a triumphant return, and a milestone in cinema.

Rating: 8/10 (22 December 2009)

OK, so , i take all the comments made by critics concerning narrative and character, and in no small way, they are completely right. There are sections of the film, that area little winceworthy, and the less than original underbelly of this story feels laboured at times. There are snippets of fortune cookie enviro-preachy dialogue, and chanty arm waving tribal schmaltz. BUT, and this is the mother of all BUT'S, It is possibly the most insanely beautiful thing, my eyes have ever experienced.
The detail and production design is UTTERLY staggering in it's complexity.
And to be honest, what are the critics expecting? how often does a film deliver in every single aspect flawlessly? It's a sliding scale, i wasn't expecting Jarmusch monologues, and what Cameron has achieved here is absolutely UNIQUE. I work in cg, i see it every single day of my life, and as such am intensely critical of the technical side of this kind of spectacle. I had my reservations before i went in, I had tempered my expectations, and just settled in for the ride. But the sneaking suspicions i'd had, in the back of my mind, were entirely confirmed. You NEED to se this film in 3D, i simply cannot stress this enough.
From the first frame of jake sully waking up in the shuttle, i was entirely sold. The immersive depth you get in frame is incredible, you are literally in the picture. And kudos to Cameron for never letting things break the edge of the screen, it keeps the effect sincere and never gimmicky.
The motion capture technology developed for the film, is really the star, you get "almost" flawless performance capture from actor to cg counterpart. The "uncanny valley" as it's known is closing up rapidly. And while it's still not 100% it is closer than we've ever been. And as a result, the first time genuine emotion is really captured and felt. Everything from the fully thought out, thriving ecosystem of pandora to the classic Cameron military hardware is spectacular on a level never before seen on screen. I was never a fan of the Na'vi designs, it felt like starwars meets the smurfs, but when you actually start watching the film, it just works. It's all so organic, the transition and contrast between the human and alien worlds is perfect. I'm sure it still won't be for everyone. But i would urge people on the fence to give it a shot, i think Cameron's pedigree has earned him a smattering of trust.
As for this being the "future", and the film being heralded as "game changing". Well, it's a difficult question. 3d when used like this, is absolutely the next level, but it does make me think, how many directors out there could make something like this. For 3d to truly gain momentum, and solid foundations as the mainstay of big budget Hollywood, the studios will have to notch up quality control to a level that currently, is nonexistent. They would have to completely reverse the chop-shop mentality, so pervasive in modern blockbusters. And i'm not sure that's going to happen overnight.
All in all, still trying to process all that i saw, but it really was an experience. which, is the whole idea. Get people back in the cinema, by showing them something they cannot see anywhere else. And it works.