I really like James Cameron. For one he’s from Canada, and for two I think he honestly understands an awful lot about why people like to go to the movies.
He’s taken a long break from feature film making since Titanic. A very long time. Avatar is his biggie. It’d be near impossible to top Titanic and he didn’t do it here. Avatar is a very good movie. Sadly we don’t have 3D in Cornwall, but I will head down to Montreal over the holidays and watch it in 3D over there.
It was good enough of a movie to watch twice; maybe even 3 times, and that says a lot for this film as there are very few films I’d see a second time.
The good. Sigourney Weaver teaming up again with Mr. Cameron. Like a blast from the past the warrior goddess returns. Part cliche, part warm, and still gettin nekkid, and of course smoking a ciggy, Ms Weaver was a total treat in this flick. Michelle Rodriguez was the warrior younger version of Sigourney in Avatar.
Mr. Cameron is very conventional in following character arch-types. The hero, the villain, the chick, and the fool being the four arch-types of story with occasional blurring of the line. Mr. Cameron stays true and the villain is the villain in this movie.
Geez it’s hard to write a review sometimes without giving elements away and I don’t want to give anything away as I think Avatar is worth watching.
The effects are dazzling. Some of the dialog is a hoot, although cliched, with a few clangs. The acting and casting were very good too. It’s funny; I wonder how this movie will play in nearby Akwesasne? There are huge borrowing of Native culture in this film.
There are filmmakers like Steven Spielberg, and George Lucas who can never live up to their own legends. I was personally disappointed with the last Star Wars movies compared to the first three. Mr. Cameron I think in many ways avoids reliving his old glory and pushes the envelope. The second act of the film in particular I think is the best part of Avatar. The first act has a few seams, and the third act has a very Titanic type scene which I won’t give away.
The bad: Not too much. Taken on its own Avatar is a wild ride. The grabbing of pop psycho-babble from 9/11 to the War in Iraq, to Big Brother and Corporate Greed sometimes make the movie feel like a strange psychedelic Michael Moore clip, but if you’re going to do that then Mr. Cameron at least did it well.
I give it a 3 boxes of popcorn rating. Avatar is playing at The Galaxy Theatre in Cornwall Ontario. Click HERE for showtimes.
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