Talk about an anticipated release… It’s been a decade and a half since James Cameron originally conceived this movie and realized that the technology didn’t exist to make the film. After more than 4 years in production, the film was finally released for the public to behold tonight at 12:01 AM. I was there wearing 3D glasses in front of an IMAX screen to see what all the fuss was about.
Simply put, Avatar is the kind of movie that makes us want to go to the movies again. So many films come out that make me say, “eh, I’ll wait for the DVD.” Avatar is not one of those films.
When I saw the first trailer for Avatar, I questioned whether James Cameron could sell us on the Na’vi characters, which are indigenous to the planet Pandora. I also had a sense of the whole White Man vs. Native Americans and a Dances With Wolves Aliens feeling. Granted, I think there is still a strong parallel for this in the story, but I was sold on the Na’vi when Jake Sully woke up in his Na’vi Avatar for the first time.
For two and a half hours, James Cameron takes us on an out-of-our-world and into Pandora in the year 2154 while humans are attempting to mine a precious metal from underneath the Na’vi. Jake Sully, played by Sam Worthington, is a former US Marine who is thrust into the Avatar program because his twin brother died and Jake needs the money.
The Avatar program uses human DNA in a genetically engineered Na’vi body to create a neurological link between a human and his or her respective Na’vi avatar. The result is a true role-playing experience with full sensory feedback and responses. The science end of this project is very low key during the film. You are fed enough information to buy into the concept without bogging down the plot with too many details of how it works. The result is a pretty smooth transition because what we really want to see and learn more about is the Na’vi.
The pace of the film is calculated to build to an intense climax. There is something for everyone in Avatar – love, romance, duty, action, betrayal and redemption. I had the feeling of an incredible ride throughout the film. It never slowed to a pace where I found myself pondering too far beyond the present scene. While I wanted to know what was going the happen next, I also remained content in the moment of the story being told. It was just beautiful storytelling throughout the film.
How does he do it though?
Pandora and the Na’vi seem so real. You get the feeling that you are there, or at least that you could go there. Sam Worthington makes a pleasant transition between the human Jake Sully and his Na’vi couterpart – and Jake is Jake on either side of the link.
Likewise, Zoe Saldaña is the beautiful Na’vi woman Neytiri. Saldaña sells Neytiri as a strong and smart Na’vi, who also happens to be the tribe leader’s daughter. When Sully and Neytiri meet, you are rooting for them from then on. It’s a fun adventure that they take you on, and you a gratuitous grand tour of Pandora as a result of their bonding experiences.
You can get a pretty good flavor of the overall theme of the plot by watching the longer versions of the trailers. Personally, I’d recommend to stop reading about the movie before actually seeing it. I felt like I read far too much and saw too much behind the scenes before watching the film. There are a lot of things that I would have preferred to see on the big screen for the first time.
I’ll get to the special effects in a minute, but the real thing that sells the movie is a great blend of the acting and special effects. Without solid efforts by Worthington and Saldaña, you just couldn’t buy into the Na’vi. However, because you believe in them, you feel the empathy for the Na’vi and have no problem siding with them in the battle against the invading humans.
Cameron’s Avatar story is told with such rich details of this other world. Elements of science pushed by Dr. Grace Augustine (Sigourney Weaver) help to ease you into believing that all living things on Pandora really are connected by some biological energy. It’s not quite the Force, but not too far off either. It’s a powerful piece of the story on Pandora that ultimately becomes the key to the Na’vi survival.
Special Effects, IMAX and 3D
Immersive.
James Cameron was right when he said this movie couldn’t be made in 1994. Heck, I just watched it and can’t believe it’s on movie screens in 2009. The bar for special effects has been raised so far beyond what I thought was possible.
The amount of CGI is mind boggling. Even the leading characters are CGI thanks to Cameron’s new motion-capture process. Unlike other movies, however, the CGI in Avatar looks real. I can’t tell what’s been filmed in the real world and what’s been created with computers. I think that’s the bar every film strives for, but no film has nailed it to the level that Avatar achieved.
The IMAX 3D experience was also solid. There were a handful of scenes where the on-screen image had a shallow depth-of-field in the foreground that distracted from the 3D viewing experience; however, I felt that the overall experience was very solid. This film was intended as a 3D experience before principal photography began. A modified version of Cameron’s 3D Fusion Camera System was used by for the live action shooting – and it was bang-on good.
So many scenes put you right in there with Jake and Neytiri. And, I have to admit, I jumped a few times. The 3D just added to the intensity level.
I have a sneaking suspicion that the RealD 3D experience may be a little smoother overall. I know for sure that the glasses are better. I don’t know what’s up with the crappy glasses they handed out at the IMAX screening, but they were rather uncomfortable and set a little far away from my eyes. I’ll update this review after I have a chance to screen a RealD 3D version of the film.
From the "Are you kidding me? department..."
Almost every scene gave you that true feeling of depth so that you feel like you’re looking into the scene instead of watching a screen. If anything, Avatar is a strong signal that 3D technology is here and it’s ready.
Now, can I just get that setup at home?
Also, I don’t want to leave out the music. One of the best parts of the film, the sound and music mesh perfectly with the other components of Avatar to aid in the immersive experience.
Winding Up and Recommendations
Avatar is my movie pick of the year by a long shot. This film is why we go to the movies.
To you, Mr. Cameron, I give you my applause and my thanks for making such an incredible movie. I’m waiting for your sequel. Not necessarily an Avatar sequel, but your sequel. How are you going to top this?
To you, Hollywood, this is what we want to see. Stop the remakes of previously popular films from yesteryear and let artists paint with a blank canvas. Do that, and you just might get a masterpiece like Avatar.
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