I got back from watching Avatar. The film was was really engaging and fulfilling. This is another time in my recent memory that I left the theater without regrets.
The plot is straightforward: Caucasian man encounters natives connected to the ecosystem, becomes one of them, fulfills their prophecy and fights against the ruthless hegemon he used to represent. The film has old-hat characters; idealistic scientists, meathead troops, recusant aviators, and noble natives. The natives sound like West Africans and draw their bows in a contorted way that a professional archer wouldn’t recommend (I took a quarter of archery).
Where other movies such as Return of the King, The Star Wars prequels and Matrix Revolutions fell short in the grand battles department, Avatar delivers in the second half. As someone who has developed the habit of analyzing every shot in a film, An immense number of shots have great detail that I want to study again.
I will admit, I had my doubts about the technical possibilities that the film promised for future projects. I hope that this technology will be used to make films with a plot that equals the visuals. I hope adaptations of Culture or Foundation books are now possible.
I’m looking forward to watching it again in 3D.