The movie event of 2009 is here: does "Avatar" live up to the hype?

Rating: 9/10 (2 January 2010)

At last, three weeks after its original release date, I have managed to see Avatar. The hype for this movie was unbelievable as many claim that it is revolutionary and will change the future of film-making; while it is not yet clear exactly how much of an impact Avatar will have on the industry in the long-term, as entertainment and a theater experience, it is more than satisfactory.
Of course, the most prominent and talked-about element of the movie is its phenomenal special effects. For probably the first time in film history, a director has seamlessly integrated CGI, animation and live-action and particularly in 3D, the result is a fully immersing experience, the sensation that the viewer has been transported from the movie theater and into the fantastical world created by James Cameron and his crew. With an array of interesting creatures and vibrant, breathtaking landscapes, Pandora becomes alive on-screen and a sense of wonder and mystery lingers throughout the movie as the audience explores this fictional planet along with the characters.
However, no movie can truly be good without an engaging story and interesting characters worth rooting for (or against). Thankfully, though the plot is hardly the most creative or unpredictable one out there, Cameron, who wrote the screenplay in addition to directing, does an admirable job. At the core of the story is Jake Sully, an ex-Marine who is recruited to participate in an avatar program used for both corporate business ventures and scientific research. This character could easily have become a caricature - the ignorant outsider who turns into a martyr for the oppressed natives - but Sam Worthington imbues Jake with a sort of zeal and curious yet brash swagger that makes him human and, ultimately, a very sympathetic protagonist. Any other actor might have made Jake too bitter and cynical at the beginning of the film and, post-transformation, too self-righteous and altruistic. But Worthington takes a more subtle approach, using body language and minute changes in his facial expression to convey the thoughts and emotions of his character. He makes Jake's transformation believable and natural.
Although Sam Worthington gives the movie's most impressive performance, the rest of the cast provides strong support for him. Many roles, especially Sigourney Weaver's Dr. Grace Augustine and Stephen Lang's Colonel Miles Quaritch, present several opportunities for the actors to do a little scenery-chewing, but they all show a reasonable amount of restraint, allowing the focus to stay on Jake and whoever else is important to a given scene. Though one might think that the heavy use of motion-capture and the fact that, much of the time, the only characters on screen are ten-feet tall and blue would detract from the effectiveness of the performances, the personalities of the characters are in no way diminished or obscured.
The film's main flaw is its length, which clocks in at two hours and forty minutes. Some of the initial freshness is lost by the end, which mostly consists of elaborate battle sequences. It is not that there are extraneous scenes, but instead, a more effective solution would be to pick up the pacing towards the end and trim, rather than cut entire scenes out. In addition, some have criticized the movie for not having an entirely unique story, and their comments are, to a point, valid since the basic plot is something we've seen many times before in movies like Dances with Wolves and The Last Samurai. Yet, somehow, all of this seems beside the point. One of Cameron's greatest strengths as a director has always been his ability to make movies that transcend clichés and that engage and entertain regardless of how often similar stories have been told.
Nonetheless, while Avatar is not my favorite movie of 2009, it was certainly an engrossing and even enriching experience. By inventing a whole new world and populating it with realistic, fascinating inhabitants, James Cameron has taken full advantage of the capabilities of film-making, weaving together a story that is simultaneously moving, thrilling and enchanting. More than anything, Avatar is a reminder of the marvels and beauty of life, as well as the horror and devastation of war.