[zamler]

Originally Posted by Stumptown

I'm fully aware of the fact that there are digital effects in almost every single shot of any high-budget film made in the last 15 years or so.

If you want to see a film that has extensive CG but does not draw any attention to itself, watch The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. There is nothing "obvious" at all, and it would have been impossible to film otherwise. Some neat info here (video).

Another good example is Pirates of the Caribbean - Dead Mans Chest. The Davy Jones character is digital but it is impossible to tell. Most people had no idea and assumed it was conventional makeup. Actually the Pirates trilogy used extensive digital effects, the cheer number of characters would be absolutely impossible to do conventionally, especially the last two films.

What about puppets, animatronics, stop-motion models? They're real objects, they behave like real objects, and can do just about everything that computer animation can do.

How do these methods behave like real objects? They don't at all, they have to be manipulated to simulate motion, physics, collision etc. and the believability is completely dependent on the artistry. As for them being able to "do just about everything that computer animation can do" this is laughable. Let's take T2, you think the T1000 could have been done with mechanical effects? There are thousands of other examples. On that note, J. Cameron used both digital and mechanical effects for the Terminator films.

I was actually going to point this out. The reason Gollum works is because there is a real actor behind just about every aspect of the character. But through the entire film(s), and especially after watching the "making of" specials, I really think it would have been better if they'd just let Andy Sirkis do it in makeup.

Gollum would have looked ridiculous if it was just a guy in makeup, it would have destroyed the film and everyone would have just laughed at every scene he was in. Do you really think they would not have done a character like Gollum using conventional makeup if they could have? It would have saved a ton of money for starters. You don't put much faith in film makers to use whatever tools are best for the job do you?

As for Avatar, you are slagging off the movie before you ever see it, seems odd to me. Do you have some kind of hate for CG in films? Digital effects are just another tool in the arsenal of the film maker. It is up to that film maker to use whatever tools available to realize the script, and to do it as believable as possible. Maybe you've seen too many Micheal Bay movies?