___AVATAR Review Thread___

Very true. And of course LOTR isn't anywhere near as CGI ladened as people think it is. An awful lot of the effects were done 'in camera' and using physical props (minitures - or bigatures as they were refered to due to their size). Plus LOTR has a massive advantage over Avatar in that it has a decent plot, which is probably Avatars biggest downfall.

Having said all that, Avatar is worth seeing purely for it's technical genius (I was lucky enough to see it last week). It is game changing in the way it pushes 3D and CGI right to the cutting edge. The CGI is nothing short of astonishing. You completely forget your watching CG characters. He's also cured that 'dead eyed' feel I always used to get when seeing CGI people. It's a shame the story was a bit weak... Don't get me wrong, it's an okay/servicable story, I just wasn't blow away by it. That for me makes me wonder how well it will stand up to the test of time.

I am looking forward to the next thing to come along and use the technology though. If nothing else, Cameron's opened a door to show what can be achieved with 3D and CGI.
 
It's currently at $1,131,752,464 according to 'Box Office Mojo', and the daily takings are slowing down now. I seriously doubt that it'll make over $1,842,879,955 to beat 'Titanic'. Congrats to Mr Cameron for making the two highest grossing films ever though! He really is king of the movie world.

Also, are the ticket prices THAT much more expensive where other people are? At VUE in Sheffield it was just the regular
 
Slightly worrying for Fox that a movie that has been plastered all over the press and TV, including some frankly awful product placement in two episodes of Bones and has cost so much to make can only be number 1 in the US Film chart for just one week. Alvin and the Chipmunks the squeakwell takes more money at the US Box office this week, which is either an indication that Avatar is not that a good a film, or Alvin has a better promotional campaign.
 
Saw it today and think ist a great experience for the cinema in 3D , if you wait for the DVD you'll be missing out on the full impact.

The visual creation of a world and all its lifeforms is spectacular and there wasn't a moment when I wasn't sucked into thinking this was real rather than a load of pixels. Don't let anyone tell you the CGI is poor it absolutely is not.

Whilst it doesn't add totally realistic depth to the proceedings the 3D definitely helped make things more immersive at times and at one point I sort of forgot it was there. I think there are learning points though in how you use 3D as there can be jarring moments when a character is centre screen and to all intents and purposes "real" and then the camera shot cuts them in half and they sren't "real" anymore. If you watch it you'll see what I mean.

The biggest problem is the story. It is trite and predicatable and you can sort of live with that as a canvass to paint this vision on. But there are times when its simplistic, trite and obvious to such an extreme that you take a dislike to the film and takes a bit of effort to engage again.

Still a great experience though.
 
Anyone notice that the Avatars had 4 fingers and a thumb like us, yet the Na'Vi only had 3 fingers and a thumb.

Now that can't be a mistake as they are all CGI so there must be a story behind it.

BTW I read about this and then looked at the trailer. I didn't actually notice this at the cinema as I was too gobsmacked by the whole experience of the film.
 
Or a third possibility: given the choice between something original and a familiar franchise, mass audiences will almost always go with the latter.

Even if it's crap.
 
What I'm not liking from all these 9.5/10 reviews is that people are going on and on about the 3D and visuals. Then say, ohh, it will be crap on DVD though.

Well, sorry, but if you are giving it 9.5/10 as a movie then you can't them say ohh it will be crap on DVD.

What you are in reality saying are "Best I've ever seen for computer generated 3D graphics, but a poor film"

If it was a GREAT film that deserves almost a perfect score, then it will still be a great film in 2D on DVD.

The effects (and 3D if you want to add that on top of the CGI) need to be ON TOP of the story, not instead of the story.

If I take some poor electronics, and house them in some jaw dropping case, with blue LED's and Piano Black glossy finish and a stunning futuristic look. Jes, it's jaw dropping to look at, but it does not make is a great device electronically.

Bang & Olufsen used to be accused of doing this in the HiFi world (probably many hear have never heard of this make as it was always priced hi for those who could afford it, and looked way ahead of it's time) It was said by many it was just normal middle of the range electrics tweaked here and there, and then housed in a stunning design.

