The Reviews Got it Right!?!?!

Last night I bit the bullet and saw Avatar. I wasn't all that excited but I had a strange compulsion to see it. I didn't buy into all the hype surrounding it and to tell you the truth I'm not a huge fan of Pocohontas or Dances with Wolves so I wasn't really convinced I would enjoy Avatar. On the other hand, it must be doing something right. It has made billions of dollars and people do keep seeing it over and over.

All the reviews I've read have said that the plot is predictable, the dialouge is contrite, the characters not developed... but it didn't matter. The visuals were amazing and while the characters still needed to be fleshed out, the setting of the alien world Pandora was completely realized. This interested me. How could a movie be so bad on paper and still win Picture of the Year at the Golden Globes and be positively reviewed?

Wanna know something? The reviews were 100% right. The plot was flimsy and I had seen all of the characters before, but I didn't care. I didn't look at my watch once or think "When is this stupid thing going to be over?". I was completely entranced by the visuals. Pandora was a character itself. It was also by far the most realized and original one in the movie. The 3D effects were not overwhelming and didn't resort to cheap gimmicks. There was nothing that jumped out at you. The 3D enhanced the world and drew you in. For most of the film, I forgot I was watching something 3D, and just enjoyed the clarity and depth.

My recommendation? See Avatar in the theatre and if possible, in 3D. The movie is not going to translate to DVD very well. It is truely an experience to go to the movies for.