Movie Review: Avatar (3D)

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My Rating: 4Stars

This afternoon I saw the movie Avatar 3D at UA Cinema, Times Square, Causeway Bay, Hong Kong. One of the movies from my Must See Movies list.

Before I went to see the movie I questioned my decision to pay the extra cost to watch the 3D version of the movie, but after watching just the opening credits I realized I had made the right decision. Above all the three times Oscar winning Canadian director, James Cameron wrote and filmed this movie with digital 3D cameras in mind. Therefore to experience the movie as Cameron originally intended, one will definitely have to watch the 3D version.

Aside from the direction, the artifical set of Pandora is beautifully created, matched with perfect original score. It is no wonder that the movie had already received 9 award nominations; including Best Director, Best Visual Effect and Best Origianl Score.

Half way into this almost three hours long movie, I finally understand why others referred to the movie as “Dancing With Smurf”, a play on the title of the 1990 movie, Dancing With Wolves, staring Kevin Costner. Although, as most will agree the Na’vi is not as cute as the Smurfs.

The movie rehashes the plot of big corporations taking advantage of natives (the Na’vi) and what appeared to be the under privillaged, for their own corporate benefits. It also highlights the issues of one group trying to impose its own believes and values onto another. Which is the basis of the USA foriegn policies. Of course, it also had to include the chic topic of being more aware of our environment and suroundings.

The movie starts with Sam Worthington‘s charater Jake Sully, an ex-Marine, finding out his twin brother; a scientist for the corporation, died. Since avatars are grown as human Na’vi hybrides and genetically matched to the human counter part. The corporation did not want to waste the costly avatar offered Jake, his brother’s job of operating an avatar on Pandora. Seeing this as a chance for Jake to walk again he took the job. What Jake did not know is that the corporation is minning for the valuable Unobtanium mineral at Pandora, where the largest deposit on the planet is underneath one of the Na’vi tribe’s camp. The Avatar program is creates to gain the trust of the Na’vi, so they will move away from the camp, avoiding a military intervention to remove the tribe.

The technologies in the movie is very believable even for a technologist like myself. I particularly like the scene where the operator seamlessly drag an object from the big monitor to his tablet. Reminisce of Tom Cruise‘s Minority Report and wishfully the soon to arrive Mac Slate by Apple.

Yes the 3D version is more expensive but in most cities you will be able to find the cheaper version.

Rating Legend:
5Stars Not to be missed
4Stars Wait for the DVD
3Stars Buy from iTunes Store
2Stars Rent it on iTunes
1Stars Waste your time elsewhere

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