20th Century Fox
It has been 12 years since a movie had a credit that read, “Written and Directed by James Cameron”. The last time those credits rolled by, it was attached to the highest grossing film of all time. James Cameron had written the screenplay to his new film, “Avatar” before he even made Titanic, but he knew the technology did not exist if he wanted to create the world he had seen in his head. He had to wait a dozen years for the advancement of film to catch up to his brain.
The film takes place in the year 2154 on a planet called Pandora. Besides being home to the Na’vi, sentient beings, many wild creatures and foliage, it also possesses a rare mineral worth millions back on Earth. Some humans on the Planet are able to control Na’vi avatars. These are genetically engineered bodies that a human can go into a sleep chamber and control. One person new to the program is Jake Sully (Sam Worthington), a crippled solider.
The doctor who invented the avatar program, (Sigourney Weaver), created it in order to learn about the planet with only scientific goals in mind. Colonel Miles Quaritch (Stephen Lang) and Parker Selfridge (Giovanni Ribisi) have other ideas, like to use Jake as a spy to gather intelligence on the Na’vi.
Examiner.com traveled down to Fort Lauderdale to catch a midnight show of the new release. Why travel so far for a movie? Because it is the home of the AutoNation IMAX 3D Theater, the biggest screen in South Florida. The screen is over five stories tall (65x85), the theater also posses a 15,000 watt 6-channel sound system with 42 speakers in the theater. If it is within your means to see it in this theater, this is the best place to go!
The effects are everything you may have heard and more. James Cameron does not use the 3D as a gimmick or an extra selling point, his utilities the format to bring his audience into the movie. There isn’t one “coming at ya” shot in the whole film, but when a ship lands on a platform, it appears if you are right on that landing platform. On that giant IMAX screen the enormity of it all is breathtaking. There is not one square inch of space that goes unused. The entire film was shot digitally. It looks amazing, but there were some moment where the humans looked a little animated, which is odd because none of the many creatures that inhabit Pandora ever do.
“Avatar” is not going to be for everyone. The film has been getting mixed review from critics and it’s not surprising. The film runs for over two-and-a-half hours, and if you are watching it on some small 2D screen, you may feel it at times. Many of the ads for the film make it look like a non-stop action fest like some of Cameron’s past films, but that is not the case. James Cameron has created an entire planet for this picture and he’s not going to skimp on any details about the world he created. That is not to say there is not much action going on in the film, far from it, but for those who thought this was going to be an alien war film, may be in for a disappointing time.
The motion picture is a piece of art in its highest form. The trouble with art is that some people are going to like it and some people won’t. Anyone who is a lover of the independent film, but scuffs at big budget features, should give this film a look because it possesses that piece of art independent film fans go to see. The film was very well received by the midnight audience. Henry Hoyos, who came up from Miami to see it, was so blown away by the film he declared, “I’m going to have trouble finding my car” as he exited.
It took the filmmaker 12 long years to make the movie he saw in his mind. Some television spots for the film declare “movies will never be the same again”, and while this may be cheesy, it holds up to that decree. James Cameron has raised the bar once again. One has to hope he will not take another decade plus to make his next feature, but if he does, it is likely to be worth the wait. The film is rated PG-13 for its intense action sequences and brief language.
