Avatar

In it’s opening weekend alone, James Cameron’s Avatar has made $73 Million. Despite that unfathomably large number, the opening isn’t being touted as a complete success, as that number is apparently on the lower end of the projected spectrum. Let’s take a moment to think about that: 73 million is a whole lot to me, but considering how much it cost to put together–a whopping $500 million, give or take, it seems to pale in comparison.

Sam Worthington plays our unlikely hero, the miscreant half of a pair of twins who turned to the marines as his brother turned to science. The scenario is vaguely reminiscent of the dual brothers Shia LaBeouf played in last fall’s Eagle Eye, and while the stories clearly differ, the sentiment is similar. Worthington’s Jake is handsome in a hardened way, and the movie opens to the body of his brother in a cardboard box, heading towards cremation. It’s intercut with the sight of Jake waking up amongst another group of scientists on a spaceship 5 years into the future, heading toward the planet Pandora to partake in the Avatar program. It’s a strange combination, scientists and the army working together, but it makes sense–the scientists there to study the Na’vi people, blue-skinned giants living in the forests of Pandora, and the army to harvest the aptly called Unobtanium and bring it home.

The script is heavy-handed at best. A less charming amalgam of films like WALL•E and Pocahontas, I went in with little to no expectations. I’d heard about it, because you can’t go anywhere without hearing about it, but despite the buzz, I wasn’t really interested, and after it was over–all 162 minutes of it–I wasn’t left a finer appreciation of all things Cameron. Worthington, though, he’s a guy I’d like to see again.

In general, the entire cast is pretty great. Rounding out the scientists that work and fight alongside Worthington’s Jake are Sigourney Weaver and Joel David Moore, both strong and earnest in their convictions (with Moore adding some much needed geeky, comic relief) and a typecast Michelle Rodriguez who ultimately excelled as pilot Trudy. Rounding out the humans, Giovani Ribisi proves that versatility is possible, considering that I at least remember him best as Frank Jr. Phoebe’s half-brother and the father of her children on NBC’s Friends. The villain–or at least the most prominent face attached to the villainy– played by Stephen Lang seemed the flattest and most one-note of all the characters, disappointing, considering that kind of pathology could be interesting if tackled correctly.

Frankly, it wasn’t. Colonel Quaritch is fanatic, bug-eyed and clearly southern. Charm works its way into his speech, even as he’s talking about the destruction of an entire species and their home. He’s the biggest cliche in a movie that was slated to be a blockbuster even before its release, and though obviously villainous and evil, there’s nothing particularly interesting about him, no distinguishing markers about his character save for his fanaticism and insanity, and honestly, even those are boring. He’s nothing new.

What was new, however, was the immense detail that went into all of the CGI. I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the Na’vi people and their village in this review, and their presence on screen was definitely groundbreaking, but for someone like me, who has no background or knowledge of the what goes into that amount of work, I wasn’t exactly blown away. The more noticeable characters, played by Zoe Saldana, CCH Pounder, Wes Studi and Laz Alonso were engaging and interesting, but they looked like they belonged more in a video game than a movie, and more than one person in the theater laughed during the love scene between Jake’s avatar and Saldana’s Neytiri. Parallels could be made between the villagers in the film and the film itself, both standing on their legs for the first time, getting judged by outsiders. The Na’vi people come out victorious, but I think the film falls a little flat, despite the hype.

- Marianna C. Terzakis