Nobody in the Western world should miss this movie.

Rating: 10/10 (21 December 2009)

I've seen a great many movies in five decades of life in this "age of media", and I've seen quite a pile of IMAX 3D features as well. Within the latter domain, this movie is really nothing special. I mean, yeah, it's VERY cool if you've never seen live-action IMAX 3D before. All around me during the screening I could hear the new initiates in the audience experiencing the giddy delight that strikes so many of us on our "first time." But what was very apparent to me as a seasoned IMAX aficionado was the difference between the live-action scenes and computer-generated ones. Though still spectacular by virtue of the sheer screen size, CGI 3D still has a long way to go to rival what IMAX cameras can do.
That said, the tale itself is simply wonderful. Yes, as other reviewers have remarked, it's an old and well-worn storyline. But then, as many film reviewers have pointed out time and again, there are really only a couple of dozen different basic story lines in existence to begin with, so if you've been around the block a few times as I have, they all look pretty familiar in one way or another. However, what sets Avatar apart is that it an essential parable for our times . . . and if you are TRULY willing to look and listen, you will find it resonating within you at a level that goes far, far beyond the messaging of messaging of even the best of Hollywood's standard film-fare. Cameron has a way of reaching to an emotional depth in the sapient viewer's soul that nobody else in cinema comes close to. And upon this power he overlays a subtle yet vital message to which we simply must pay attention. For that reason alone, Avatar is an absolute must-see for all.