Do you hear that? Yeah, it’s the sound of a million of furries masturbating in front your local movie theater screen as they watch James Cameron’s Avatar movie. Don’t worry though, for every furry that’s turned on by the giant blue cat people in the movie, there’s at least five other folks in that same movie theater eye-humping the special effects on the screen so hard you can practically hear a Velcro-like ripping sound every time they have to blink. I realize it sounds crass to say such things out loud, but I swear I’m only doing it to prepare you both mentally and emotionally for what you’ll encounter you when you enter that soggy dungeon down that street to watch one of the most gorgeous action movies of the past year.

I’ll be the first to admit that plot wise, Avatar doesn’t break any new ground. The story of the outsider who is sent to learn about a native people only to end up joining them against an oppressive invading force is nothing new in Hollywood. In fact, this movie is pretty much just Dances with Wolves in space with fancier special effects…and less Kevin Costner. Depending on how you feel about Kevin Costner, this may or may not be a good thing. Of course, on the flip side, it does have that dude from Terminator: Salvation and that chick that played in all the Alien movies. :P

Please don’t get me wrong. I loved the giant cat-like Na’vi with their Native American style tree-hugging culture and their seemingly firm belief that bras and, for the most part, underwear are over-rated. I’m enough of an otaku to admit that I’m going to onboard with anything that might include some catgirl nipple shots, but I’m not to stand around and claim that just because I like the supporting fiction that’s been built up around a story that it means that the main story itself has any depth to it. It’s like a house can that’s just been built. It’s got four walls and a roof, but still completely empty inside.

Despite its drawbacks in the storytelling department, what makes Avatar impressive is that it presents the viewer with a fully realized alien world that is so gorgeous and amazing that it takes the your breath away. The director, James Cameron, effectively uses all the cinematic tools at his disposal to create his grand illusion over the course of three hours. The world of Pandora is teems with titanic monsters and six legged beasts of the field that move among the bio-luminescent jungle flora as the giant blue Na’vi hunt and fight among its treetops or soar through the its skies upon mighty reptile mounts. In contrast, the sci-fi technology used by the humans to fight the Na’vi is both cool looking and highly reminiscent of some of tech designs found in the director’s earlier works.

A lot of fuss has been made about the 3D aspects of the film, and I must say that if you plan on watching the film in the 3D, you may not find it to be quite what you were expect. Most 3d films concentrate on breaking the boundry between the screen and you, so a lot of shots are set up so that it appears that stuff is coming out of the screen towards you. Avatar does just the opposite. Rather then pushing outward, it insteads creates a subtler 3D effect that adds depth to the film, making it seem more like your looking through a window at the action happening on the other side. It’s a neat effect and I’m curious how this will translate to the small screen when it it’s released to retail later in the year.

Bottom Line:
Ultimately, Avatar is a visual tour-de-force that’s both memorable and wondrous despite reusing a plot that’s been around the block more times than a Hollywood hooker. If you decide not to catch in the theater, then I highly suggest checking it on when it comes to DVD or Blu-ray.

Final Score: 4 out of 5 stars
Reviewed by: LC1
Review Format: Movie Theater (3D)