Avatar, most expensive film ever made, estimated at $280 million.  10 Years in the making from first thought to general release..

Was it worth it?

Only time will tell if it’s remembered as ground breaking cinema, or a self indulgent one off.  I went to see Avatar in 3D, and based on the 3D version of the film I advise everyone to get their ass down to the cinema now to experience something totally new, and hopefully not unique.  What Avatar has done is change the way we view the cinema going experience, this isn’t just another Sci-Fi film, this is a game changer for the industry as a whole.

For the past few years there has been an outcry from the film studios against the piracy of their movies, and rightly so.  They are losing revenue from cinema goers who now choose to download movies and watch them in the comfort of their own homes, as a result they are losing out big time on ticket sales.  What James Cameron has done here is totally change the way we view the cinema going experience and it all comes down to 1 number and 1 letter, 3D.

Avatar represents the biggest evolution in cinema since the introduction of colour.  It simply has changed the reason for seeing a movie in the cinema.  This film has to be viewed in 3D to get the full viewing experience.  Cameron has literally created another world, full of wildlife, Trees and flora that you will not look at as CGI effects, but will simply believe it is real.  Some of the visuals are absolutely stunning, flowing trees and plant life, beautifully illuminated jungle, mind blowing stuff.

The story itself isn’t too complicated, in fact it’s frightingly familiar.  Humans have exhausted the natural resources on Earth, destroyed our own planet, a course we seem to be on right now.  So what does the human race decide to do?  Travel across the universe and reap the resources of an alien world, Pandora.  Pandora is an unspoiled world, full of life, no machines, no crass concrete buildings, just nature, a planet teaming with life.  The planets “Natives” the Na’vi live in harmony with all of Pandora’s animals and plants, respecting all forms of life.

The humans are after a particular mineral that is mined on Pandora, and of course the largest deposit of said mineral is under the Na’vi “Home Tree” which as the name suggests is the Tree they live in.  Much like the way early Native American Indians were treated, the humans decide to plough their way over everything in their path, blow up the trees and leaving a trail of destruction.  They try to talk to the Na’vi at first, but when this doesn’t work out they decide to take the more aggressive approach.

Caught up in the middle of all this we have our hero, Jake Sully, played by Sam Worthington.  Sully is a marine who gets a chance to join the Avatar project when his scientist brother dies just before the mission launches.  The Scientist Nerds have “grown” Avatars, which are basically like the Na’vi except they are grown in a lab and can be controlled by the humans to blend in with the Natives.  Sully jumps at the chance, he is a paraplegic, confined to a wheelchair due to an injury he received as a marine.  In this future its possible for his legs to be fixed, but he can only afford to get this done if he goes on the Avatar mission.

I’m not going to say much more about the story than that, I don’t want to give too much away.  Now, it’s not Shakespeare by any stretch of the imagination, but it does the job.  With a 162 minute running time it’s a long movie, but I didn’t lose interest at any point.  The special effects are top class, as I said already, they are truly stunning.  Trust me when I say you have never seen a film like this before.  The Na’vi themselves are mostly well designed and sometimes you do forget you are watching special effects, BUT there are one or two scenes that just don’t fit for some reason and it does look kind of like a cartoon.  Having said that the world itself is truly alive, with some amazing looking creatures roaming Pandora’s Jungle.

Actor wise it’s the usual rag tag bunch of characters we have come to expect from a Cameron directed film.  Sigourney Weaver playing head scientist, her first time working with Cameron since Aliens.  Michelle Rodriguez playing a military pilot, Giovanni Ribisi playing the corporate head of the mission on Pandora, Zoe Saldana, Star Treks Uhura, playing the female Na’vi Neytiri and of course the previously Mentioned Sam Worthington.  A good cast but don’t expect any Oscar winners here.

I’m not sure how much I would enjoy the film if it wasn’t in 3D, I guess I’ll have to wait and see when it comes out on DVD, for now though get out and see it while it’s still in the cinema.  It’s not just another movie, it’s a spectacle you shouldn’t miss and hopefully more movies will be like this in the future.  Personally I think this is the future of the cinema, movies like this, that have to be seen on the big screen.  Check it out.

Rating is based only on the 3D Version!! Really enjoyed it, a cinema going experience like nothing seen before.  5 out of 5 Shatner heads from me.

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