Wednesday, February 3, 2010

Avatar

Released December 2009

Directed by James Cameron

Starring: Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Sigourney Weaver

First Viewing: December 23 2009 

Roger – 5/5 stars

 In case you hadn’t noticed, Avatar is the movie to see this year. I was looking forward to seeing it, although I was a little worried about the level of hype. How good can the effects possibly be, I wondered, and didn’t it look a little cheesy from the previews?

I walked into Avatar a little skeptical, and left a total convert. James Cameron has worked his movie magic once again, and the man has a pretty good track record of movies.

Within the first five minutes of Avatar, my brain was struggling to catch up to the crystal-clear, mesmerizing effects I was witnessing on screen. And so what if the storyline is predictable? Predictable doesn’t make it bad, and there is no wooden awkwardness here. I was fully invested in these characters by the halfway point. The story is entertaining and heartfelt, and the themes and messages the movie addresses are universally human. Love, acceptance, understanding, fighting for what you believe in…if you’re so much a cynic that you can’t watch a movie with these human conditions, not only will you dislike Avatar, you’ll dislike everything. Not to mention James Cameron has engineered a wonderful, complete world for it to take place in. The detail of the planet Pandora is incredible, right down to the alternate eco-system and animals that come along with it. Pandora is a feast for the eyes. The detail and seamlessness of the movie is incredible.

I mentioned earlier how there are universal, human plot themes, and there are. There is something for everybody in Avatar, and that doesn’t mean it’s mess of different things. No, the movie is seamless from the first moment, and there will be at least one scene that remains burned into your memory, whether it was the effects that amazed you or the emotional pull.

I could say a lot more; I could try and describe the amazing special effects to no avail, or I could try to summarize the plot without conveying the depth. All I can say is, please, go see it, because I guarantee there will be something about Avatar that moves you.

Groundbreaking is right. Avatar is an amazing experience. 

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1 comment:

  1. UnknownFebruary 6, 2010 at 1:53 PM

    I'm probably old enough to be your grandfather, but I have to agree that even for old codgers such as myself...Avatar is fun.
    It's a bit silly, with the bad guys totally over the top in terms of lack of acknowledgement of any kind of fundamental rights for the poor inhabitants of the planet in question...but that makes it all the more fun later on.
    One could find all sorts of juvenile political statements woven within the story line, but this movie is not out to boost a "cause". It's supposed to make believe and fun...and it is.

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