20th Century Fox | 2009 | 166 mins. | Rated PG-13
Easily one of the most hyped movies of the decade, James Cameron waited more than a decade for technology to catch up to his vision of what Avatar was supposed to be. The film was to be a benchmark of innovation and special effects; the movie that would change the way films were made. While there’s little doubt that Avatar is one of the most visually stunning films ever made, and computer graphics will never be the same, characters that are often flat, stilted dialogue, and somewhat banal story keep it from being a true classic. However, to dismiss Avatar as nothing more than a visual masterpiece would be a mistake, because doing so negates how spectacular the film looks, and dismisses how much fun the story is at times.
The year is 2154, and after depleting Earth of its natural resources, the human race discovers Pandora, a moon four light years away in the Alpha Centauri—a star system that’s rich in Unobtainium. This exotic mineral holds the key to solving Earth’s energy crisis, so the Resources Development Administration (RDA) creates the Hell’s Gate human colony on Pandora, enlists the protection of the private security force known as Secops, and begins mining the planet. But in their quest for Unobtainium, the humans upset the giant Pandora natives, the Na’vi, who share a deep spiritual connection with their planet; a connection they feel is being threatened by the “Sky People.”
In an attempt to establish friendly relationships with the indigenous Na’vi, the RDA creates the Avatar Program, run by Dr. Grace Augustine (Sigourney Weaver). The program enables humans to enter the Na’vi culture via genetically engineered avatar Na’vi bodies that share a consciousness with their human operators. Because these avatars are hybrids composed of both human and Na’vi DNA, each avatar is telepathically linked to one particular human. When one of the scientists is unexpectedly killed before completing the avatar project, the only possible replacement is his twin brother, Jake Sully (Sam Worthington), a former Marine who now is confined to a wheelchair. Given his background as a marine, Jake is quickly recruited by the head of security, Colonel Miles Quaritch (Stephen Lang) to relay information to him and his squad so they can exploit the tribe’s weaknesses if a war breaks out. Once Quaritch assures Jake he can get Jake his legs back in exchange for information, the ex-marine is on board.
Soon though, Jake’s avatar is separated from the group during a routine science expedition. He quickly learns that that all his machismo and military training won’t save him from the various creatures in the Pandora forest. Lucky for him, he’s rescued by a beautiful Na’vi female named Neytiri (Zoë Saldana) after receiving a signal a sign from the sacred “Tree of Voices.” She than takes him to her father, he leader of the Omaticaya Clan.
Here, we come to what I saw as a big hole in the story. Despite what seemed like a reasonable distrust of the Sky People, Neytiri is instructed to teach Jake the way of the Na’vi people, which includes insights into the sanctity of all Pandoran wildlife, lessons on all sorts of Na’vi rituals and history, and information about the tribe’s most sacred sites. It just seemed really odd to me that the Na’vi people would let go of such a deeply held mistrust so quickly; I guess he just seemed like a nice fellow. Things get more complicated when Jake and Neytiri fall in love.
The truth is, much of the story in Avatar is predictable from the start. However, it is told with such stunning visual and other effects, that it often seems more complicated than it is. Storyline issues aside, Avatar definitely makes you think, and that’s a good thing. I’m sure many essays will be written as to whether it’s a classic or not. Whatever you’re opinion, one thing’s for sure; Avatar is one of the most visually stunning films ever made.
Brought to Blu-ray using a MPEG-4 AVC codec, Avatar looks spectacular. The visuals are razor sharp with no excessive brightness. Pandora’s colors burst off the screen, using a wide palette of blues and greens. The purple streams in Chapter 19’s “A Son of the Omaticaya” are gorgeously rendered. Skip right to Chapter 17 on the Blu-ray, “First Flight,” and you’ll swear you are soaring over Pandora with Jake. I did notice some grain and slight blurriness in some action scenes (I’m guessing this may be a byproduct of the removal of 3-D). Otherwise, this Blu-ray transfer should make Avatar fans very happy.
No one should find anything to complain about with Fox’s awe-inspiring DTS-HD effort. From the opening frames, the surrounds and subwoofer become engaged. The hum of the spaceships engines, the roar of the fire from entering the atmosphere, and staggering amounts of ambiance are all present. Inside bunkers, idle chatter is inserted into all available channels. It sounds natural, not overdone or unnecessary.
As expected, the fidelity has no faults. Everything that audio fans know of modern audio is present, and more importantly, in balance. Even under the most intense explosions or deep, powerful bass cues, James Horner’s score is never lost. In fact, its fullness is maintained better than most musical numbers in films such as this. Dialogue reproduction is perfect, and not a line is lost due to action. Animal roars, despite being pulled from other films, carry weight and clarity.
There are no special features. Instead, viewers are given a personalized code and invited to join an “Avatar” program that will unlock exclusive content, updates, coupons and more. Also, look for an “Ultimate Edition” in November 2010
A standard definition DVD is included.
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