I've seen several reviews complaining that the storyline is a bit thin. This is not a film looking to wow us with an in-depth multi-layered storyline. Some of the greatest movies don't try to, deeming that pitting good vs evil is enough. But I'm not about to say the graphics make this movie what it is either. There is story but it's not in-your-face. For one thing, the film contains the story of the native Na'vi and their coexistance with, nay, dependence on, their ecosystem. There has been some serious imagination behind the world of Pandora. But I think the true magic of 'Avatar' is in the conflict of taking sides because it is a story that effects all of mankind every day. How on Earth (or, on Pandora) did James Cameron manage to get us to root for the alien race and view our own as the badguys? I think this is because it's not about Na'vi vs Human. It's about our two sides of human nature at war. The Na'vi, and certainly the protagonist Jake Sully, represents our innate caretaker, the gardener, the nurturer, the protector, the defender. That part of us that wants to sow, to care, to reap, and sow again. Meanwhile, the majority of the human cast flying and marching in in their war machines represents the sinful aspect of our nature - the one that steals, that wants, that greeds, that seeks its own interests. Clearly, there are also strong messages about Western foreign policy in our unending need to 're-educate' natives of other lands and take their valuable resources while we're out it, scoffing at any suggestion that our way isn't the best way. Whoever is not understood is deemed primitive. Whoever defends their land is deemed a savage. Along the way, we sacrifice the one thing we cannot lose - our own planet. Such terms as "shock and awe" and "fight terror with terror" were rather deliberate. I wonder if this would anger particularly patriotic types, but sentimentality is no excuse - film makers are allowed to make statements through their medium just like any other kind of artist can.
Yes, I cheered when the Americans got tossed into cliff sides and blown up.
I still feel strongly emotional tied to this film even hours after seeing it. I feel like I want to get back in there and see more, despite it's lengthy 2 hrs 40 minutes (and I should mention, not once did I feel any of it dragged.) Maybe I too have grown fond of this fictional planet!
This is one of the best movies of this year; it has a most fantastic soundtrack (that includes the effects), gorgeous visuals, moving and gripping story and action sequences, and the technology behind every aspect of this film has been put to stunning use. You should not leave this till it hits DVD or the telly. Do not download a rip and watch on your home entertainment system or PC or whatever. Cameron intended us to go see it at its best. I fully anticipate I'll be making a return journey before it leaves the theatres.
