Tyler's Blog Death of Destiny

Avatar (2009)

So, I finally went to see Avatar this (Saturday) morning with my family as none of us had seen it yet. We decided to go see the IMax version of the film simply because it was earlier, hoping that we could avoid the crowds at the movie theatre.

I'll start by talking about what seems to have given the film the most attention: its 3D perspective. My opinion on this was positive, but for atypical reasons. All 3D movies I've seen before appeared as a bunch of multi-coloured, semi-overlapping lines and entirely not 3D. Similarly, Avatar failed to be 3D, or at least to the point that's been described to me. However, it did differ in the sense that there were no cruddy lines this time. So in that sense, I was happy with the 3D aspect of the film.

The visuals of Avatar I thought were pretty splendid. Pandora--the planet the humans are taking over--had a beautiful environment with interesting and well thought out plants and animals. It seems very colourful and intact with its inhabitants. I can see why some Avatar fans are so obsessed with the planet.

The plot follows the invasion of Pandora by the human species, including the attempting displacement of its movie-described humanoid species known as the Na'vi. However, despite its predicted common plot scenario (humans need resources --> humans take over alien planet --> either aliens fight back and win, or humans destroy planet and move on), the plot did go a bit deeper than I expected. Thus, I'm happy with a lot of the things that were included with the plot and I thought it was a good combination of previously predicted as well as new material.

One thing that really surprised me about Avatar was the amount of character development that happened in the film. A lot of the characters undergo quite drastic changes, and I think that these changes were necessary for the movie to be as successful as it is. The characters truly define the plot and setting of Avatar. Even the not-so major characters, such as military pilot Trudy, brought interesting personas into the movie.

One thing that I did notice about Avatar was its similarity to Star Craft (a PC game from over 10 years ago). Although largely typical of futuristic movies with battles, Avatar appeared to have similarities with Star Craft such as Marines, Firebats, Ghosts (in the form of Na'vi pilots), Goliaths (though not nearly as anti-air as in the game), Wraiths, Battle Cruisers, and Drop Ships. I also noticed a parallel between the character Grace from Avatar with the character Kerrigan from Star Craft; although the parallel is limited, I do see those two characters as being connected (that being said, I don't view the Na'vi as being Zerg at all)...

Anyhow, overall, I really liked the movie. I look forward to its release on DVD, assuming they have a 2D version because I don't know if my TV will support a 3D format (and it would suck to start seeing those lines again)... I recommend this movie to anybody that hasn't seen it yet, especially those interested in the human condition, the "role" of the military, and an analogy to our total lack of connection with nature.