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[Calvin]

Has anybody else seen this film and become truly mesmerized by it? I went and saw it last week and definitely had my doubts. It was being touted as the greatest thing ever pretty much, what with all the fancy new gadgets James Cameron supposedly used in making it. I had no idea what I was in for. The story in a vacuum is essentially one we have all heard before--but these days, is there really an original story idea? What makes this movie so amazing is the setting and the creatures in it.

Simply put, it is beautiful, alien, and real--so real that I felt like I could reach out and touch it, or perhaps one day travel to the moon of Pandora and experience it for myself. It just took my breath away. It is hard to compare it to anything else because it truly seems to be one of a kind, but personally, the last movie that stunned me like this with how immersive and real it was was Jurassic Park when I was a young lad of 8 years. The dinosaurs of that movie were real enough that they seemed to actually exist, and so do the creatures and land of Pandora in Avatar--which is no small feat considering how absolutely awesome and gigantic everything is portrayed as being.

I was not alive at the time, but I imagine that when Star Wars came out it was much like this. I am sure that this movie will spawn its own cult following in the same vein of Star Wars as the years pass, and though the story leaves you with a sense of closure and satisfaction, I can't help but selfishily hope that another one will come out, or that they will turn it into a TV show. I know that for it to be as good as this film is unlikely, but what can I say? I loved it so much I didn't want to leave.

Oh, and I ended up seeing it a second time as well, that time in 3D. It was very cool in 3D as well. The 3D aspect was just right--not overused like it is in some movies.
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[Archpark]

Personally I feel the comparisons to the feeling of seeing Star Wars for the first time are overblown. While this is the best 3D experience out there, the actual 3D itself didn't have significantly more immersion than Coraline in 3D for me.

That said, a lot of the elements of the world were extremely exciting. From the fact that Naytiri is attractive enough to want to bang, to the remarkably beautiful gas giant in the sky, to the bio luminescent flora on Pandora itself. All these effects were really exciting to see with such clearity and made the experience worth seeing in the theater(I saw it in IMax) for sure.

That said, on some level I feel it was a missed opportunity because it was predictable and somewhat heavy handed with it's allegorical story laying broad commentaries about the united states presence in the middle east(which we've heard about plenty from Hollywood already) - and humanity's disregard for the natural environment(which we've heard even more about from Hollywood, and in 3D as well with Wall-E).

Then you take the basic story itself, which is a sci-fi twist on Dances with Wolves. I mean that's really what it is, it's Dances with Wolves mashed with Wall-E and about five different liberal documentaries on Iraq.

The movie itself reminded me a good deal of Peter Jackson's version of King Kong. It's about people in a tropical hostile area with fantastical creatures, sending them running from one awe inspiring visual to another. In that respect, it's extremely run of the mill.

The acting for the type of movie it is, I'd say is MOSTLY way above average. If you look at your standard heavy CGI movie, like the Star Wars prequels, you could certainly do a lot worse. The girl who did the voice of Naytiri conveyed an appropriate level of convincing emotion for the character. Sam Worthington as the main character was passable, though that other pilot guy was pretty sub-par, Sigourney Weaver was a fun character - but some of the things that occurred with her character were kinda predictable.

The bad guy was atrocious, both of the bad guys really. The unrelenting old school military bad ass archetype? Boring. The money-is-the-bottom-line corporate pressure cooker wimp cliche? Lame. The story gave no complexity to these villains at all, and since this is a Suikoden board - when you compare it to the conflicted enemies in the Suikoden series, it just pales by comparison.

That all said, I write all these negatives specifically to say that I think this is the type of movie with just enough established lore and beautiful visuals to garner a cult following, and I just don't think it's worth jumping the gun on since so many of the story elements are borrowed at best or outright stolen... buuuut...

I'd still probably put it somewhere on my top 100 of the decade list, because at the end of the day - disappointingly predictable and familiar elements aside - it has still set the bar amazingly high for a visual experience, you really can't get a better one anywhere in the world right now. I was sufficiently entertained and excited by enough of the scenes to recommend it to anyone.

Sad to say, if it wasn't for the exciting visual action I'd give this thing like a 5.5/10, but as a full package - it is what it is, and I give it like an 8.5/10, but it's not the best movie of the year let alone the best movie I've seen in a while.