Zenith.UK
Part of the furniture
- Joined
- Dec 20, 2008
- Messages
- 2,913
So I have just got back from the premiere screening of Avatar at my local cinema and I feel that I got my money's worth. Amazing CGI, 3D, colourful, good pacing and a familiar storyline all came together to make a visual spectacle.
I have to confess that I'm a stickler for good effects. If I can see the join between the live action and CGI then I feel cheated. No worries about that with this film. This is the first time that everything from the sweeping landscape shots right down the slightest changes of expressions on the actors worked flawlessly. You can't forget you're watching CGI because of the fantasy setting and the colour palette, but you find yourself forgetting that you're watching CGI overlaid on motion captured actors. Speaking of the actors, you can actually recognise the main players easily. I could see Sigourney Weaver and Zoe Saldana in their respective Na'vi bodies (and Zoe has a very nice body...).
It was in Real3D which uses polarised glasses to split a double image on screen into a single image with exaggerated depth. The film makers thankfully didn't try to poke your eye out with too many things coming out of the screen and instead used the 3D system to enhance the sense of depth in the forest. The aerial plankton and ash falling across the screen definitely added the feeling of being *there*.
Spoiler time
I'm looking forward to when I get it on bluray because the film itself will stand up on it's own without the 3D. 3D in this case turns a good film into a cinema experience.
I have to confess that I'm a stickler for good effects. If I can see the join between the live action and CGI then I feel cheated. No worries about that with this film. This is the first time that everything from the sweeping landscape shots right down the slightest changes of expressions on the actors worked flawlessly. You can't forget you're watching CGI because of the fantasy setting and the colour palette, but you find yourself forgetting that you're watching CGI overlaid on motion captured actors. Speaking of the actors, you can actually recognise the main players easily. I could see Sigourney Weaver and Zoe Saldana in their respective Na'vi bodies (and Zoe has a very nice body...).
It was in Real3D which uses polarised glasses to split a double image on screen into a single image with exaggerated depth. The film makers thankfully didn't try to poke your eye out with too many things coming out of the screen and instead used the 3D system to enhance the sense of depth in the forest. The aerial plankton and ash falling across the screen definitely added the feeling of being *there*.
Spoiler time
The material that they're mining is called unobtainium. The same name was used for the material in "The Core". I lol'd
The story is HEAVILY influenced by a number of scifi and fantasy books. The main theme is "Dances With Wolves" crossed with "Fern Gully".
The way that a Na'vi hunter bonds with a banshee reminded me so much of Anne MacCaffrey's "Dragonriders of Pern". In the Pern books, a person bonds for life with their dragon at hatching. In Avatar, once a hunter has bonded with a banshee, they're linked for life. It also didn't help that the banshees LOOKED like dragons when their wings were extended.
Grace, Sigourney's character, explains how the trees are all interconnected with more connections than a human brain. Later in the film, the trees and animals are shown to be part of the same consciousness. That reminded me of the Verdani in Kevin.J.Anderson's "Saga Of The Seven Suns" series. They are conscious trees that can communicate across vast distances instantly.
When the Marines were stomping through the forest, I thought it looked a lot like the game Halo. The gunship also reminded me a lot of the Pelican dropship in Halo.
When the gunships were blowing crap out of the Hometree was a powerful moment. Bang bang bang ... the sub woofers were going mad and you could feel each explosion against your chest. Then watching 1000feet of tree falling over and the chaos on the ground along with it was impressive.
Watching the Hallelujah Mountains just sent the song "Castles In The Sky" going around my head. It's one of those pieces of fantasy art that is stunning to see in vivid moving images on screen.
There was a certain feeling of the film "Dune" while I was watching. That was because of a young man joining a tribe/clan in opposition to a foe, working through the ranks to eventually take his place as warrior leader. Riding in on a turok (yes, I lol'd at that as well) was similar to riding in on a giant sandworm.
I wondered how they were going to get him permanently in his avatar because it was such an obvious plot conclusion. Nice touch, and thankfully they showed that it didn't necessarily work when Grace died.
The story is HEAVILY influenced by a number of scifi and fantasy books. The main theme is "Dances With Wolves" crossed with "Fern Gully".
The way that a Na'vi hunter bonds with a banshee reminded me so much of Anne MacCaffrey's "Dragonriders of Pern". In the Pern books, a person bonds for life with their dragon at hatching. In Avatar, once a hunter has bonded with a banshee, they're linked for life. It also didn't help that the banshees LOOKED like dragons when their wings were extended.
Grace, Sigourney's character, explains how the trees are all interconnected with more connections than a human brain. Later in the film, the trees and animals are shown to be part of the same consciousness. That reminded me of the Verdani in Kevin.J.Anderson's "Saga Of The Seven Suns" series. They are conscious trees that can communicate across vast distances instantly.
When the Marines were stomping through the forest, I thought it looked a lot like the game Halo. The gunship also reminded me a lot of the Pelican dropship in Halo.
When the gunships were blowing crap out of the Hometree was a powerful moment. Bang bang bang ... the sub woofers were going mad and you could feel each explosion against your chest. Then watching 1000feet of tree falling over and the chaos on the ground along with it was impressive.
Watching the Hallelujah Mountains just sent the song "Castles In The Sky" going around my head. It's one of those pieces of fantasy art that is stunning to see in vivid moving images on screen.
There was a certain feeling of the film "Dune" while I was watching. That was because of a young man joining a tribe/clan in opposition to a foe, working through the ranks to eventually take his place as warrior leader. Riding in on a turok (yes, I lol'd at that as well) was similar to riding in on a giant sandworm.
I wondered how they were going to get him permanently in his avatar because it was such an obvious plot conclusion. Nice touch, and thankfully they showed that it didn't necessarily work when Grace died.