Avalon (2001)

Memorable, crazy movie

It is neither dumb nor smart enough to be fun, and spends way too much time with its boring human characters.

This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

At first I found it amazing that a lot of people liked this movie so much. Then I remembered of the Forer effect and everything was clearer.The movie is very vague and all over the place and does not know that it wants. Also as someone that have both played games and worked for a brief time in the gaming industry I saw a lot of problems. But let's take things one of a time. Let's explain what happens in the movie. In more than 60% of the movie (the whole sepia thing) most things are not real. Is hard to tell if any part in the beginning is real. The class Real is the real world. The people in the hospitals that are in a coma are actually players that just logged out of the game and never returned. It is interesting to note that there are very few people in the first part of the game and that there appears not to be anyone in the hospital except the coma people. Also we do not see children animals (except for the one dog) blood (you would think sooner or later someone will cut his fingers with a knife).In the second part of the movie (Class Real) we see all the normal elements of real world. A lot of people said the colors were too bright, but if you spend a lot of time only seeing shades of gray and sepia when you get outside everything is brighter. The reason why the man disappears when she shots him is because she has mental break down. She cannot accept she really killed someone and here mind just rewrites everything.The dog in the car is irrelevant. She just noticed it because she likes that type of dog (maybe did not have one in real life). The reason the dog appears on some posters is because her mind creates hallucinations. How about the Bishop? This is the complicated part. I believe that originally the game was created to brainwash people into becoming assassins. Also the man at end probably tried to pull her off from the game even on the risk of his own life but failed. The message "welcome to Avalon" can mean either that she is a coma dreaming new levels, or that she just logged back on after killing the man.OK, now let me tell you what I find stupid and proof that the person directing this movie never played a game in his life:1. If they have technology for full VR then they will not have graphics this shitty.2. The random characters on the screens. It is the only thing copied directly from Matrix and in fact is one of the most stupid things about Matrix. Why would they be there? Making images from fonts has not been used for a long long long time. (if you did not have windows 95 on your computer you probably never seen such a game).3. The way object appear and disappear is stupid. Usually there are wreckage and dead bodies in the area for a while. They usually disappear either after a period of time or after you leave the area, never disappear instantly. 4. All the characters in the game are the same. In a real game like warcraft or whatever every character was significantly different and at high levels you would not be able to change your specialization so easy. Actually to change your specialization you would usually have to lose all your exp, and most of other stats.5.scenes repeated continuously and boring scenes like her cutting vegetables... really? was this interesting for anyone?6. No matter how realistic a virtual world is, usually the AI of the NPC is sacrificed. This means that doing something totally unexpected to a NPC (for instance kiss a waiter or punch it) will cause an strange and unrealistic response.I has high hopes for the movie. SAO-sword art online (at least the first part) was a great implementation of the virtual reality game idea.

When is an Asian film not an Asian film? When I finished watching Mamoru Oshii's ("Ghost In The Shell", "Patlabor 2", etc) movie, "Avalon", I was surprised to find it filmed in Poland with a Polish cast. Not only that, but the English writer Neil Gaiman wrote part of the screenplay. "Avalon" certainly has a mixed pedigree but is certainly one of the best films I've seen in recent years.Imagine "The Matrix" and "eXistenZ" mixed with a good measure of Japanese and European film styles and you have the feast that is "Avalon". The opening sequence to this movie is simply jaw dropping...this movie uses CGI in a way that is both original and highly effective. I am still gobsmacked by the action on the screen...simply brilliant.The plot revolves around virtual reality gamers in a distant and very grey future where success in computer battles leads to financial rewards and a hope of some creature comforts. Gaming is not without risks - many players suffer brain death by becoming trapped in the imaginative worlds created for their pleasure. The main character, Ash, is a beautiful woman who has become an extremely successful player and who now wants to access a higher level than the other competitors. This level is almost mythical amongst gamers and many fear to attempt entry as the stakes are high....I won't say anymore about the storyline as this film should be discovered and I don't want to spoil any surprises. What the film offers is visuals that are amazing...I've criticised the use of CGI before but the effects in "Avalon" are, in my humble opinion, far more successful than those in "Attack of the Clones" and other Hollywood fodder.The film also has the most incredible soundtrack...I can't recommend it enough. Beautiful.If you like your science fiction dark and gritty, this may be the movie for you.9/10 on the DVD Connoisseur Score-O-Meter....

I've watched this film a few times now and the end remains confusing, and I've come to the conclusion that this is quite deliberate. Visually stunning, cerebral, and richly rewarding, this film is best considered as a comment rather than a story, an examination of the blurring boundaries between the world we live in and the world we create for ourselves. Essentially, 'Avalon' is an essay on the nature of reality, designed to provoke questions rather than answer them, packaged beautifully as a deep, compelling, and highly innovative film. If you're looking for some explosion filled escapism, you should probably leave this film on the shelf. On the other hand, if you want your movies to engage and stimulate you, and you enjoy beautiful cinematography, then 'Avalon' will not disappoint.

I've passed this one over too many times. It always hooks me, but I'm too impatient. Now I have to get it for keeps.This is a unique gem. I'm concerned, as others have already suggested, that the people who were involved in this movie will not be recognized for what they have done. This is such special magic.What made me come back and take another look at this was a chance viewing of another often-misunderstood gem, "Vampyr" (1932). I see many similarities: the slow pacing, the sullen and underplayed characters, the unusual lighting and camera-work, the haunting, creepy feeling one is left with for *weeks* after. It seems to me that either (or better yet, both) of these movies are a one-stop film-making class. So many unusual techniques, so many encouragements to experiment without restraint.Well worth the time and intellectual excersize.