showing even higher critical praise.
The film is amazing … deal with it! It will most likely sweep all of the awards Trek would have otherwise had a shot at, plus be nominated in categories Star Trek will never have a shot at. Frankly, this movie is worthy of all the hype and to parrot the sentiments I have seen shared a number of times about Star Trek: I feel sorry for those who deny themselves the experience of seeing this film the way it is meant to be seen, on a big screen in 3D.
Talk about a group of haters …
As for Zoe, I missed seeing her sexy face. She’s good in this, but I realized a lot of what I like about her is in her total package, not just the acting. And NO, she is not too thin. I and a lot of my friends are that thin … we can’t all be curvy voluptuous, green alien girls … it’s about living an active life and getting up off the couch every once in a while … ;-)
The only actor I was disappointed with in the brilliant 2009 Star Trek film was Zoe. I thought she was miscast for sure. Couldn’t they have found a better Uhura? She didn’t look like her. She didn’t act like her. There was no Uhura-ness to her at all. All the other actors channeled / embodied their roles in many different ways. Some looked very little like the ‘prime actors, but it all still worked (Simon Pegg). Some were better than the originators (Anton Yelchin!). For most, you could believe that either actor could play that role (Shatner and Pine, Nimoy and Quinto, Kelley and Urban) and it still worked!
Except for Zoe. She is not a good actress. She is not believable as Uhura. Never sold me. I wish they would recast her. As the only woman in the cast, I was very disappointed.
As a NY guy, I can only say that Zoe is a dream. A feisty NY girl, with a brain and body to write home about, a true gem.
Zoe is absolutely gorgeous. Stunning. Beautiful. Striking.
#20
Star Trek got better reviews than Avatar!
95% vs 82% RT.
Avg Rating: 8.1 vs 7.4
#20: “Talk about a group of haters … ”
While i’m with you on the quality of Avatar, once again I’m puzzled by the invention of the mythical “haters.” Now there are Avatar “haters” hiding behind leaves and skulking in shadows, too? Such a curious bit of mythology, given that no one in this thread, at least, has said they hate Avatar. But, like the Star Trek “haters,” they are often mentioned though seldom seen, and all the photographs of them are long-range and blurry.
Where does this concept come from, the “hater?” Do haters, like Santa, the Easter Bunny and the Tooth Fairy, at least leave us presents? Is there a fun reason to believe in them?
I’m not at all interested in seeing this movie. The CGI seems like the same old same old…not cutting edge as they’re claiming. You watch the trailer and it’s obvious which parts are CG.
Plus, I’ve also heard that it beats you over the head with its tree-hugger, man-is-evil message. Screw that. I’ll see it on a bootlegged DVD, so no one in leftist Hollywood gets any of my money.
I’m tired of the Hollywood elite telling me how I should live my life when none of them are making the same sacrifices that they request us pee-ons to make.
#26: “Plus, I’ve also heard that it beats you over the head with its tree-hugger, man-is-evil message. Screw that. I’ll see it on a bootlegged DVD, so no one in leftist Hollywood gets any of my money.”
Only on the Internet can you find someone being self-righteous about expressing their intent to commit a federal crime :)
lol #26, I believe you can find that on the Internet and on Fox “News”.
#25, S. John Ross, that comment was made tongue-in-cheek. This particular forum seems willing to call anyone with a marginally dissenting opinion a hater, yet are themselves mostly rejecting the film before it has even been seen – on what grounds I ask?
And by the way, your posts seem to be the most rational and level-headed of anyones I’ve read.
And Flake, as for Rotten Tomatoes which is hardly the authority on critical praise, but nevertheless seems to command a high degree of respect around here as is often Cited by Star Trek, there are different groups of critics being represented hon. Click on the tabs to see.The professional or “Top” critics is what I am referring to. The pros are weighing in at 96% compared to Star Trek’s 92%.
That 84% comes from an average of the RT users and It’s the T-Meter meter critics who are coming in at 83%. Now remember the RT users are just people like you and me who have not yet seen the film since it wasn’t our yet! The T-meter critics are even more suspect in my opinion as they could be anybody with a blog and an opinion who gets approved by RT as someone who regularly critiques movies, but not necessarily with any kind of credentials to do so. I don’t chose to look at them any more than I seriously consider what the Austin or Las Vegas critics think about anything. LOL
I give far more weight to the professional critics opinions as will most of Hollywood and the world.
Sorry, meant to reply to #27.
#29: “And by the way, your posts seem to be the most rational and level-headed of anyones I’ve read.”
That’s kind of you, but I promise, it’s just because when I’m feeling snarky I get more precise. Clarity and logic feel growlier to me for whatever reason … I think I get it from British sitcoms. Anyway, nice of you to say.
But yeah, there is a tendency that lives on this board (not just this board, but it has a comfy bed here) to leap immediately toward the most extreme terms for a thing, and so we have “haters” bounding around in the woods leaving plaster-cast footprints :/
And on Avatar (and not directed to Red Skirt, specifically, but to everyone discussing it, Red Skirt included): it’s interesting that some people see a man-is-evil message in Avatar while I see a much more positive, humanistic (even Trek-like) message. Obviously, within the movie itself we have good people and we also have greedy people and we have brave people and cowardly people and people who are just following orders and people who don’t care much about anything and others … and to me the message seems to be “shortsighted greed is evil,” and there are people who represent _that_ and people who represent the alternatives.
I feel no kinship to the greedy people, so I guess that’s why I don’t see them as representing humanity as a whole, and see no “man is evil” message in Avatar.
On the other hand, lots of people spreading the “man-is-evil” version of the movie are those who admit plainly to not having seen it.
I find it funny that star treks version of the future is so utopian in its nature that it really does border on communism. I mean no money (which must mean no private or profiteering companies/competition).