I have watched Avatar twice now, both times in 2D, so I'm watching it like a normal film. And even in 2D with my critical eye, it's the best character animation I have seen, the most believable movement to the point where at times you just accepted them as being real. Not all the time, but sometimes.

The plot/story I don't believe anyone could seriously say was the best most interesting plot they'd ever experience, with deep and complex storylines, full of twist, and turns and supprised during the 2 hours of story.

No, it was an incredibly INCREDIBLY basic story, kinda back of a matchbox storyline.

Personally, I feel these films are a "Lets show off the graphics" film, and the story is just there to let them do that.

I have talked to someone (middle aged female) who went to see the film yesterday and has described the story as excellent, perfect, and unnable to fault.

So obviously not everyone agrees with me. How you can actually seriously think that I don't know.
 
Now having seen this, in 2D...

Pluses -

Absolutely stunning visualisation, in particular of Pandora.
Great potential for a sequel.
Very interesting eco system.

Minuses -

Poor script.
Even poorer plot, basically Americans in space doing what Americans do; take whatever resources they want, by force if required, and blow the natives to hell.

Unobtanium. :rolleyes: Do me a favour.

Unsubtle implication of American superiority over less technological race. 'Hero' pretty much takes over as their greatest warrior, and instead of finding a way to encourage the planet to fight the foe, he turns the natives into less well equipped versions of his own race. It's all fight, fight, fight, in a crude way.

Why was no one smart enough to think of disabling the helicopter ships by simply dropping stuff into their rotors.

Why would the humans simply pack up and go home, when they'd spent so much time an effort going after what is presumably the most valuable element in the universe? Surely, if beaten back by the natives, they would just return with greater force.

In summary, I loved the look of this movie, but but felt severely let down, and insulted, by the desperately bad plotting and script.
 
I presumed some writer decided that the human-controlled bodies needed to correspond closely to human bodies so the humans could control them.

The science is a bit patchy. Although some is bad, some is good (eg no faster than light travel), and that detail was one of the good bits.
 
I would love to see this film in Imax but the one close to me closed a few years ago and the bulding has remained empty since. A real waste. I might try watching it in normal 2D as I have heard the colours are better. Well worth watching a few times at the cinema and I cant say that about many films these days. Great viewing for young and old.
 
Just saw it in 3d at the IMAX in Waterloo!! Absolutely amazing! Blew me away completely! Definitely worth seeing it at IMAX if you can!

I know some people on here didn't feel the plot was any good but I really think it was as good as it could be during the time it had without taking away from the must have, amazing scenes which showed off the spectacular effects. I thought it was a good enough balance and i really enjoyed it.

The Storyline reminded me of a modern version of Fern Gully and I adored that film when I was a child.

The best thing for me was the attention to detail with the creation of this amazing world. All the plants and animals were just so unique. The whole thing is just incredible visually!
 
Just got back. In a word: Amazing.

Absolutely loved it from start to finish. The special effects are nothing short of astounding, and by far the best that i've ever seen in a film.

The story might not be overly original if you REALLY go into it, but it's expertly told by Cameron, and anyone who says that the world of Pandora isn't original is a complete moron. I've never seen anything like that before, and yes, i'm a fan of 'Halo'...

Definitely one to see on the big screen and in 3D.
 
Although this has been made as imax 3D I'm pleased that Jame's Cameron has stated he did not film scenes just because it was 3D,but concentrated on the film instead ,making a good story priority ,3D should never be gimmicky I.M.O.,it's there to enhance the film ,not be the centerpiece and judging by the reviews i think he got it spot on,I've been crawling the wall's waiting for this movie(and that's an understatement) ,and will be my Xmas treat to myself (the only thing I'm really looking forward to over Xmas and new year) I'm 1000% sure i will not be disappointed ,I'll make sure i book my film online WELL in advance,think that may be the ONLY way of seeing it at Glasgow Imax over holiday period :)...at last,ye ha.
 
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