So you think you're hot stuff? Watch this movie and be humbled

Rating: 9/10 (20 December 2009)

My first thought was, the 3-D isn't as good as I was led to believe, but then something straightened out. I'm not sure whether it was my brain or the screen, but either way the problem cleared up fairly quickly. (Though pretty entertaining I don't think the movie is going to suffer much from begin watched in 2-D.) My second thought was, everyone who fancies himself a little above average or more in intelligence should be forced to watch this film. If you're right, you will come away convinced you've been touched by the work of someone far more intelligent than you. If you don't feel that way, you're initial assumption was clearly wrong.
This film is not miraculous in an off-putting sort of way. It is geared to reach the average American mind. The thing is, I remember having similar sentiments as this film, years ago, and I would have bet anything that getting ordinary Joes to sympathize with its point of view was an exercise in sheer futility. That to me is the real mark of genius in this film, that James Cameron was able to make it so that no one is likely to escape being confronted with its message, though whether they believe it or not, I can't say. The whole of my own belief about this country's foreign policy to date is stated fairly simply in a very few words. It begins with: "We want something someone else has..." There's no doubt in my mind many won't care, but this film will stir the optimism of the rest of us about there being sufficient numbers of those who do care to make a difference.
Everyone in this film does an exemplary job. There's a slight skip of a beat in the middle but, if it hadn't been there, I might very well have stumbled out of the theater totally disoriented, unable to snap back into my humdrum life.
What a stunning accomplishment!