Summary
James Cameronis considered one of the best contemporary filmmakers, particularly for his ability to use visual effects and CGI with such nuance and impact in his movies.He got his start in the early 1980s and established himself in the action and thriller genres,which were exploding in popularity during this period, as the blockbuster was becoming a mainstream phenomenon. As his career has risen to extreme heights of fame and success, Cameron has been given large budgets to fuel his experimentation with the future of filmmaking, especially in the realm of special effects.
Cameron brings every project to new visual heights, even when they’re rooted in reality.
Cameron’s films are great examples ofolder movies with CGI and effects that have aged well, ashe understood early on how to use emerging technology correctlyand use practical tricks to make them look even better. Additionally, this skill makes Cameron’s modern projects all the more engaging and impressive. While the films that come to mind when talking about Cameron are typically in theAvatarfranchise, there are plenty from early in his career that should be remembered for their contributions to moviemaking. Cameron brings every project to new visual heights, even when they’re rooted in reality.
8 Times James Cameron’s Movies Massively Changed Hollywood
James Cameron is one of the greatest innovators and most bankable directors in Hollywood, having changed the game over the course of his career.
10The Fall Of Hometree - Avatar (2009)
One of the biggest emotional losses of the film.
It’s an intense sequence of light, color, and sound when the humans bomb the tree and destroy the sacred home of the Na’vi.
For younger generations, their introduction to Cameron as a filmmaker might have been the firstAvatarmovie in 2009, when Cameron made history with his use of motion capture technology. Up until the release ofAvatar, most motion-capture movies had looked immediately dated and uncanny, but even years later,Avatarstill looks visually engaging and impressive. It’s difficult to pick only a few moments fromAvatarthat stand out, butthe stunning look of the battle when Hometree is bombed, coupled with the emotional impact, makes it unforgettable.
The scale of Pandora as a setting is incredible, and Hometree was remarkable to witnessboth inside and out throughout the film. It’s an intense sequence of light, color, and sound when the humans bomb the tree and destroy the sacred home of the Na’vi. The moment is a bloody and brutal battle that drives home the overall themes and message ofAvatar. TheupcomingAvatarmovie sequelswill likely continue this trend of heartbreaking but astounding environmental devastation, as Cameron is in conversation with the issue of climate change.
Avatar
Cast
Avatar is a 2009 science fiction film directed by James Cameron. Set in the 22nd century, it follows a paraplegic Marine sent to the moon Pandora on a mission. He becomes conflicted between his orders and defending the indigenous Na’vi civilization.
9T-1000 Morphing - Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)
AlthoughThe Terminator, Cameron’s first movie in the franchise, had amazing visual effects and a terrifying villain in Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Terminator, the sequel raised the stakes beyond belief.Terminator 2: Judgment Daysuccessfully flipped the script and allowed the Terminator to be the good guy this time around, creating an even more unsettling and powerful antagonist. This came in the form ofT-1000, an even more advanced Terminator with the power to shift and adapt to his surroundings,which led to innovative advancements in the character’s aesthetic and abilities.
T-1000 is made of liquid metal, a feature that comes in handy when it is chasing John, Sarah, and the original Terminator. Shape-shifting has always been an intriguing power in speculative fiction, but it’s often reserved for fantasy rather than sci-fi. All of this changed whenCameron introduced the concept of liquid metal and created a technological reason for a creature or entity to alter its appearance.The result is a scene in which T-1000 morphs into the shape of different people and easily passes through metal bars like they’re made of air.
Terminator 2: Judgment Day
Terminator 2: Judgment Day is a sci-fi action film directed by James Cameron, set ten years after the original. It chronicles a new effort to eliminate future rebellion leader John Connor, despite a reprogrammed terminator dispatched to safeguard him.
8The Water Alien - The Abyss (1989)
The film features a water entity that was a precursor to later work.
It’s not just the underwater sequences that are notable in the sci-fi thriller that won the Academy Award for Best Visual Effects.
Cameron would revisit similar themes to those he focuses on inThe Abyssin later work. However, his interest in water and playing with underwater shooting is obvious inThe Abyss. However, it’s not just the underwater sequences that are notable in the sci-fi thriller that won the Academy Award for Best Visual Effects. When the characters get to the bottom of the ocean, they discover something much more sinister than the sunken submarine they’re searching for. Instead,they encounter a form of alien life in the water’s depths.
This alien is beautiful and a little bit terrifying, but it soon becomes clear that it isn’t the non-terrestrial intelligence, or NTI’s, that the crew has to worry about. It’s the other humans who pose the biggest threat to the crew’s safety and the protection of the world. When viewed through this lens, it’s even easier to be blown away and entranced bythe rising funnel of water, which can take on different shapes and move like a person.Though the plot ofThe Abysscan be a little overwrought, the same can’t be said for the visual effects.