The concept that everyone has literal equality (not talking about equal rights) I’m saying that, Picard is “paid” no more than his tailor, for a crude example. You have moral messages about equal rights, issues of conservation and freedom and a world where nothing is done for profit or personal gain etc etc….
Yet people who on this forum, who I would assume like star trek for at least some of these reasons, scoff at avatar for being leftist and tree-hugging???
I am just saying I do not get that? Am I the only person who does not get that?
I’m not making any political point, so please don’t go down that route…but I just don’t get it….
As a further point:
Whereas Avatar apparently shows “commercialist evil” vs. “tree hugging lefties” as some may put it. To put a positive spin on it to those who find it too “leftist”….. at least the commercialists get a mention even if they are presented as evil
Because in Star Trek unless anyone else has noticed, they have mostly been wiped out and don’t get a mention at all.
Star Trek, I have always found to have….let’s say….a “leftist slant”…well more of a sheer drop. In fact there is no other side.
*And before someone mentions the ferengi….I am talking about humanity or the UFP.
As a full-blown capitalist myself, I’ve always written off the “socialistic” aspects of Trek as a byproduct of all that wonderful technology that pretty much can give everyone anything they want, no matter their status.
There is evidence in the TNG-era series where there is enough of an economy in the Federation to allow for trade with other cultures and for individuals to have “credits” to purchase goods with. So there’s a mix of a mix of both social ideologies at play in the Federation in Star Trek.
Just saw “Avatar”. LOVED IT! Like “Star Trek” it totally succeeds as entertainment. Dig deeper and you’ll definitely find the message to be polarizing, but isn’t that what we want our filmmakers to do? Give us something to think about? I give it points for doing what Star Trek opted to soft-pedal this time around.
Oh, and Man *IS* evil!
cant wait to see avatar. my bf should be off duty and on his way over from base, then a small group of us are off to check it out. i have faith in cameron. it should be awesome and my two favorite chicks are in it: zoe and sigourney!
#35 you post before i could lol. cant wait to see YOU 2nite babe.
33. Technically we have the ability, using technology, to give everyone what they need or want now but we just dont. Possibly due to the fact that money, status and materialism are the driving force in peoples lives.
You’re probably right, Mr Man. But I think that is a distraction from the real issues of this world. Like the fact that Zoe is a hottie!!!
You people are whacked-out. Zoe Saldana is NOT unhealthily skinny… she’s just THIN. There’s a difference!!! She’s not emaciated, for pete’s sake.
Besides, give her SOME credit for not going the stereotypical Hollywood route of getting a ridiculous breast job. Thankfully, she doesn’t look like Posh Spice!
I just went and saw “Avatar” today. I thoroughly enjoyed the film. Although it should have been about 25 minutes shorter. The middle dragged on a bit and apart from the slightly-too obvious plot, the movie is great. As for the 3D, it wasn’t really true 3D. The glasses made it feel more like a Blu Ray movie on the big screen. On the other hand, I have a lazy right eye and wear glasses. I was able to put the 3D glasses on over my own glasses. As for where this movie stands on the best of James Cameron, I would put it fourth, behind the two “Terminator” films and “Aliens”.
#32: “Am I the only person […]”
Just for future reference, the answer to every single Internet question that begins with the phrase “Am I the only …” is a simple no.
Yes, even THAT one. And that one too. Also that one. Yes, even the one with the yak, the plastic tubing, and the industrial lubricant. And that one. Yes, that one too.
Avatar is amazing! the 3d is great-the story-a bit overly familiar except for the avatar bodies angle,which is awesome–kinda an action filled violent tree hugger movie–the planet pandora is beautiful beyond belief n the natives including zoe are all very lifelike-kinda indian like-u really feel for the planets nature n natives and civilization/machines are depicted as evil and uncaring–Sigourney Weavers scientist reminded me of Trumballs Brainstorm movie which had a cigar smoking female scientist played by Louise Fletcher(vedic wynn from ds nine) There are many sights you havent really seen before in a movie-not this good and real–its a trip!
I’m sure i will get slammed for this but i hope Cameron’s Avatar that has an actual message like star trek used to, destroys Star Trek 2009 which is an entirely superficial shadow of its former self, all flash and no substance.
Of Course Zoe was wonderful in star trek and probably the only person in the movie i liked besides Bruce Greenfield aka Thomas Vale from nowhere man.
Oh and fyi the cg in avatar is some of the most natural looking ive ever seen–the planet seems alive-the creatures similiar to star wars but more real–camerons done it again…
Hotness.
“I give far more weight to the professional critics opinions as will most of Hollywood and the world.”
That’ll be the day. ‘Professional critic’ is an oxymoron. Critics are always people who couldn’t make it in another field.
43. skyjedi
I’m sure i will get slammed for this but i hope Cameron’s Avatar that has an actual message like star trek used to,
****
Not from me you won’t! That was one of the things I appreciated right off the bat. I thought “Avatar’s” message was well-telegraphed. A little heavy-handed, but balanced out by the sheer entertainment value built into the movie.
Just saw Avatar, it was awesome!
There are many scenes in there that are very emotional and powerful.
You really fall in love with the characters, Zoe and Sam was amazing.
The allegory was done well and reminds us of our mistakes in the past and present. James Cameron is the man.
Makes you want to play world of warcraft again.
#47: “A little heavy-handed, but balanced out by the sheer entertainment value built into the movie.”
Ironically, a common defense of ST09 is that it’s _lack_ of message is balanced out by sheer entertainment value (often by apologists insisting that such a movie _can’t possibly_ have both and sell tickets, and poo-pooing any fans demanding both at once as asking too much of a movie).
***Avatar has both.***
Let’s see if it sells any tickets, hmmm? :)