Rating of
2.5/4
"Avatar" by Yojimbo
Yojimbo - wrote on 02/02/12
A wheelchair bound ex-marine is called in to manipulate a genetically engineered version of a member of the indigenous population of a forest planet in an attempt to remove them from their homeland so it can be strip-mined for a rare mineral. James Cameron's return behind the camera is well known for its ground breaking 3D effects, but it was more his track record of producing the interesting stories that gave the original concepts of Alien and The Terminator a different twist which attracted me to this movie. In this case however, all he has presented us with is another Hollywood guilt trip about the murder of the previous occupants of the US in the middle of a huge CGI circle jerk. Much of this film is visually impressive but still unconvincing as a real world, feeling more like an elaborate Xbox 360 cut scene. About blue hippies. The script is as schizophrenic as the visuals, seemingly unable to decide whether it is a live action story or a cartoon and the result is like Dances With Wolves set in a Jurassic Park full of Wejustmadetheseupasauruses. The meandering "learning to love the noble savages" of the first hour and a half is a classic example of a Disney/Pixar script, with every character a caricature and the plot grindingly predictable. I would also have to say the ham fisted eco-message seemed to whiff faintly of bovine excrement when you consider that every blade of grass of this glorious "mother nature" was in fact the regurgitation of a machine. If Cameron had explored the analogy with American foreign policy within the Gulf states it could've been a very interesting film, but one throwaway line to that effect isn't enough. The final half hour once again proves Cameron's pedigree as an exceptional director of spectacular action set pieces but the two solid hours of Ferngully: The Next Generation that precedes it is a rather high price to pay.
