It's the year 2145 (or something close to it), and Earth is in the shitter. We've run out of oil, so we have sent the military, some scientists and corporate types to the planet of Pandora to mine for a rare and valuable mineral called "unobtanium" (yes, don't laugh, that's really what it's called).
Unsurprisingly, the natives, known as the Na'vi (a blue skinned race of catlike people with tails who stand about 10 feet tall) aren't too keen on the idea of their planet being pillaged. So the Earth scientists devise the "Avatar" program, which splices the DNA of humans with that of Na'vi to create their own Na'vi who are controlled mentally by their human counterparts. It's a strange thing to explain, but trust me, it's all very simple on the big screen. They use these Avatars to gain the natives trust and hopefully run them off their land, the center of which is a massive tree sitting a top a bumper crop of unobtanium.
The hero of the movie is Jake Sully, played well enough by Sam Worthingon. Sully is a parapelegic Marine who gets a second chance to be a hero by living vicariously through his Avatar. He is enlisted by cliche hard-ass grizzled army Colnel Quaritch, played awesomely over-the-top by Stephen Lang. Quaritch uses Sully to infiltrate the Na'vi to learn their secrets so he can ultimately turn on them...but as you can guess, Sully ends up falling in love with a hot Na'vi babe named Neytiri (played by Zoe Saldana, but we never see her in human form, so I don't know if she really is attractive). Sully ingratiates himself, becomes accepted by the tribe, and it turns out he has a pure heart, and the harmonious nature of the planet is drawn to him. This doesn't sit well with Quaritch, who decides to hell with diplomacy and launches a full scale war. Sully has to regain the Na'vi's trust and help them defeat the powerful US military before their planet is destroyed forever.
Alright so that's the plot in a nutshell...now was it any good? Yes and no. James Cameron has been tinkering with this idea for close to 15 years and it's finally paid off. Visually, this movie will blow your mind with all the black light enhanced visuals, lush scenery, and awesomely rendered characters. The 3D aspect was as good as any I've ever seen in theaters. It totally immerses you and you feel like you are right there in the jungles, soaring through the skies on the bad ass dragon-like creatures or fighting on the front lines. Amazing, action packed and engrossing, so much so that the 2.5 hours flew by.
But while it's pretty to look at, the movie is very derivative. I caught flashbacks from everything from Return of the Jedi to Dancing with Wolves. The dialogue was especially cheese-tastic, but kudos to Stephen Lang for his scenery chomping portrayl of Quaritch, and Giovanni Ribisi kills as the weasely executive in charge of the whole operation. But unoriginality aside, this movie brought me back to how I felt as a youngster at the movies. Full of action, but also an entertaining story and some true heart. As cookie cutter as the characters are, you do care about them, and in the end it's one helluva way to waste to the afternoon. And oh yeah, it was cool to see Sigourney Weaver reuniting with James Cameron so many years after Aliens, for all you sci-fi geeks out there.
Long story short, if you are gonna see this movie, do see in at least 3D and if at all possible, IMAX. Anything else you are wasting your time because it's the spellbinding visuals that keep you sucked in despite the movie's shortcomings. A really cool movie, moreso like an amusement park ride than a movie actually, that I guarantee you'll have a great time.
RATING: 2.5 out 4
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