Pop Culture Reviews

Distributor: Fox Movies NZ Released: 2009 Genre: Action/Adventure/Sci Fi Credits: Director: James Cameron Written by: James Cameron Starring: Sam Worthington, Sigourney Weaver, Michelle Rodriguez, Zoe Saldana, Giovanni Ribisi, Stephen Lang  Rating: TBC

Nothing could prepare me for the sensory onslaught that was Avatar in all its 3D magnificence. James Cameron really has done himself proud with this one. Avatar is, without a doubt, probably one of the most visually stunning movies you will ever see, period.

The use of colour in Avatar should be one of the most talked about features of the movie (next to the fantastic casting and special effects) because it was the one thing that really gained my attention over and over again. Whilst I was fascinated with the majority of the storyline where a marine (Sam Worthington) takes up his dead brother’s mantel as the pilot for the avatar, a couple of scenes left me wondering about the message James Cameron was trying to convey (good natives versus greedy industrialists after the Na’vi land/minerals?!).

Avatar follows Sam Worthington’s character Jake Sully as he travels to the planet of Pandora after his twin brother dies. Jake’s brother was a scientist involved in the Avatar project where ‘avatars’ have been created using human and Na’vi genes. The creation of the avatar is for the sole purpose of blending in with the native people in the hope to somehow convince them to work with the humans (who are really only after the precious stone deposits that sit right underneath the main home of the Na’vi). So you’ve got the scientists on one hand (comandeered by Sigourney Weaver’s character Grace) who believe in pacification and a more diplomatic approach and the grunts (driven by a wickedly badass Stephen Lang) who think a more aggressive approach should be used to drive the Na’vi out.

Things become complicated after Jake is accepted into the Na’vi tribe and falls in love with the Na’vi leaders’ daughter Neytiri (played exceptionally well by Zoe Saldana). All hell breaks loose after Jake fails to convince the Na’vi that they are in danger and everything goes south from there with Giovanni Ribisi’s character pulling the plug on the Avatar project by sending in the marines to drive out the Na’vi.

The special effects (worked on by the WETA team in Wellington) are really out of this world. You’ll see all sorts of strange looking beasts that inhabit the planet of Pandora as well as the even stranger looking Na’vi. It’s during the closeup scenes that you can really see how much work went into the digital creation of the Na’vi, especially when focusing on Jake Scully in his avatar Na’vi form. The skin blends so perfectly with his own yet you can still see traces of his human skin underneath (even stubble in some shots!)

The casting couldn’t have been better with Sam Worthington pulling off a much better performance than his recent stint as the half-terminator half-human in Terminator: Judgement Day. It’s easy to see why Sam Worthington’s star as one of Hollywood’s biggest and brightest is rising. He’ll be just as good in the upcoming ‘Clash of the Titans’ which we’re really looking forward to. Sigourney Weaver is also well cast and a favourite of James Cameron. Zoe Saldana is probably one of the standout characters for me. Her portrayal of the fierce huntress Neytiri was flawless. She really nailed it and deserves recognition for doing so.

In all, Avatar really is one of those rare experiences that only come along every now and then. It would be foolish for me to say that “Avatar was better than Titanic” because they’re just very different films and stand on their own merit in their respective genres. What I can say is that Avatar will probably be one of the biggest films this year if not the biggest simply because of its appeal. The special effects are breathtaking, the characters engrossing and the plot is solidly written and directed by the master of action movies. What more could you want?