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James Cameron's new $200M CGI blockbuster is set...in Papyrus?

       
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Chances are that you've caught a few whispers about Avatar, the much-hyped film from James Cameron that will open nearer the end of the year. You likely saw the trailer when it was released last Thursday, when it demolished Apple.com's record for a trailer debut with over 4 million views on that day alone.

The ballyhoo is not entirely without cause; we're talking about a film that spent four years in production and utilized new 3D capture technologies – and then Fox Film Entertainment, the studio behind the movie, went ahead and named last Friday "Avatar Day," whatever that means.

Point is that this movie is not a penny-pinched, no-name, hopefully-we-make-money sort of outfit. Which is why I stared in disbelief when I saw the onscreen titles peppered throughout the trailer. The first one hit and I didn't notice. Maybe I didn't want to. But the second time I paused...scrubbed backward...wait a...is, uh...is that fucking Papyrus?!

Yeah. Now, I'm not going to go off on the font. It has its drawbacks, but it wouldn't catch nearly as much ire as it does were it not so unnecessarily ubiquitous. The thing I'm trying to wrap my head around is how Papyrus was 1) recognized as a viable option at the start, 2) green-lit through the many levels of the review process, and 3) finally approved for full-scale adoption. I'm not trying to say that Papyrus has zero worth – just that there are so many others that could have done the job better, especially given the epic sci-fi/fantasy genre. Shouldn't it have been something less weak, less antique? Something unique, sleek, more chic? That would certainly incite lighter critique.

Posted by Russ Maloney 

Comments (7)

Aug 24, 2009
Ben Leivian said...
Well I guess they could have went with Trajan...
Aug 24, 2009
Dan Ritz said...
No no. Don't be shy. Papyrus has ZERO worth...
Aug 24, 2009
Chris Cardinal said...
Yeah, I mean, clearly they should have cut their own typeface for this movie. What's an extra half-million? ;-)

I'm just glad it wasn't Zapf-Chancery, but really, I think Papyrus "works" in this context. As much as Papyrus could possibly work, that is.

The same article could be written for almost any film--whether it's about Helvetica, Myriad Pro, Impact, etc. *shrug*

Aug 24, 2009
I didn't notice Papyrus the first time I watched this until the very end... probably because I was starring at the screen thinking WTF is this?!

If they don't market this correctly, this movie is gonna be major failboat. I thought I was watching some computer game commercial, in which case Papyrus could actually work.

Anyway, #PapyrusFAIL

:P

Aug 24, 2009
Russ Maloney said...
Your argument may hold water, Chris...but perhaps you find yourself holding back because one of your clients has an affinity for the font? Breadcrumbs, baby. Tell us how you REALLY feel!
Aug 26, 2009
steve said...
The font is bad, that's a given, but what's worse is the contour on everything. That's something my mom wouldn't even do.
Nov 08, 2009
Michael said...
It's not Papyrus. It's very similar, but there are significant differences that can be seen in each of the four characters in the word. (It's like the differences between Helvetica and Arial or Univers: small but significant. Arial, of course, sucks.)
Specifically, in the initial A of the logo, the crossbar doesn't touch the right leg, and in the other two, the A is open at the apex. The V has a calligraphic "serif" on the right terminal. The crossbar of the T has less of an undulation. The left vertical of the R ascends above the loop, which does not retouch the vertical at the waist, and it the R lacks the terminating curved stroke

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