162 Minutes
Written and Directed By: James Cameron
Staring: Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Sigourney Weaver, Giovanni Ribisi, Stephen Lang, Michelle Rodriguez, Joel Moore, Wes Studi, CCH Pounder, and Laz Alonso
Everything is backwards now, like out there is the true world and in here is the dream. -Jake Sully
Review
No one in the universe has the imagination of James Cameron, and if they do, they don’t have the ability to convey it into the world of film. Not like he does. Avatar was the best film of 2009, and one of the best films to come out this entire decade. Suck on that you haters. You’ll eat up what’s been fed with a smile on your face, because it’s that damn good. Avatar is unlike any movie I have ever seen. Cameron takes a simple, almost cliche story, and makes it an authentic tale about two races, two people, and the world that lives and breathes around them. The fairyland of Pandora becomes a reality and you as a viewer are lucky enough to have been invited to see it through the eyes of Jake Sully.
Jake Sully, a paralyzed marine, learns his twin brother has been murdered. As it turns out his brother is a scientific genius and has been preparing for an excursion to the planet of “Pandora” to transfer his conscious to an Avatar, the body of the native humanoid “Na’vi”, the planets original occupants. When are soon privy to the knowledge that it’s not just a scientific exploration, but a military program with the intent to mine the precious material scattered throughout their rich woodland. Jake is asked by his military commander to find any Intel that would help them infiltrate the precious land, and force them off. Colonel Quaritch offers Sully the surgery to return his legs to him in return, but Sully has begun to understand the Na’vi, and more so he has begun to develop an affection for Neytiri , who has been teaching him the ways of their people and land. An epic battle is eminent, but the trip to get there is gripping.
There are political points of view tossed in on occasion, and for once a very loud distaste for the military that surprised me considering some of Cameron’s past films, but clearly the once idealistic vision of military being our “hero’s” is not present in this film. But thinking on films like “The Abyss” I realized he has explored the good and the bad of military for decades. Either way, whatever your stance may be, his point of view is clear, but it doesn’t muddle or distract from anything in the story. Even with the negative points of view, he still makes the Space Marines kick ass. The Mecha warriors will have you salivating. It’s Ripley gone gun crazy.
Yes, Pandora may have been artificial, but you become so absorbed in it, that you are one with the illusion. It so clearly blurs reality and fantasy that it becomes a real world that you’ve simply traveled to for three hours. For the first time I understand 3D as it was meant to be seen, and Cameron withWeta (Lord Of The Rings FX genius’s) fulfilled and surpassed any expectation that he and his most respected colleagues have been bragging about for a year. Will this change the way movies are made? For James Cameron it will. Everyone else can try and catch up.
The only part that wasn’t fully strong was the plot itself. Cameron, who I can usually count on for awesome one liners, and pretty strong willed dialogue wasn’t as remarkable as I anticipated, though still entertaining, just wasn’t particularly noteworthy. There were moments where you could find yourself mentally noting what was coming next, or predictions about epic moments, but that didn’t take away from the pleasure of getting there. Where the story lacked in strength or even originality it fully compensated for with it’s characters and utterly insane visual effects.
If Sam Worthington isn’t a household name after this movie, I don’t know what it will take to make it one. He was the best part of Terminator Salvation and is also staring in the upcoming remake “Clash Of The Titans”. In spite of all the brilliant other points of Avatar, it was a success because he was the right guy for the role. Handsome, but with eyes opening his soul to you, he was all the charisma and energy this film needed. Another piece of new and different. Coupled with ZoeSaldana as Neytiri , who completely blew me away with her performance through the special effects. Unlike Worthington, we never see her human face, and don’t need to. Her character, her voice, and her movement was remarkably expressive and unique. Grounding this massive film was the talents ofSigourney Weaver. Her face was a welcome each time she was on screen. With subtle strength she played perfectly against Sully’s over enthusiastic childlike behavior. Her character went by the name of Grace, and it suited her role with perfect reflection.
The characters themselves are so passionate and yet tangible. The ability to connect with them and follow Jake Sully on his journey felt like we were learning right with him, which was more or less the likely intent, especially since the beginning shows his pro-military goals. TheNa’vi not only had to convince Sully, but the audience as well. When things do start to go off the wire you are personal invested in a desire for vindication. By the end we understand why the characters made the choices that they did. It wasn’t bullshit. It was real.
Time was nothing in Avatar. It was a journey through an unexplored realm that had for ten years only existed in the mind of James Cameron. The characters, Pandora itself, and Sully’s journey to understand it was riveting. Avatar was the most beautiful, gorgeous, wonderful film I have ever had the pleasure of looking at. The colors, the fantasy, the imagination stirred something in me. This is the reason I go to the movies. Every once in a great while I get to see something that is more than even the great things I’ve seen before, something special, something that makes me appreciate the movies for the art it can be instead of the money making industry it usually is. I thank James Cameron for being the idealistic perfectionist that he is. For being uncompromising in his art, and making movies the way he feels they should be seen. Avatar is a masterpiece.
