Avatar (In Glorious 3D!)

Impressions before seeing it
I love fantasy and sci-fi. The trailer didn't really explain much about the plot, but it looked cool.

How was it?
With the inclusion of 3D images and a long running time, I would describe Avatar as more of an experience than a movie. I can't rave enough about how amazing this movie looks in 3 dimensions. Especially when in deep focus, allowing you to see many, many layers popping out at varying distances from the screen. Also it was my first time seeing a movie in 3D (not counting the Spongebob Squarepants 3D short film at Canada's Wonderland) so I suppose I was bound to be amazed anyway. I also have to say that the animation was impressive. I was skeptical of the blue creatures at first because after all of the promotional boasting about groundbreaking technology, they didn't look believably photorealistic. I guess it takes a big screen to really see the difference, because the Na'vi do have pores and skin texture and some great motion capture performances, and all of it works. Grace's avatar even looked like Sigourney Weaver, but Zoe Saldana's performance is the one that stood out for me. I hope she did the motion capture and not just the voice, because I found her character quite compelling.

But enough about the visuals. The popular opinion seems to be that, while Avatar looks amazing, the story is sub-par. I agree, to an extent. The metaphors and symbolism are obvious to the point that they can barely be called metaphors and symbols, and there are some scenes that feel familiar because they are common in most movies, but I don't feel that those things subtract from the experience. I thought the concept was neat, a little bit like The Matrix or, even more relatable to most, World of Warcraft, the way Jake spent so much time in the Na'vi world that Grace had to play his mother and force him to do necessary daily tasks like eat and shower. As the movie went on, I almost felt like I was Jake - in the sense that I became so engrossed in the movie that no other thoughts entered my mind and I completely forget about who I am and that I have a life outside of the movie. I'm not sure whether that's scary or awesome, but I suppose it is a major credit to Avatar's entertainment value.

Recommendation
It isn't often that I'll be speaking this strongly, but I have to say it: SEE THIS MOVIE. You will only have a limited number of opportunities to witness Avatar on a big screen in all of its 3D glory. Don't pass it up; this is a piece of movie history.