With all of the sexism surrounding his film Avatar (among many other issues with it—including his own interview stating that, though the creatures weren’t mammals, the heroine “had to have tits”), I’ve begun to question just how much I like James Cameron. I always thought he was pretty visionary, using unique ideas and female heroines…but wait—his ideas really aren’t so unique, and his heroines are sometimes pretty stereotyped. That said, like most people, he has his redeeming qualities. I tried to come up with ten, and then just five, but sadly, I could only think of four. Here they are.

4. Avatar

I’ve already written about how Avatar didn’t impress me much, but that didn’t change that it was an enjoyable film for entertainment value alone. He obviously worked hard on it and threw himself into it, which is something that’s admirable.

3. He Casts the Curvy Girls

Though Kate Winslet received an enormous amount of backlash over her weight in Titanic—which was complete BS since she was utterly gorgeous—Cameron obviously made her the film’s darling. With his recent comments regarding breasts, perhaps we now know why—but that doesn’t change the fact that one of the biggest grossing films in history had a woman with a little bit of meat on her bones—and acting chops—as its lead rather than the twiggy stick figures who are often cast instead.

2. Titanic

Say what you will about the film’s sentimentality, lack of realism, and especially its predictability; I will always be a fan of Titanic. It could be because it was my husband’s & my first real date after he turned sixteen, or because I absolutely adore Kate Winslet (see #3), but I think it’s because I really did enjoy watching it, which matters more to me than whether or not Jack would’ve really given up his life to save Rose. Oh, and I love Kathy Bates in just about anything, too.

1. He Uses Star Power for Good

Cameron is an environmentalist (okay, that could’ve been #5--as well as his multiple contributions to technology development...) and is very vocal about what’s being done to our planet. He’s worked on several campaigns, including oil spills, coal industry issues, and the film industry’s environmental footprint itself. Although celebrities are known for paying lip service to charity, I think Cameron is the real deal when it comes to the Earth—or, at least that he really does give a damn.