Good review Heather. You do gush about the movie but it’s refreshing to see someone actually try to look past the few weaknesses the movie has. Reviewing movies does get us to look for weaknesses and maybe enjoy some movies a little less than we should
Whist I don’t disagree with anything you say completely I found the films problems greater than you did. I may have been a little harsh on the film in my review because of the circumstances in which I wrote it. I got home from the cinema (Pizza and a glass of Shiraz in hand) and tuned on my computer and my TV. Aliens was just starting. I wouldn’t normally have watched it, I have the DVD and saw it a couple of months ago. I left it on in the background as I typed away. The problem was I was so distracted by the masterpiece on the TV I gave up on the review until the movie had finished. Aliens is film making perfection. I can think of no way the film could have been made better, and we have to remember the film is a sequel and parts of it are constrained by the original film. Avatar is a good film, it is just not a great one it just relies to much of the amazing visuals and the emotive subject and for that reason it will suffer on future viewings and with age for that reason I have to disagree the film is not a masterpiece but I enjoyed it and I think most people who see it will also enjoy it and that is what movies are really about, entertaining us!
I have a real problem with using Aliens as the prime comparison to Avatar. They aren’t meant to be the same film. Aliens is intentionally darker, and more focused on dialog. Avatar is a character driven film, meant to inspire your connection to an unlikely set of protagonists. While I cannot argue against the notion that Avatar is driven by “Amazing visuals and the emotive subject”, why can’t be enough? I was so drawn in by this story that I almost cried and screamed out loud in glee several times. I haven’t been this engaged by a movie in theater since Independance Day.
Remember, movies don’t have to be intellectual epics. They can inspire your emotions and still be brilliant. I feel sorry for people who can’t be inspired emotionally by films like Avatar.
Independence Day is not the best movie ever by any means, but I gave it a four star rating as well because I remember the excitement and enthusiasm in the theatre watching it. It was more than just an action/sci-fi flick. It was an experience.
I feel like when we are criticizing movies we forget to just enjoy them sometimes. Some movies are more than just attempts at perfection, they are stories being told. Look at the original series of SW? Is that perfect movie making? Not even close. The greatest Jedi in the universe is a whinny brat from Tatooine while his Daddy is force choking people who disagree with anything they say. It’s not scripture, it’s not Anne Rice, it’s not Shakespeare. It is great because it is, what it is. So Philly, I’m with coming with you and the fish on this one.
Trapped in Philly: I am not making a direct comparison between the two films or suggesting that they are any way similar. I am just saying that in my opinion one of them is a great film that will stand up as such in years to come and the other one will not! The fact that I hated Independence Day suggests we have very different taste in movies. I don’t expect all movies to be intellectual epics, I haven’t finalised it yet but expect Inglourious Basterds, Zombieland and Drag Me to Hell to make my top ten movies of 2009. None of these are intellectual epics!
Zombieland and Inglourious Basterds will be rounding out my top list as well.
Basterds is my number one for the year, based on rewatchability. *Spoiler Alert*
The reason I used Independence Day is it shares a populist theme that is specifically written to create emotional conntection and release with the audience, just like Avatar was. However, I-Day uses “cheap heat” to get the connection. The pro-USA, gunslinging type action draws in the average viewer without any real substance behind it. Avatar was the masterpiece of this type of populist action film. At the end of the first hour, the Na’vi are still just savages, who seem to act without logic in their interaction with the humans. If you would have told me at this point of the movie I would be literally cheering out loud for Na’Vi in the final battle (along with the majority of my fellow audience) I would have slapped you twice and called you a liar. The connections were built through character development that created real connections. What made Avatar so brilliant is the work done to create the attachment, and that this is a Cameron film so we didn’t know the outcome. I expected Neytiri to die when she was pinned down. I expected the Tree of Life to be damaged or destroyed by the bombing run. So the relief, and excitement, when things went right was real and expressed by the audience.
I-Day will always mean something to me because the theater experience on the Tuesday it was released was so unique. People were cheering, clapping, giving out high fives. It left a very lasting and vivid memory. Avatar was the only movie since that has given me the same audience experience and I promise an equally powerful memory will remain.
Heather, glad to see Zombieland making someone else’s list too. Our top tens will differ though because three or four of my choices came out in 2008 for you!
Trapped in Philly: I sat through independence day thinking this is cheesy crap, its only redeeming thing was Will Smith who played it for laughs.
That is right! Aren’t you from Australia or something of the like?
I will be curious to see your list. Mine will be posted right before the New Year I think. I’m almost done with the top fifty of the decade. It’s so difficult.
If you see it more than once, you catch more of the great hints and one-liners (although the only reason I saw it again was b/c I wanted to watch it in a better theatre)- like when Sigourney Weaver talks about the Tree of Souls for the first time and says, “I’d die for some samples.” Nice one, Cameron.
I know exactly what you mean about the time thing! It was two hours in and I was like “this better not be the fucking ending! Oh good, there’s another hour.” Normally in a three hour long movie you’re like “WHY WON’T THIS END??”
Quoting someone who posted a comment on my blog, this was a serious, explosionary version of Fern Gully. But it was also brilliant and awesome. Thanks for the review.
You are welcome Mistress. I figured it’s magic would wear off after nearly two weeks after seeing it but I seriously just want to see it again.
Hi,
Avtar movie was really nice i like it’s special effects…It’s rarely less than absorbing and never boring over its nearly three-hour length.
I don’t understand the arguing about this movie. It feels like Titanic all over again. It was technically amazing and part of those special effects made it so great. If the story had been more complex it would have taken away from the beauty of the film and wasn’t that the point? This is James Cameron, not Michael Bay. There was a lot more depth than there wasn’t. I am confused by the controversy. It’s seems it’s more of an argument for the sake of argument. Most critics and most people really did LOVE it, myself included.
I like the Avatar 3D film, particularly the story line, not only it brings a very new feelings however inspiring ideas of humanity. I heard the New Avatar 2 is comming soon, can’t wait to see it again…!