The Abyss
The Abyss is James Cameron’s fourth feature film and his second water-themed movie. Starring Ed Harris, Michael Biehn, and Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, the 1989 drama that revolves around a team of oil workers and Navy SEALs who face a mysterious alien race at the bottom of the ocean.
7The Alien Queen - Aliens (1986)
Though the audience might be scared, Ripley never cowers before the queen.
Though Ridley Scott was the mastermind behind the first movie of the sci-fi series,Alien,Cameron took over for the next film and stunned audiences withAliens,the followup that increased the stakes and added even more creatures than ever before. The reveal of the alien queen inAliensis one of the scariest moments in the entire franchise, but Ripley is not daunted in the face of a horrifying monster. InAlien, Ripley only has to contend with a single xenomorph. However, she must face an enormous amount in the thrilling sequel.
Many of the bestmovies that perfectly blend sci-fi and horrorfeature the work of the most skilled designers of special and practical effects. This is because the creatures that typically populate these genres of movies must be terrifying and realistic enough to make an impact on the audience.Aliensachieved this many times over, and the success of this sequel is a large part of why theAlienfranchise is still part of the cultural conversation today.
Aliens
Aliens, released in 1986, follows Ripley as she joins a group of Colonial Marines returning to LV-426, site of her previous encounter with the extraterrestrial species. Having been in hypersleep for 57 years, her story of survival is met with doubt, yet she assists in confronting the new threat.
6The Ship Tilt & Sink - Titanic (1997)
Cameron reimagines what might have happened during the actual sinking of the ship.
This resulted in an incredible sequence in which the ship tilts almost perpendicularly into the air, sending people flying and sinking into the ocean.
Though not as technologically flashy as some of Cameron’s other films,Titanicis one of his most profitable, successful, and sneakily visually challenging. Fromthe actual footage of the wreckage that Cameronand his team caught on filmto the recreation of the ship’s interiors, there’s a lot to recommend aboutTitanicbesides its central love story. While the relationship between Jack and Rose was imagined for the sake of the plot, Cameron tried to stay true to how it was assumed the ship went down at the time the movie was made.
This resulted in an incredible sequence in which the ship tilts almost perpendicularly into the air, sending people flying and sinking into the ocean.The Titanic then breaks in half and is destroyedas it sinks to the bottom of the ocean, leaving the survivors clinging to lifeboats. Though it’s a horrific moment for the characters, Cameron never sacrifices realism, and it genuinely looks as if a massive ship is swinging through the air.Titanicwas another instance of Cameron using water and oceanic exploration as a plot point in a film.
Titanic
Titanic is the 1997 blockbuster romantic/disaster epic based on the events surrounding the sinking of the legendary “unsinkable” vessel. Flashing back to the past and forward to the present, the film primarily follows the stories of the well-to-do and somewhat timid Rose and the poor but lively Jack, star-crossed lovers who meet aboard the doomed ship. In addition, the film tells true and fictionalized accounts of the passengers of the RMS Titanic, with an older Rose recounting her tale to the crew of a research ship.
5Kiri’s Swim - Avatar: The Way Of The Water (2023)
One of the film’s moments that looks seamless but required hours of labor.
Even though Grace passed away in the firstAvatar, Sigourney Weaver returned forAvatar: The Way of the Wateras Kiri. Kiri is the child of Grace’s Avatar and joins Jake and Neytiri’s family. She’s a sensitive character, even by Na’vi standards, as they have a special connection to Pandora and the natural world. This becomes especially obvious whenshe takes to the water like she was born there.She arrives in the water society after Jake’s family must leave the Omatikaya. The quiet and lush sequence during which she explores is one of the best parts of the movie.
Kiri’s role in theAvatar 2sequelmight be expanded even more, as it’s clear that Jake will be phased out as the protagonist of the series. His children and their allies will take his place in the fight against the Resources Development Administration (RDA). If Kiri continues to be featured inAvatar’s most innovative sequences, this is great news for the films. Audiences were questioning howCameron managed to shoot underwater and create a perfect alien environmentafter the movie’s premiere.
Avatar: The Way of Water
Avatar: The Way of Water, set more than a decade after the original film, follows the Sully family as they face threats to their survival. With Jake and Neytiri at the helm, they strive to protect their children while combating external perils and confronting personal losses.
4Jake’s First Flight - Avatar (2009)
His most important initiation into Na’vi society.
