People who hear of Avatar for the first time, think it is some religious Bollywood film. But watch the movie, and you will know that it is far removed from religion, but is still a lot about belief: a belief that you can make big things happen, a belief that you can bring an end to evil, a belief in who you are, and why you exist.
In 2154, Jake Sully (Sam Worthington), an ex-marine, is sent on a mission to a far off planet, Pandora. With no inkling of what to expect, and zero training for the project, he is a complete greenhorn, when compared to the rest of the staff.
The movie capsules his journey, from being a "regular" human, to understanding his full worth and becoming what he was always destined to be.
Without giving away too much of the story, here's a little insight into the film:
Pandora is a beautiful place. Lush green, with dense forests and scary looking creatures, it even has floating mountains, called Hallelujah. Yes, they actually float in thin air! It has huge waterfalls, with so much water that Niagara Falls would want to hide itself in shame.
There are harmless monkey-like creatures, snarling panther-like animals, huge mutated rhinoceros, and more. The forests are more hostile than friendly, and if you think they are scary in the day time, wait for night fall...
The native of Pandora, called Na'vi, are very tall, almost skinny, humanish creatures with blue colored bodies; they look like some sort of giant Smurfs. They have long dark hair, and a nice tail. The Na'vi have pointed ears, like the elves, and are extremely agile.
They are very fit, with flat stomachs; considering that they prance around all day, none of them has an ounce of fat. Their native tongue sounds Asian.
Sam as Jake is terrific. Whether he is in his human form, or the Avatar, he is brilliant as both. As a newcomer on Pandora, he looks at everything with wide-eyed amazement. Almost like a little kid on a rollercoaster ride. But watch the way he grows into a confident leader as the film progresses.
Zoe Saldana as Neytiri, a Na'vi girl, is perfect. Her father is the Chief of the Omaticaya clan. She has immense love and respect for her clan. She is both fierce and tender. A great warrior and a vulnerable lover.
Sigourney Weaver plays Dr Grace Augustine, a scientist. Unlike the U S Army, she doesn't want to wipe out the Na'vi. Nor does she want to mine the mysterious rock that sells for 20 million dollars for a kilo. She wants to understand the Na'vi, figure out the wondrous mysteries of their world.
Sam doesn't appeal to her initially, and so she is not very nice to him. Her delightfully sarcastic dialogues are probably some of the best lines in the film.
Then there is the chief villain, Colonel Miles (Stephen Lang). Tall, strong, with rippling muscles, he is literally heartless. He is the kind of character that makes people want to get up from their seats, tear open the movie screen, get into the film, and kill with their bare hands. And any person that evokes such extreme emotions deserves a pat on the back for his fine acting skills.
Though Pandora looks surreal, it also looks beautiful. Watching the film will give you an out of the world experience. The graphics are simply marvellous. You would never have seen such colors before. Every little detail has been taken care of; whether it is the saliva that is dripping out of a ferocious panther's mouth, or the neon lighting in the forest. Cinematography at its best.
Not to mention the swift action in the movie, and the typical Hollywood style motivational speech at the end.
One thing, do watch out the way "avatar" is pronounced in the film. Will make you roll with laughter in your seats.
Though it is humbling to review a film of such stature, I would like to say it was a fantastic experience. What's better is the fact that the film is out in 3D as well. This review is for the 2-dimensional version though. If this was so amazing, I wonder how much more better it will be in 3D.
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