Avatar

A thrill ride to remember, Avatar is a pioneering film which utilizes unprecedented technology to communicate a futuristic tale of cowboys and Indians. Avatar tells the tale of ex-marine Jake Sully (played by Sam Worthington), who enters a surrogate body as a means to learn more about the indigenous “Na’vi” community and their soil, which is ridden with valuable natural elements. Initially it is Sully’s goal to relocate the Na’vi as a means to make their natural elements accessible to American investors, but his interest in Neytiri (portrayed by Zoe Salanda), a Na’vi native, and his eventual understanding of the Na’vi culture give him second thoughts.

With relatively cliché story elements, the plot of Avatar is little more than an animated allusion (with poor social commentary to boot) upon our present day war in Iraq over natural resources. It is the process through which this narrative is communicated, not the narrative itself, that makes Avatar memorable, and in many cases, pioneering. With the use of unprecedented three-dimensional technology, combined with motion capture elements and special effects that could scare George Lucas up a tree, Avatar is unlike anything anyone has ever seen before. Much like the success of the original Star Wars trilogy, Avatar relies heavily on its delivery (and less on its content) for its financial, and in this case, critical success.

Unlike many traditional blockbusters of 2009, Avatar is able to maintain its novelty and excitement past the initial explosions and car chases (or in Avatar’s case, “Toruk” chases… just wait, you’ll know exactly what I’m referring to once you see it). Avatar’s ability to remain interesting past its generic plot and mediocre acting exists solely in its technology and visual elements. To put it in perspective, when I first saw the film, I felt as if I finally understood what it was like for moviegoers in the 1920s witnessing their first “talkie.” Avatar is so new, even in this day and age of ever evolving technology, that it is almost certain to surprise you from frame one, no matter how many times your friend told you it was “awesome,” or how many 2D trailers you’ve seen on the internet.

When you finally decide to pony up the dough, and devote the saga-like three hours to whiteness the mind-blowing culmination of A Bug’s Life and Star Wars on steroids, do yourself a favor and spend the extra couple bucks to whiteness the epicness we’ve come to know as Avatar on IMAX 3D. Does Avatar deserve to be nominated for every Academy Award ever conceived, probably not, does it deserve to win the better-known albeit lesser recognized award of “Best Movie Ever Made-” most definitely, at least in comparison to the other titles of 2009.