How James Cameron's 'Avatar' Is Like 'The Phantom Menace'
Image Source: CultureSlate
James Cameron and George Lucas are two titans of their respective industries. Both pioneered technology and movie-making into the twenty-first century. They also have many of the same values, being very cautious about the environment and the connections one has with nature and the world around them. Because of this, you can see some of the similarities between them historically and in their own personal work.
Both directors are also responsible for creating some pop culture marvels. While Lucas dominates in creating the Star Wars universe and one of the most successful franchises of the twentieth century, James Cameron’s Avatar is his trying to add his own stamp on the science fiction genre. Their respective universes are similar, as with most storytelling. If one were to look closer, one could see that Avatar is very similar to one Star Wars movie in particular, The Phantom Menace.
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A Planet In Crisis
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In Lucas’ The Phantom Menace and James Cameron’s Avatar, Naboo and Pandora are the central locations of both stories. One planet is invaded by an evil corporation known as the Trade Federation that uses a droid army. The other is invaded by a corporation that wants to mine its resources for its own uses and future colonization programs. From basic plot reasons, we see the two stories already have a similar conflict and similar antagonists.
One could argue that Avatar focuses more on the conflict of the planet itself. Much of the story is focused on understanding the planet as well as how the invaders are corrupting the place. It’s also very Star Wars-inspired as seen in its themes of one’s connection to nature and to the planet.
While The Phantom Menace is also about a planet in crisis, the main difference between the two is that at the end of the day, The Phantom Menace is part of a longer saga. It has to connect with the rest of the original trilogy and needs to move away from the crisis on Naboo. Avatar, by contrast, is able to be its own original story, building its own lore and mythology, and focusing on one planet as the center of the conflict.
Midi-chlorians And Connections
Image Source: Vulture
Both The Phantom Menace and Avatar look into the idea of microscopic organisms and their connection to a mystical force although their mechanics are different. Perhaps both Lucas and Cameron share similar ideologies when it comes to how an individual is a part of a whole, be it an energy field that binds the galaxy together or a life force of a planet.
In Avatar, the Na’vi can connect to the living things on the planet, in some cases quite literally through their tail hair almost like how one connects a plug to a computer. Of course, it is more than just plugging yourself into something. The Na’vi have to be in tune with themselves and the world around them. In the grand sense of things, it is very much like how a Jedi must be in tune with the Force.
It would not surprise me if Cameron and Lucas talked about ideas like this in the past. After all, Lucas himself had talked about wanting to go deeper into the idea of midi-chlorians with a potential sequel trilogy and Cameron probably picked up on it as well. However, Avatar uses this connection as part of the main character’s learning experience as well as moving the story along.
Two Films, One Theme
There are definitely similarities between George Lucas’s The Phantom Menance and James Cameron’s Avatar. Some of this may simply be due to their respective plotlines. I do like to think that Cameron and Lucas are both people of their time with similar ideologies of the world. In many respects, I would not be surprised if they also talked a lot about these same concepts during their time together. Whether coincidental or by design, Avatar does have connections to Star Wars, especially to The Phantom Menance.
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