OK, Avatar is NOT the greatest movie ever made. However, it was amazing how the film kept selling out for weeks after it opened. EVERYONE went to see it. It was a historic time in cinema history for sure.
Avatar is much more than just a 2.5 hour special effects bonanza. Unlike any superhero movie that Hugh Jackman is involved with, there was real character development and a moving plot that involved more than one emotion. One criticism of the film is that the movie had no plot. Really? You probably know the plot (as this is the highest grossing movie of all time), but I’ll recap in case you forgot what the movie was all about because you were so focused on all the cool flying dragon-like creatures and scantily clad large blue people.
Paraplegic marine Jake comes to Pandora, a moon on a planet so far away it takes 4 or 5 odd years to get there. His twin brother, a PhD, is murdered, and Jake is the only one who can pilot his "Avatar," or body that is genetically made from humans and the "aliens" called Navis (although the humans in this case are the aliens). Long story short, Jake in his Avatar body befriends the Navis. This is a diplomatic mission with the goal that these indigenous people will leave their massive "Hometree" so that the humans can mine "Unobtanium" (Come on! What a lame name! Couldn't they have come up with something better?). This poorly named resource sells for a lot (“One million dollars!” pinky to mouth Dr. Evil style) of credits or whatever form of money they use in the future. Anyway, if a diplomatic solution cannot be reached within 3 months, the military moves in. At first, Jake is cool with this, but as he gets to be a part of the Navi culture, he has different thoughts. The movie progresses from there.
This movie covers current events like today's news. The Navi live in a land that has a "valuable" resource. In order to access this resource, a few paltry diplomatic efforts are made, but since those don't work the military calls the shots. The lack of understanding of the local culture leads to harmful policies. This causes the displacement of a people group because of the greed of a few fat cats who want to make a buck. The use of an army for a corporation's interests is clear in the film. The words "Shock and awe" show up at some point. However, unlike real life, the native people remove the army by the end and all was well. We're still waiting on Earth for that part of the story. There was real loss, however, as Navi leaders, friends, and the "Hometree" were lost forever.
Isn't it great how the good guys always win in Hollywood?
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