OK, I get it...

Rating: 1/10 (7 January 2010)

"Ok, I get it." That's a phrase I found myself saying an awful lot during this 2 1/2 hour computer game that was as painful to the brain as it was to the eyes.
First, let's get the obvious out of the way. This film was expensive, in that it cost so much money to make you could solve at least one state's budget crisis with it. So why did it look like it was nearly all conceived on a computer? Not since the "Star Wars" prequels has the "fourth wall" ever been so demolished. Never once did I care about the characters or believe anything the actors tried to do because I knew it was completely artificial. Hell, people still complain about "Waterworld" being overpriced but at least people actually got off their duffs and did some real film shooting! This whole project stinks of imported bottled water and soy lattes. This film is the pinnacle of Hollywood overkill. An overblown, overpriced, overindulgent eyesore of a movie with a "message." Oh yes, the message. Underneath watching the latest in nerd fantasy-fulfillment with its CGI, is a liberal-minded jackhammer drilling into your psyche about the evil of American corporatism, military culture, and rich white men's greed. The noble intent of getting its audience to care about the environment is done in the LSD-esquire rainbow cornucopia of every Native American and African stereotype imaginable, all set to an "oweyo oweyo" New Age chorus that makes one actually pine for the sweet sound of the Jonas Brothers. I say this as a die-hard independent who has as much to say about environmental awareness as anyone with a college education, but the caricatures painted here border on MSNBC-levels of leftist philosophy. The bad guys are the Republican racist military and corporate oppressors, who refer to our heroes as "tree huggers" and the alien Navi as "savages," and see their violence against them as "fighting terror with terror." I'm not kidding, they actually use soundbites from the last decade as part of the script. One character actually refers to the military attacks as "shock and awe." If you don't want to heave from the vertigo-inducing sweep of the completely sterile computer-created world of Pandora, the dialog will surely get you to bending over the toilet cursing the day you ever thought this was worth even half its price tag.
See, there was a movie made very recently that dealt with valid socio-political issues that was full of interesting characters and top-notch CGI at a fraction of "Avatar's" cost. It was called "District 9" and if you haven't seen it, do so and then come tell me what you thought of "Avatar." Because the former film was able to show the evils of racism without painting its characters as one-dimensional caricatures. It showed that greed knew no color boundaries, and that you can combine action with a message and not be beaten over the head with it.
I would advise people to avoid this film, however I know that is next to impossible. This has become the new "Titanic," where seeing it is not only an option, but a requirement with some groups of people. I like to refer to those people as "STUPID."