I was shocked by people’s reactions to this film when it came out. It not only became the highest-grossing film of all time, but people were getting genuinely depressed just because a beautiful world such as Pandora didn’t exist in spite of the dangers the planet held for humans as well.
In 2022, we finally got the long-gestating sequel “Avatar: The Way of Water” and that movie even went on to make over $2.32 billion at the box office. At the time of this writing, a fourth and fifth film are currently being shot by Cameron and, honestly, I liked the second film quite a bit so, for the first time, I’m actually looking forward to the sequels.
THE ORIGINAL REVIEW
After a 12 year absence, director James Cameron returns to the big screen with his long-awaited project, “Avatar”. More appropriately, the film should be titled “Dances with the Aliens”.
The film sees Sam Worthington playing Jake Sully, a paraplegic marine who is has been sent in his deceased twin brother’s place to take part in the scientific studies taking place on the planet Pandora. The planet is being colonized but the humans are having trouble dealing with the native Na’vi, a seemingly primitive race that look somewhat like blue-skinned cats and they are bigger than the average human.
SecFor is a company that is also on the planet and they are trying to secure unobtainium, a valuable mineral that is helping to remedy the economic and energy crises that are currently occurring on Earth. The man on site is Parker Selfridge (Giovanni Ribisi), a man who doesn’t care whether the military or the peaceful scientists are the ones who deal with the Na’vi. He just wants his precious minerals.
However, Stephen Lang plays the evil Colonel Miles Quaritch, a man who commands the military forces and would love nothing more than the annihilation of the Na’vi. He enlists Jake to spy on the aliens and learn everything he can so Quaritch’s forces can attack them when the time comes. Jake complies until he learns the ways of the Na’vi and begins to doubt whether or not he is doing the right thing.
Jake Sully, using his avatar Na'vi body must protect the Na'vi in "Avatar".
This is where the wheels of the movie damn near fall off. The film starts off with an interesting concept of aliens and humans possibly learning from each other. Then it turns into “Dances with the Wolves” with the Native Americans being replaced by aliens and Kevin Costner being replaced by Worthington.
The story almost kills the film, plain and simple. Ten minutes in, the audience knows exactly what is going to happen. The film’s predictability and lack of a truly original script shows throughout and, at times, can make the audiences bored.
However, the movie is not without hope. This is one of those rare times for me where the special-effects can actually come in to save the day. The movie is one of the most beautiful flicks to come around in a long time. The planet of Pandora is filled with creatures and shapes of all sizes and they all play their roles in the film. The action sequences are realistic and full of energy. The final battles in the movie outshine any of the problems found with the story as the audience gets swept away into the visuals.
This is no surprise considering that Weta Digital, the wonderful people behind “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy, participated in bringing Pandora to life.
Another great thing about the movie is the new cameras developed to shoot the live-action sequences with real actors. In order to achieve the effects he wanted, Cameron had new stereoscopic cameras developed that helped see what the human eye sees. These cameras did their jobs so well that there were times where it was unknown whether or not the actors were real or digital versions of themselves.
Cameron has always been on the edge of the current technology in Hollywood. Like George Lucas, he is a director that is more concerned with his creations rather than the story surrounding them. Here, it is no different.
One final point of praise. The actors give some pretty solid performances. The two of note are Worthington and Sigourney Weaver. Worthington throws himself into the part and the audience does at least feel for this guy who is being torn between doing what he is told and doing what is right. Weaver, on the other hand, is the tough-as-nails Dr. Grace Augustine. Weaver always tried to play strong women in the past and this role adds to her arsenal.
Despite a story that almost kills the whole damn movie, “Avatar’s” special-effects and strong performances save the movie from its own pitfalls and makes Pandora a planet worth visiting.
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