Avatar: a Dream Come True

When I walked out of the movie theater tonight after 3 gorgeous three dimensional hours of Avatar, I felt as though I was just waking up from a dream. And like really good dreams, I couldn't wait to fall back in it.



Do you remember when you saw Star Wars for the first time as a child? How it transported you to an amazing world, just clean lifted you out of your seats and made you fly through to a galaxy far, far away? Avatar does the exact same thing, has the exact same magical effect.



James Cameron has not been wasting his time in the last decade since he did Titanic. With the $230 million he spent writing and directing Avatar, he has raised the bar for Sci Fi movies and created the new golden standard. Avatar is nothing less than a masterpiece, a dazzling display of colors, creatures, and special effects. He has done nothing less than created a new world, a world I would to visit, even if only in my dreams.



From all of the marketing and the description of a movie with blue people, I sort of expected an animated movie. I was pleasantly surprised to see that Avatar is a regular film, and one that has a gripping and creative plot. Jake Sully is a crippled ex-marine who signs on to replace his brother as part of a science crew on six-year mission to the hostile, but mineral-rich, planet Pandera. His role is to operate an avatar in the image of the indigenous people. Soon, the line between his life as the physically fit avatar and his life as a wheelchair-confined soldier are blurred. There's plenty of parallels to be drawn between Avatar and the US involvement in the Middle East or with the US treatment of Native Americans, but you could just as easily enjoy the movie for the eye candy it offers.



Having the acting and the plot be captivating was an unexpected bonus. Avatar would have had me on the scenery and CGI people and animals alone, with their incredibly lifelike appearance and movements. And although this Sci Fi movie transports us far into the future on another planet with exotic fauna, it depicts nature so lovingly that it makes us want to take a better look at the nature around us.



Avatar shouldn't be limited to Sci Fi geeks alone. There is plenty of action to entertain the general theater going audience. But the violence is fairly tame, with no blood or swearing to be seen. There is also a love story, but no graphic sexuality. This movie was definitely designed as a family movie for older elementary school children. If your child has seen Star Wars movies, he will love Avatar, and you will have nothing to feel guilty about showing them.



If you can see Avatar on a 3D screen, this is definitely worth your while and the extra dollar or two per ticket. This is a world that you want to see in all the detail you possibly can.



I won't say any more about Avatar other than to say that I can't wait to see it again. This is a movie I want to experience on the big screen more than once.



I don't know if James Cameron's 3D bet will pay off, if there will be enough screens or enough audience willing to pay the premium for 3D tickets, but I'm betting that it will be as successful as Titanic and that it will grow and grow as word of mouth spreads. I know that I'm giddy telling you about it, and can't wait to hear your thoughts!