Terrible movie with great effects

Rating: 2/10 (21 June 2010)

What can be said about the movie Avatar that hasn't been said before? It does have great special effects, oh yes, but the acting is below sub par. The movie does not only suffer from actors merely reading from a script, but James Cameron seems to be 'borrowing' from other movies to make this uber movie in his image.
On with the good. Though I did not see this movie in theaters, my TV was good enough to view the visuals and be in awe of the scope of the planet of the Na'vi. From the local animals, to the vegetation to even some of the battle scenes, the special effects were top notch. I have no complaints about the movie from this respect. So, if you wish to see the movie based solely on special effects, see this movie without hesitation, and disregard the next part of my review.
Now the bad. First, the acting is less then spectacular compared with the effects that truly drive the movie. Sam Worthington, Sigourney Weaver, Michelle Rodriguez and even Giovanni Ribisi, all actors and actresses I like to watch and enjoy, were deadpan in this movie while delivering lines, trying to be emotional and even just interacting with one another. There's no chemistry with anybody, no character development, and no reason for us, the audience, to want to follow any of these individuals during their time on this planet out in the middle of nowhere. Had the actors been given better lines instead of tired, recycled, and predictable lines, then the movie might have been saved, but that isn't the case. The same goes with the Na'vi characters. And why is this? Because we've seen them before.
What I mean by this is these characters we see on screen, both "good" and "bad" are direct ripoffs of other movies that are heads over heels better then this movie. Ribisi is merely Burke from Aliens, Weaver is Sean Connery from Medicine Man, the Na'vi are the Native Americans from Dances with Wolves, Worthington is the soldier given a 'second chance' from countless movies to list, and so on. Really, you could take Wolves, cut and pace scenes from Aliens with Burke, have voice overs from Connery, throw in Tom Cruise's character from The Last Samuri and have fight scenes from Starship Troopers and a large dab of great special effects, and BAM, you have Avatar.
But that isn't what kills this movie. What really put the nail in the coffin for me was the pace and predictability of the film. I won't go into details, but there were times that screamed "Hey, we are mentioning this now early in the movie to be used later on to enhance a cool scene" that sadly did not disappoint. This is a classic 'paint by numbers' movie that showed little creativity.
If you're looking for a great movie with great action scenes and acting, go somewhere else. But if you wish to head to Na'vi and watch excellent special effects with terrible acting, then go ahead and put this movie in. But be warned...