Classic Review: Avatar (2009)

There is this theory about James Cameron and his constant capacity for breaking the boundaries of visual effects in the history of cinema. It says he is such a genius visionary that every time he releases a new title, technology jumps forward a few years, and the industry goes into this wild rush to catch up to the quality he established. Once everyone else gets there though, Cameron leaps forward again. And again. And again. Not sure if that is actually correct. But it does make a lot of sense.

Avatar was released 12 years after Titanic, the groundbreaking romantic epic that stormed into the theaters in 1997-1998 to become the highest grossing picture of all time. While Titanic faced criticism and backlash before it came out, the same happened to Avatar and the same is the case for its upcoming sequels. People should stop second-guessing Cameron’s capacity to bewilder us. It never ends well for the critics.

Avatar tells the story of Jake Sully (Worthington), a Marine who became a paraplegic who faced an unbelievable opportunity: to travel to Pandora and blend in with the natives, the Na’vis. This opportunity comes out of a tragedy as Jake’s twin brother, a scientist, passed away and left behind a very expensive Na’vi Avatar, a hybrid created in lab from both human and Na’vis cells. Because they are twins with the same genetics, Jake can assume his brother’s avatar. Once he starts living and understanding the lives of the native people of Pandora, Jake becomes more and more immersed in their culture before eventually breaking ties with humans.

Few films can be described as a true “experience” in theaters. Some are quite good at immersing viewers into their stories, but Avatar blew them all out of the park. Nothing that came before offered the experience that Avatar offered, watching it in 3D. The film was the reason 3D was created (I mean not the “reason” reason, but you know what I mean). The first hour was just one breathtaking moment after another, giving us this feel of being actually present inside the forest of Pandora. Seeing the flowers, the animals, the plants, it’s like watching The Tree of Life but with blue giants instead of Brad Pitt. Cameron takes his time with giving us every little piece of this world and it’s fantastic.

Although Cameron is a true visionary, he was never that strong script wise. Avatar has a lot of fantastic moments, but the script, just like Titanic, is just a bit above average. Some moments are so naïve they are almost infantile while others are just so expositional, they become embarrassing. But he enhances his story with incredible visuals and a sense of adventure. The film has plenty of that. It’s impossible not to be drawn into the love that Jake feels for the Na’vi, especially because Saldana makes Neytiri a completely magnetic guide to that new world. That first hour has one moment that seals the deal with our connection with Jake and his quest: the moment he walks and then runs for the first time since his accident. Cameron knows exactly how to show us that moment, and it is impossible not to be invested in this character after such a simple and yet so significant moment.

But despite all the breathtaking visuals, Avatar‘s biggest accomplishment was those amazingly expressive eyes we see from the Na’vi. Some elements of real life are incredibly hard to replicated: water, fire, hair. The eyes are right there at the top of that list. So many visual characters have dead eyes (Jar Jar Binks). There’s no life behind those irritating visuals mostly because there’s nothing happening with his eyes. No here. Not only did Cameron took on the challenge of changing that, but he also made the Na’vi’s eyes wide and dominant. When we look at them, we can see every thought, every emotion, from the happiness and the playful side of Jake to Neytiri’s gravitas (kudos again to Saldana for creating such a powerful character).

Interestingly, Avatar was a huge success at the time it was released, but it lost some steam over the years. Just like Gravity, this is a film that is best experienced in theaters as it loses a bit of its magic when watched at home. It was the biggest movie of the year upon its release before seemingly disappearing from our collective memories soon after (at least until the sequels arrive) but it shouldn’t have. And let’s be honest here: any movie featuring Sigourney Weaver deserves to be seen over and over again.

still courtesy of 20th Century Studios

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