Image used by permission from the OfficialAvatarMovie Flickr page.
This movie is making an impact at the box office and all over the internet. The advances in film-making technology are impressive, and the question as to whether Mr. Cameron could follow up Titanic with another truly significant film seems to have been answered. But what about the children?! Is this a movie to take your kids to over the holiday break? Let’s see if we can give you some facts and opinions to help make an informed decision.
Will I like it?
Are you capable of liking things that are beautiful? Do you say a silent (or even audible) “boo-yah” when awesome future-tech does cool things? Have you been patiently waiting for a movie that shows you that, from here on out, pretty much anything is possible in film-making where it comes to presenting fantastical ideas in a completely realistic way on-screen? If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, then yeah, you might appreciate Avatar.
Will my kids like it?
Since they’re even more likely than you to yell “booyah” out loud at cool tech and awesome combat scenes, then oh yeah, they’ll like it. Plus dozens of amazing alien species - indeed, a fully-realized alien world that looks familiar, but also wondrously different. And there’s not too much of that mushy stuff, or too much talkie-talkie.
What about the grown-up stuff, like language and nudity?
It’s a PG13 movie. It has a bit of swearing (military characters talking like military characters), and the native Na’vi dress like people tend to dress in tropical climates with low nudity taboos. Really, it comes down to how you think your kids can handle this kind of thing. After about 5 minutes of seeing the Na’vi, you accept them as people, and how they dress is perfectly normal for who they are. Actual sexuality in the movie is almost nil (one 30-second, pretty tame love scene). Most Edgar Rice Burroughs John Carter of Mars covers were more titillating than the nudity in Avatar. I’d say age 8/9 on up will be old enough to see it (though you know your kids better than I do).
And the violence?
I’m not going to lie to you, Marge: this movie has a lot of violence. And it rocks! Let me suggest an analogy: he Na’vi’s world, Pandora (a lush tropical moon orbiting a Jupiter-like gas giant) is to the Amazon jungle as, say, Bane is to Robin. There is no Club Med on Pandora. The food chain is, if not top-heavy, at least in constant and quite active flux. So you get animal-on-native violence, native-on-native violence, human mercenary-on-animal violence, human mercenary on Na’vi violence, and so on. There’s a lot of fighting in this movie. Though the gore/splatter quotient is pretty low, and the Na’vi (at least) have a very spiritual, respectful attitude towards killing animals.
I hear it’s just “Dances With Aliens,” is this true?
Well, yeah. It’s a story we’ve seen before. More “advanced” culture comes into conflict with a lesser, supposedly weaker culture. One of the agressors goes to live with the other side, comes to understand them, may even fall in love with a native, and then aids them in their conflict. But seeing Avatar isn’t about being overwhelmed by an original plot (how many of those are there anymore, really?). Like going to see a newly produced version of a Shakespeare play, you’re going to see Avatar for the setting, the interpretation of the story, the characters and performances and most certainly for the visuals.
Alright, everyone’s talking about the special effects. Can it really be that good?
Yes. Yes it can. Remember how everyone was blown away by the Massive (name of the CGI software) combat sequences in Lord of the Rings? And how amazing Gollum was? Back then, everyone was talking about the Academy needing to tweak it’s categories so the combination of actor and effects team could be co-rewarded for bringing a performance-captured character to life. Avatar is the next iteration of that “OMG” moment. Half the characters in this movie are performance-captured creatures as good or better realized than Gollum. The world looks totally real. The animals are fantastic, and yet completely realistic. The military tech kicks ass, in that perfect James Cameron/Aliens way that we love. Heck, you could say he’s established a “Cameronverse” with movies like Aliens and Avatar, because the tech is so similar, the movies could exist in the same reality. And the Aliens aliens could easily find life a challenge on Pandora.
How about the 3D? Am I going to get poked in the eye over and over again?
You really, really should see this movie in 3D. James Cameron has shown us how the modern 3D technology should be used in movie making. There are no “poked in the eye” moments. The 3D just adds a depth and texture to the movie that makes it feel all the more real.
When should I take a bathroom break?
That’s hard to say. Everything is so beautiful that you don’t want to miss a minute. On the other hand, the movie is 2.5 hours long, and I totally understand needing to run out after downing that uber-gulp slushee. Because the plot isn’t so twisty-turny, you could probably duck out most anytime and pick up again pretty quickly when you get back. Just try not to leave more than once, lest you miss too many wicked awesome visuals.
Do I need to sit through the credits? Any Easter eggs?
Nothing after the credits, which are just one long string of names of the effects teams that worked on this movie. Let’s make sure to praise Peter Jackson’s Weta for their part in this movie. What was learned on the Lord of the Rings trilogy was certainly brought to bear on Avatar.
But where’s Ang? Wasn’t M. Night Shyamalan making this?
It’s one of those confusing things. This Avatar started as a story idea and title by Mr. Cameron 15 years ago, and only just came to fruition. Avatar: The Last Airbender was a very popular animated series, but is much more recent, and is indeed currently in production under the talented vision of Mr. Shyamalan. They are two difference projects, and should not be confused.
