Every generation there is a movie that does something new and innovative that kicks the industry in the backside and tells it to keep moving forward. Before 2009 it was hard for movie makers to take CGI to the next level because of its complexity. James Cameron changed the game with Avatar. Audiences and critics alike were astonished by how lifelike the world and characters of Pandora were and for good reason. There had been nothing quite this bold before. But does it stand the test of time seven years later?
Avatar is a strange movie. Whenever I talk with friends about it we don't discuss the intricacies of the story or the depth of the characters. Rather, they just say how amazing it was to look at seven years ago. The reason is, the plot isn't very deep or new. In fact, its rather predictable. If you've seen any adventure flick with a theme of "save the planet" than you've seen Avatar. It does have good characters but none of them really resonated with me in particular. This is where the Extended Edition comes in handy because the few extra scenes that it has do a lot to enhance some character motivations. Why does Neytiri not trust the 'sky people'? In the original her motivation could just be interpreted to be because of her culture. In the Extended Edition, however, it is explained that her sister was killed by the military which created friction between her and Grace and by extension, the humans. There are many more examples of this throughout the Extended Edition and I would say that it is the best way to view this movie, despite the three hour run-time.
Seven years ago, when Avatar was released into theatres worldwide, I was utterly amazed by how it looked. Back then I was just interested in how lifelike the characters and environments were but now I can appreciate the film and a whole new light. Not just is the directing very well done but Pandora itself is just beautiful. When I was younger I liked the variety of unique animals but now I even love the alive vines and the bio-luminescent flowers. Though some scenes look slightly more animated than I remember them, the design of the world is absolutely alluring.
The soundtrack for Avatar deserves a round of applause. At its core it may seem like basic tribal music but the way the film uses the score in specific scenes is aw inspiring. The flutes and percussion of "The Bio-luminescence Of The Night" and the high jingles of "Pure Spirits Of The Forest" help shape the world of Pandora to be quite a unique one.
Avatar has aged well since 2009. Though the CGI doesn't look quite as good as it did and the story is too easy to guess, the texture and sound of the world is great enough to keep me coming back.
Avatar is predicable wonderment.
Avatar is a strange movie. Whenever I talk with friends about it we don't discuss the intricacies of the story or the depth of the characters. Rather, they just say how amazing it was to look at seven years ago. The reason is, the plot isn't very deep or new. In fact, its rather predictable. If you've seen any adventure flick with a theme of "save the planet" than you've seen Avatar. It does have good characters but none of them really resonated with me in particular. This is where the Extended Edition comes in handy because the few extra scenes that it has do a lot to enhance some character motivations. Why does Neytiri not trust the 'sky people'? In the original her motivation could just be interpreted to be because of her culture. In the Extended Edition, however, it is explained that her sister was killed by the military which created friction between her and Grace and by extension, the humans. There are many more examples of this throughout the Extended Edition and I would say that it is the best way to view this movie, despite the three hour run-time.Seven years ago, when Avatar was released into theatres worldwide, I was utterly amazed by how it looked. Back then I was just interested in how lifelike the characters and environments were but now I can appreciate the film and a whole new light. Not just is the directing very well done but Pandora itself is just beautiful. When I was younger I liked the variety of unique animals but now I even love the alive vines and the bio-luminescent flowers. Though some scenes look slightly more animated than I remember them, the design of the world is absolutely alluring.
The soundtrack for Avatar deserves a round of applause. At its core it may seem like basic tribal music but the way the film uses the score in specific scenes is aw inspiring. The flutes and percussion of "The Bio-luminescence Of The Night" and the high jingles of "Pure Spirits Of The Forest" help shape the world of Pandora to be quite a unique one.
Avatar has aged well since 2009. Though the CGI doesn't look quite as good as it did and the story is too easy to guess, the texture and sound of the world is great enough to keep me coming back.
Avatar is predicable wonderment.
