Avatar: The Future Is Here

I have seen the future of movies, and it is Avatar.

Writer-director and self-proclaimed "King Of The World" James Cameron has been away from movie screens since 1997's Titanic (except for the 2003 IMAX Titanic documentary Ghosts of The Abyss and the 2005 documentary Aliens of The Deep). Usually when a star or director is away from the limelight for 12 years, our responses usually are either "What ever happened to that person?" or "They must really need the money".

In Cameron's case neither is true. It's just that, as with Titanic, he needed to invent the technology needed to fulfill his vision. I'm still wading through articles and documentaries in order to better understand it all, and will be able to blog about it more fully in about a month.

For now though, I will say that Avatar is best seen in IMAX 3D. You will not be frustrated or disappointed like I was when watching A Christmas Carol, in which things fly out at you at breakneck speeds, for no reason other than that they can. And don't get me started on Monsters Vs. Aliens in its 2D-as-3D incarnation.

You will be drawn into the world of Avatar's peace-loving blue people living on an idyllic planet named Pandora, chiefly represented by the lovely Neytiri (Zoe Saldana, the new Star Trek's Uhura). If a planet's idyllic, then the government must be able to get something out of it, right? Colonel Miles Quatrich (Stephen Lang), and Dr. Grace Augustine (Sigourney Weaver), the scientist behind the Avatar program, sure think so. They send in gung-ho quadraplegic marine Jake Sully (Terminator:Salvation's Sam Worthington) to walk among the Pandorians as one of them, to get them to move before the bulldozers arrive. Then he meets Neytiri, and...

There, I've given you about as much plot as JC has chosen to bless us with. Original? Nope. Are there character shadings? No way Jose. But ask yourself: did you go see Titanic five times for the story? Didn't think so. It's all about the experience, which is like a gentle cinematic massage. If you are closer to the middle or back than the front, that is optimal. You will softly murmur your exclamation of choice roughly once every six minutes or so. You will remember where you were, who you were with, and what time it was when you saw Avatar. Personally, I saw it on Wednesday, December 23, at 11:45 AM at the West Edmonton Mall IMAX theatre. I was with my uncle, who gifted me with this experience, my game-player-extroardinare cousin, and his girlfriend. When it was over I asked my cuz, "Do you think anybody's ever going to beat these effects?". He replied, "You kidding me Mikey?"

If James Cameron was going for godlike DeMillean status with Titanic, he has achieved it with Avatar. Come to think of it, nobody went to Cecil B's extravaganzas for plot, did they? But The Ten Commandments and The Greatest Show on Earth sure were epic, eye popping fun.

And my JC reference was no accident. If heaven looks half as good as Pandora, I'll be a very good boy from now on!

See you later, and thanks for stopping by! I really do appreciate it!

MTMG

Hello and Merry Christmas!

Hello there. I'm Mikey the Movie Guy. I just want to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year first of all. And Happy Belated Hanukkah as well (Adam Sandler's ode to the Jewish holiday is absolute genius!)

I'm a freelance movie critic who's done a little radio (thanks Ron, Jay and Diesel),and a little print (thanks Kevin, Murray, Trent, and Jackie). I've even shown up on local TV praising Batman and Robin's stunning set design. But of course they cut out the part where I said that was about all it had going for it.

I have to go off to a family party in an hour, so I'd like to close with some more kudos if I may. Thanks to Mom for laying out the entertainment section every day for a decade. Thanks to Dad for being the wonderful guy he is, letting me stay up past my bedtime on a Sunday at the age of eight so I could watch the original Superman on TV. What an experience.

Lastly, thanks to my sister Jacquie and brother-in-law Jason for introducing me to blogging when the radio and print gigs dried up. I love you both so much. And my wonderful wife Shawna, who - although not a movie gal herself - loves and supports me anyway. Thanks hon, love ya!

See you all later! Happy Holidays! We'll talk Avatar next time!

MTMG