In the same way I like star wars, but i will never defend George Lucas or the racist caricatures in movies he had complete creative control of. And more people should call him out for it.

That is true. And I'm certainly not going to bat for Cameron or these movies or anyone who unironically stans them. Their racist shortcoming should absolutely be central to critically evaluating them.

Fair enough.

I don't mean to downplay the issue, just the opposite, but I think there's room to think critically about movies and also find amusement in things that objectively suck.

Completely agree.

Fundamentally, avatar is trash cinema. I don't fault anyone for enjoying trashy things in these movies, which i think is all Emily is doing, but one has got to acknowledge when something is racist nonsense also.

What was the point of them being blue cat people?

If allyou wanted to make was a colorful vfx showcase, why is THIS the subject?

Ie: whats the point of telling a billion dollar story about indigenous people resisting colonialism, when you don't consult any indigenous people?

Great flick! 🇨🇦

The trouble is of course that society did not grant me or anyone that grace.
Society expects productive tax paying citizens on a short schedule.