REVIEW: ‘Avatar’

“Avatar” is not the best movie ever made. It works from a premise you’ve seen before in other movies, has some problems with pacing in its early acts, and has been hyped to the point that you might be inclined to turn up your nose at it. Do not make that mistake. “Avatar” is a phenomenal work, and as groundbreaking as it is entertaining. Technology has finally caught up with James Cameron’s vision, and movie audiences are all the better for it.

“Avatar” Rated PG-13 • 162 minutes Starring Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Stephen Lang, Sigourney Weaver, Michelle Rodriguez Written and Directed by: James Cameron RCC Rating: Worth Full Price On Opening Weekend

The story, equal parts “green” cautionary tale and anti-military complex, is set 140 years in the future, when Earth has depleted its fossil fuels and is desperate for a new energy source. They find it – a precious ore dubbed Unobtanium – on a lush, green world called Pandora, which is amazingly hostile towards humans. Pandora’s air is toxic, the wildlife is vicious, and the indigenous population – the Na’Vi, a race of hunters nine feet tall – mistrusts the humans despite attempts to negotiate mining rights. To speed the process along, the Earth scientists, led by Dr. Grace Augustine (Sigourney Weaver), have developed a way to brew their own Na’Vi clones, and drive them using a mental link.

A paralyzed Marine, Jake Sully (Sam Worthington), is tapped to drive one of the Na’Vi avatars when his twin brother is killed prior to his assignment. Having a Marine “on the inside” is tantalizing for the company funding the mining expedition, and the hardass running its military detail, Colonel Quaritch (Stephen Lang). Sully’s sent in as a “mole,” to either negotiate the relocation of the Na’Vi living on top of the largest Unobtanium deposit on the planet, or find out the best way to force them to move.

What Sully discovers while living with the Na’Vi is the planet and its inhabitants have a unique connection, and in time falls in love with the Na’Vi culture – and the daughter of the tribal leaders, Neytiri (Zoe Saldana). “Going native” doesn’t please his corporate masters, or Quaritch, who view the Na’Vi as mud-caked savages. This sets up a showdown between the military might of the humans, and the Na’Vi, desperate to maintain the sanctity of their home.

Yes, you can call it “‘Dances With Wolves’-meets-’Apocalypse Now’” if you wish, and you might not be that far off. However, while the storyline might seem familiar, it’s Cameron’s visual artistry and technological acumen that transform “Avatar” from being a derivative work. It’s not just the amazing cinematography and exceptional CG work on the environment (which require multiple viewings to pick up on all of the stunning details), but the Na’Vi as well. The use of digital characters is nothing new, going back to George Lucas’ much-maligned Jar Jar Binks. However, what the “Avatar” team has done is create characters that are just as emotive and full of expression as the actors giving them life to begin with.

In addition, it’s no secret that big-budget CG smorgasbords generally lack any emotional connection with the audience. While it’s sometimes heavy-handed, “Avatar” does manage to get the audience to connect on an emotional level with its characters, lending added weight to the spectacle.

“Avatar” was shot in 3D, and Cameron manages to avoid the pitfalls of most 3D features: the technique further helps immerse the audience in the film, and isn’t there for a cheap “Comin’ At Ya!” gag every five minutes. While the damned glasses are still an issue (they’re more comfortable, yes, but still take a good half-hour to get used to), it’s yet another cinematic tool Cameron brings to bear at a master level.

A few months ago, a former colleague of mine was talking to me about film piracy, and how studios could better combat the dropoff in box office revenues. My answer to him was simple: the studios need to make better movies, ones that people would actually want to see in a theatre instead of ripped off a video camera on BitTorrent. What James Cameron has done, at whatever cost you care to believe, is craft a movie that the best home theater systems would fail to do justice.

“Avatar” gives movie audiences something that is exceedingly rare: a unique filmgoing experience. Detractors who say “it looks like an overblown video game” are talking out of ignorance. This is a movie that deserves to be seen on the biggest screen imagineable, in 3D, numerous times. For once, James Cameron has produced a movie that is worthy of the hype built around it.