Avatar

Avatar (DVD)

Theatrical Release: December 18, 2009

DVD Release: April 22, 2010

Studio: 20^th Century Fox

Director: James Cameron

Stars: Sam Worthington, Zoë Saldana, Signourney Weaver

Rating: PG-13

Running Time: 162 minutes

ASIN: B002VPE1AW

Plot Summary: The year is 2154 and the Earth has depleted all of its natural resources. The planet of Pandora has a vast supply of the mineral unobtanium that could solve Earth’s problem. The atmosphere of Pandora is noxious to humans, but not to the 10-foot Na’vi that inhibit the planet. In order to explore Pandora, a group of scientists use hybrids of Na’vi and human called “avatars.” Jake Sully, a paraplegic ex-Marine, takes over for his recently deceased twin as an avatar. With the promise of being able to walk again, Jake has orders to get close to the Na’vi in order to gain information on the “Hometree” where a large supply of unobtanium lies, but also serves as a sacred place for the Na’vi. Jake changes alliances and will do whatever it takes to protect the Na’vi and their “Hometree.”

Critical Evaluation: Avatar achieved both commercial and critical success. The movie was the highest grossing ever in both domestic and worldwide sales. It is stunningly beautiful with its ground-breaking visual effects that use virtual elements. The movie was nominated for nine Academy Awards (including Best Picture), winning three. It did won a Golden Globe for Best Film – Drama.

The film is a proper cautionary tale. The people of Earth have been wasteful of their resources, and now try to destroy another culture in order to survive. It is fitting that the mineral in question is called “unobtanium” (looks suspiciously similar to “unobtainable,” don’t you think?).

Viewer’s Annotation: How far will one man go for industrial greed? Jake Sully will soon find out.

Genre: Action, Adventure, Fantasy

Reason for Item’s Inclusion: Avatar is the all-time leader in box office sales. It is probably the most beautiful movie I have ever seen. It also delivers a very powerful message.

Movie Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d1_JBMrrYw8

References:

All-time USA box office. (2012, August 26). Retrieved from http://www.imdb.com/boxoffice/alltimegross

Avatar (Original theatrical edition). (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.amazon.com/Avatar-Original-Theatrical-Edition-Worthington/dp/B002VPE1AW/ref=sr_1_7?ie =UTF8&qid=1346013190&sr=8-7&keywords=avatar