10. It’s awesome
9. It’s awesome
8. It’s awesome…
Okay, but seriously: this movie is awesome, and if you’re like I was (until Saturday afternoon) and you haven’t gotten around to seeing it yet, then what are you waiting for? GO OUT AND SEE AVATAR. NOW. SERIOUSLY! It’s just that good.
It’s not very often that I see a movie and then want to just walk right back in and see it again, but Avatar was one of those. And if it wasn’t for having my kids with me, I think I would have done just that. Honestly: I loved it that much. But what’s so special about it? Well, here’s my very own (seriously now) top ten reasons why I think you should go out and buy a ticket to see Avatar right now:
10. The 3D effects. Yes, that’s right: I’m not putting the 3D effects at the top of my list. Now, don’t get me wrong…the 3D is great in this film, and it greatly enhances the action, but I don’t think it’s the most stand-out thing about it. Plus, we’ve all gotten kind of used to 3D by now, haven’t we? It’s a bit like CG was when it first came out…we were all completely gobsmacked by it, and it just gets better and better in each film, until it ceases to be an in-your-face effect and evolves into a more subtle element that enhances the reality of the overall experience. So it is in Avatar.
9. The World. Pandora: the geniuses at Weta (creators of the computer generated animation that won Oscars for Lord of the Rings) have created an unbelievably beautiful and entirely believable world in Pandora (the alien world where the film is set). One of my favourite touches are the bioluminescent mosses that light up when stepped on, but the entire world is beautiful.
8. The Na’vi (the race indigenous to Pandora). I loved the Na’vi…incredibly integrated with their environment, remarkably tall, slender and blue. Those big, round amber eyes. Beautiful to look at, and such nice cultural details. Their customary greeting “I see you” means not just “I see you with my eyes”, but “I see within you, and recognize you as one of the people.” They live in a tree called, simply “hometree”…don’t ask me why, but I just loved to hear them say “hometree” in this movie. Somehow it just felt right.
7. The Soundtrack (and by soundtrack I mean James Horner’s beautiful and evocative score, not the theme song “I See You” by Leona Lewis). Haunting and beautiful, it resonates with lilting pan pipes, birdsong and eerie melody in parts and pounds with tribal drums in others. To me the musical score ranks higher in terms of “effects” than the 3D or CG elements do. The auditory environment of this film is utterly immersive and perfectly supports the visual environment.
6. The Relationship. Yes, it’s a bit cliché; yes it’s a bit Pocahontas & John Smith, but I wanted Ney’tiri & Jake Sully to succeed nonetheless. Hey…formulas work (that’s why they become formulas!) and this one is a success in my book.
5. The “Shero”. Trudy Chacone, played by Michelle Rodriguez is the ultimate tough girl herione. While not the main female character, Trudy is a tough girl with a heart of gold. You can’t help but love her, and oh yeah, she TOTALLY saves the day and kicks ass. It’s not a major role, but with James Cameron at the helm and Sigourney Weaver in the cast, you can’t help but compare Trudy to Ripley in Alien(s). She also delivers one of the most fun (and Ripley-worthy) lines in the film, “you ain’t the only one with a gun, bitch!”
4. The Antihero. A very accomplished film and stage actor, Stephen Lang delivers an absolutely unrelenting performance as Col. Miles Quaritch, ex-marine and now Blackwater-style head of security for the mining company on Pandora. It’s a role that could so easily be overplayed, especially at the climax of the film when Quaritch says, “nothing’s over ’till I stop breathing” (in a scene that was hugely evocative of the battle of the Ewoks vs. Imperial Stormtroopers), and yet Lang manages to pull it off with finesse. You hate him, but you also kind of admire his (greatly) misplaced bravery and loyalty.
3. The Deus Ex Machina. Well, maybe we’d better call it a Mater Maxima Ex Machina, but you gotta hand it to the Great Mother for pulling it off. And to quote a different movie altogether, “that’s all I’m gonna say about that.” You’ll understand when you see the movie.
2. The Message/s. I hate to reduce a film of such epic proportions to the level of social commentary, but this film definitely has some strong messages for us to take away. “The strong prey on the weak, and nobody does a thing,” says Sully at the turning point in the trailer, and it’s true. The human/corporate exploitation of Pandora and their treatment of the Na’vi – “those savages” – reminds us of so much of human history…the European settlement of the Americas, modern-day Iraq and Afghanistan; the exploitation of weaker cultures by more technologically advanced ones for the sake of rich natural resources has been going on for, well, all of human history it seems. Still doesn’t make it right, does it? And speaking of exploitation and natural resources, there’s a strong environmental message in Avatar as well. While the web of life may not be as explicitly interconnected on earth as it is on Pandora, it is every bit as delicate and beautiful. Ditto to the remarks about the entirety of human history and that not making the exploitation right.
1. The Imaginative Genius. James Cameron apparently conceived of the idea of Avatar 15 years ago, but was only able to bring his vision to live thanks to technological advances in the field of cinematography in the last five years. Well, Avatar will certainly take its place at the head of Cameron’s legacy. This film is every bit as high-tech and sci-fi as Aliens, every bit as action-packed as Terminator, and every bit as epic and romantic as Titanic.
Okay, so what are you waiting for? GO SEE AVATAR NOW. NOW!
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Saw it, enjoyed it. (I did the 2 D version as I am still adjusting to life with progressive lenses. I know so lame, just another part of the aging process.)
But I really do NOT understand the Best Picture vote at the Golden Globes.
I’d have picked Precious. Tough to watch but amazing story and acting.
Ooooo, Kath, that is quite a glowing recommendation! My hubby & I are definitely going to see this this weekend (Yay, Grandma & Grandpa are in town). I’ve heard that it absolutely must be seen on the big screen.
Yes. Yes you do.
And for those wondering about taking the kids along – be advised it is VERY long, and if your kids can’t follow the storyline, they WILL be bored. I speak from experience, as my six year-old began fidgeting and asking me “has it been three hours yet?” after about an hour. My nine year-old said she loved it and only got bored once.
As for voilence/action – you’ll have to call that based on your own knowledge of your children and their tolerance for it. There is not much up-close death, bu lots of gunshots, etc. I would rank it more along the lines of Terminator than Aliens in terms of overall scariness – lots of tension and action but no real terror. There’s one scene that infers sexual contact, but it’s a bit, well, esoteric and alien and seems to involve long braided ponytails, so I think it’s a bit too abstract to even be on the radar for most kids.
There is plenty of blue skin to be seen, and Ney’tiri (the main female character) is topless, although she always manages to have a strategically placed strand of beads or vine or other such concealing item.
I HAVE to see it!!