Avatar, 2009

I do not recall if I have ever seen a 3-d movie. Nope, don't think so.
So I do not have much to compare to. But what I saw I liked. True, most of the film did not seem especially 3d'ish - so much of it was, well, 2d. *grin* But whether it was my imagination, or the 3d special affects, or some combination of both, there was definitely some sharper clarify in the picture. Ironically, what really hindered the 3d effect for me was the edge of the screen - it would be extremely interesting to have watched this in IMax.

But on to the movie itself. I like the way it was shot; vibrant colors, wonderful detail, good sound quality. The CGI was exceptionally good, but not yet perfect. For instance, the landscape was amazing, especially the floating mountains. However, the humanoid Na'vi still come across as fake. I really like how the artists melded the faces of the real-life actors into their creations, and it is obvious that a lot of movement came from recording the live-action. There were enough things, tho, that demonstrated the short-comings of CGI.

The plot was interesting. Not exactly sitting-on-the-edge-of-your-chair gripping, but the same stuff recyled between the "against all odds", small man vs. big man themes as in The Matrix or even many of the Disney films.

Some of my biggest issues involve the "linking". Somehow a humans conciousness is transmitted into a Na'vi body. The films shows a hyperspace-like, almost wormhold-travel transition which would leave one to believe that this "linking" is essentially an out-of-body experience. Aside from that voodoo, the avatar Na'vi retains the special ability to "sync" with living things, which is just outrageous. Another problem I had was with the general dude; his script took him way too far into stereotypical diabolical land. And the profit-hungry corporation guy was a bit too soft and too weak in the end.

I did like the symbolism with the climatic battle between the general's mech and Sully's Na'vi; both avatars, both battling it out, tech vs nature (in a way).

I really enjoyed the performances of Worthington and Saldana; I felt they did a great job and had wonderful chemistry. Of course, Saldana's character was, for all intents and purposes, 100% generated, so some of that chemistry is a bit contrived, imo. Still, without those two, the movie would be a complete flop.