Movie Review: Avatar

Let me first start off by saying that when I was going into the theatre to see this film,I really wasn't expecting much. I was going out on a date with my girlfriend Amanda and the hottest topic of discussion for movies at the time was Avatar. We figured it would be fun to see since it's in 3D,but we weren't expecting much more than "fun". Boy,was I surprised! Yes the movie is a hell of alot of fun,but it's also a pretty damn good movie!!I wasn't expecting much since I'm usually always let down by the big blockbusters. Films like Transformers,Twilight,X-men Origins:Wolverine and many others I have found to be pretty horrible. Not in this case. Anyways,on to the review.

This film stars Sam Worthington (from Terminator:Salvation and the upcoming Clash of the Titans),Sigourney Weaver(C'mon,everyone knows her),Michelle Rodriguez(Resident Evil,The Fast and the Furious),Giovanni Ribisi (Boiler Room,The Other Sister),Joel David Moore (DodgeBall,Hatchet),Zoe Saldana(Vantage Point,Star Trek) and Stephen Lang (Public Enemies,The Men who stare at Goats). So it's pretty much an all star cast and they all do a wonderful job,but I have to say my two favorites are Zoe Saldana and Stephen Lang.Zoe plays the main Na'vi character as well as the love interest and Stephen Lang plays a colonel who turns out to be one of the best villians I've seen in recent cinema. Everyone else,of course,puts in really great performances as well.

The story is set in the year 2154 on Planet Pandora.Pandora is home to an ancient tribe known as the Na'vi,a race of indigenous blue humanoids who are approximately 10 feet tall,dwarfing most humans.The humans come to Pandora to mine for a precious mineral,and as it turns out,the greatest reserve of minerals happens to lie underneath the Na'vis main village. The marines try to handle the situation politically and peacefully by sending humans into the Na'vi village as avatars,donning a Na'vi body. So the humans are actually laying in a sort of pod using their brain functions to control the avatars.Sam Worthington,who plays the main character, is a wheel chair burdened marine who is the first person to be successful in infiltrating the Na'vi village and becoming one of them.Sigourney Weaver plays the head scientist who is their to lead and support him every step of the way. Michelle Rodriguez and Joel David Moore both play fellow marines. Michelle Rodriguez is a pilot while Joel David Moore is alongside Sam Worthington donning an avatar.Giovanni Ribisi plays the head boss of the marine corporation and his main intent is to drive the Na'vi out so he can get his precious minerals.Zoe Saldana plays the main Na'vi character,one of my favorites in the film.She does an amazing job with all of the motion capture and voice work.And last,but certainly not least is Stephen Lang,the second in command colonel leading the mining expedition. He gives such an incredible performance as a ruthless soldier who will do anything to get what he wants and to get the job done.Overall, everyone does a really good job in this movie. The only complaint I might have is with Michelle Rodriguez. She's not really bad,but some of her dialogue is pretty cheesy.While I'm talking about complaints,there is one other thing I have to talk about. The story. I won't give anything away, but when you watch this film, you'll find out it's VERY predictable. There are some twists and turns,but most people who watch films on a daily basis will more than likely know what will happen next. If you've seen Dances with Wolves,you'll know exactly what to expect. It's pretty much a by-the-books action film that turns out to have many incredible performances,amazing CGI and 3D effects and a story that is actually pretty emotional,although predictable.James Cameron,the director of this film,did an amazing job. He's been working on it for 15 years now,since 1994, and the production of this film cost approximately 500 million dollars!! And as crazy as that sounds,the movie did so well in theatres that they have already trumped that price mark and have turned a profit on the film! Which is pretty awesome because they havent even gotten to dvd sales yet! Good for Cameron. He's earned it. He simply cannot make a bad film. And all the films he has made have been HUGE blockbusters. Terminator,Teminator 2:Judgement Day, Aliens (the last two films happen to be some of the best sequels ever made.Good on ya,Cam),True Lies,Titanic and now Avatar. Wow. What an awesome job history!!

Thank you Cameron. You have scored big time again. I give Avatar an 8 out of 10. An amazing science fiction/action film filled with great characters,eye candy visuals and some pretty badass action moments. The only thing holding this film back from a 10 is some of the acting is a tad cheesy and the story is very predictable and has been highly overused in other films.Other than that, I loved it. It's still in theatres,so if you haven't seen it yet,I highly recommend you check it out. If you do,make sure you go see it either in imax 3D or in regular 3D. I'm sure it's still a great film in 2D,but the 3D effects are pretty damn sweet. Thanks for reading!!! New episode of MRTYWAGM will be up later on this week!! Later guys.

David