While action and fighting sequences are always dynamic because they incorporate so much energy and excitement, Cameron can capture just as much adrenaline in Jake’s first experience flying an Ikran. After getting the hang of moving around in his Na’vi body,Jake tries to climb the ranks of the Omatikaya by learning their ways and assimilating.One of the fastest ways to do this is to bond with an Ikran, a flying creature, and learn to navigate the skies alongside the people’s fiercest warriors and bravest leaders.
It’s a steep learning curve, as Jake nearly falls off his Ikran and to his death many times.
Jake climbs to the heights of the trees and mountains on Pandora,a terrifying and breathtaking journey that allows the viewer to get a birds-eye view of the planet without being inside an army plane. It’s a steep learning curve, as Jake nearly falls off his Ikran and to his death many times. However, as soon as he gets the hang of it, the views are incredible, and Jake starts to realize just how special Pandora is. This scene serves as a turning point in Jake’s development as a character, as he understands there are things greater than him.
3The Jet Battle - True Lies (1994)
Jamie Lee Curtis and Arnold Schwarzenegger team up for a whacky comedy with amazing visuals.
True Liesis never considered one of Cameron’s most critically acclaimed films. However, it does have some merit, especially in the flying sequences and the jet scene. One of the most important parts of using visual effects is that they must serve a clear purpose and be used to elevate the performances of the actors.It makes sense that Cameron would want to partner with an action star like Schwarzeneggerbecause he’s physically capable of handling many unbelievable stunts that are made even better through special effects.
The jet scene has Schwarzenegger’s character, Harry, trying to fly a jet, save a young girl’s life, and prevent them both from being murdered. It’s a high-octane moment that brings the viewers to the edge of their seats until everyone has landed safely on the ground.Watching the jet spin in midair and have people climbing all over it is terrifying to contemplatein real life, and the stakes feel all too immediate. It culminates in an airborne explosion of the bad guys after one of them is sent flying while strapped to a rocket.
True Lies
In James Cameron’s 1994 action comedy True Lies, the spy Harry Tasker (Arnold Schwarzenegger) lives a double life as a mellow computer salesman and keeps his real job secret from his wife Helen (Jamie Lee Curtis). However, she joins him when he discovers a terrorist plot to destroy America.
2The Showdown At The Steel Mill - Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)
In a final battle, the Terminator must save John and take down T-1000.
T-1000’s pursuit of the Terminator and the Connors comes to a head in the final sequence ofTerminator 2: Judgment Day. In a battle in an old steel mill, liquid metal takes on a whole new meaning as molten steel is used as a weapon throughout the scene. Though this seems like it wouldn’t be a disadvantage to the T-1000, the intense heat does harm its body and ability to function. While the Terminator has discussed being outmatched by the T-1000,he eventually overcomes him because the Terminator has tapped into the power of his own humanity.
Watching the T-1000 melt away in the molten steel after Sarah and the Terminator push him in is incredibly satisfying and holds up very well visually.
The incredible special effects come into play because the fight between Terminator and T-1000 is defined by their metal bodiesand their elevated imperviousness to harm. There’s also an amazing moment when T-1000 imitates Sarah’s appearance, and the audience sees two versions of her. Watching the T-1000 melt away in the molten steel after Sarah and the Terminator push him in is incredibly satisfying and holds up very well visually. This makes it even more emotionally poignant when Sarah and John must say goodbye to the Terminator as well because his mere existence is a threat to humanity.
James Cameron’s 8 Most Iconic Action Scenes, Ranked
James Cameron is celebrated as one of Hollywood’s best filmmakers, renowned for crafting iconic action scenes that have become cultural touchstones.
1The Final Battle Sequence - Avatar: The Way Of The Water (2022)
The last act of Avatar: The Way of the Water is a ringing endorsement for future franchise installments.
Incorporating scenes on land, water, and air, it seems there’s nowhere that isn’t the Na’vi’s domainas they continue in their struggle against the invading humans. The connection that Lo’ak has with Payakan, the Tulkun that he befriends, ends up being one of the biggest plot devices in the film. Though the Tulkun are known to be pacificists, Payakan eventually rises to help the Na’vi in their fight when the humans begin devastating the ocean and the Tulkun’s habitat. It’s a clear demonstration ofJames Cameron’s interest in the discussion of when violence is justified.
It will be difficult for the nextAvatarmovie to come close to whatAvatar: The Way of the Waterachieved,but as effects keep improving, there’s little doubt that the stakes will be raised. With so much more of Pandora to explore, the upcoming films will delve into other environmental aspects of the alien planet. While the first focused more on air and the second on water, this means that any of the natural elements could be next.
