Avatar (12A)
Directed by James Cameron
Thursday 17 December 2009
by Jeff Sawtell
James Cameron's Avatar (12A)
Avatar is another blockbuster from writer-director James Cameron, whose record includes Terminator, True Lies and Titanic.
It has been hailed as the most expensive epic ever devised, including as it does the most advanced cinematic technology to date.
Cameron employs this to tell the same old story about conquering a new world, discovering a new fuel and then contriving to evict the indigenous inhabitants.
This time, in this eagerly awaited feature, that planet is Pandora, the energy is "unobtainium" and the aboriginals a race of giant blue surfs called Na'vi who are forced to suffer from imperial invasion.
Titanic broke all the box-office records while being savaged by the critics. Avatar also looks to exceed expectations, despite the critics.
Nonetheless it's a stunning, spectacular epic which reminds us all of the movie magic first experienced at a Saturday matinee picture show.
In it, Dances With Wolves meets Pocahontas before concluding with an anti-imperialist finale worthy of Star Wars.
Obviously, such revisionist sentiments are a slap in the face for the US's policy of ruling the world, especially collaborating with the "enemy."
The Na'vi, hunter-gatherers who believe in spirits inhabiting the flora and fauna, are of course inspired by Native Americans.
Cameron slaps on the sentiment, right down to the great tree of life being given a universal hug.
The central character Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) is a wheelchair-bound marine who's about to be given a new life.
He's to meet his avatar, a genetically engineered host created by Dr Grace Augustine (Sigourney Weaver), which is designed to allow him to appear as a Na'vi, so much so that he meets up and impresses the local chief's daughter Neytiri (Zoe Saldana) and is accepted.
But there are conflicts back at the base and with tribal rivals and they all contribute to creating a multi-dimensional drama.
Imperial policy is ably represented by Stephan Lang playing Quaritch, the general of a merciless mercenary army.
The difference between this and similar scenarios is that the 3D effects actually make the audience feel that they exist within and without the action.
Things don't simply protrude from the screen. They appear to enter from the auditorium, even passing over your shoulder.
The Na'vi are also very appealing and their large, bright eyes illuminate subtleties not present in previous animated 3D figures.
It's a winning combination. Cameron will be banking his box-office takings long after carping critics choke on their cynicism.
