WHAT: Avatar
WHERE: Birmingham Imax
WHO: Me, Nick, Wayne, Becky, James and Alex
WHEN: Sunday 24/01/2010
My first cinema trip of 2010 was meant to mark the opening entry into this blog and so it had to start with something big and they don’t come much bigger than James Cameron’s runaway $280m hit Avatar.
The usual logistical hassles of getting my cinema going friends to all agree a date to get over to the Imax seemed insurmountable indeed this is only the second time in history a trip has been pulled off but after a late substitution was pulled off in record time the date was set and the convoy was on. Wayne driving with Nick and Becky and a sat-nav in one car and me driving Alex and James with a slightly less accurate sat-nav in the other, but apart from forgetting to check my petrol levels and having to fill up on the M6 the journey went without a hassle and we made it with about 90 minutes to spare. So after duelling hotdogs and copious amounts of pop corn were purchased we were in, the screens ridiculous size as always seems bigger every time you see one but you always know you’re in for a treat at an Imax show and boy were we not disappointed with this one. It always amazes me at an Imax that people who walk in with about 30 seconds before the show starts go all miserable when they can’t get the best seats in the house and end up at the very front. Two words spring to mind COME EARLIER.
So anyway the film. About a second after being instructed to don your oversized 3d glasses you are plunged instantly into a 3d universe that will have you gripped for the next 2 hours and 40 minutes. This was, believe it or not, my first ever experience with 3d in a proper full length feature. We’ve all seen the short films at Alton towers or Drayton manor but this really is nothing like that. The shear depth of the landscapes and the colours will blow your mind especially in the night scenes. Pandora by night is one of the most beautiful sights you will see in any film, Every plant and tree even the floor glows in amazing fluorescent blues pinks and greens, there was an audible gasp throughout the cinema the first time this was revealed to us as people realised that they were not just watching a film any more they were living this whole new world. About 2 hours in you do start to get used to the 3d universe but by that time you will have completely lost track of your own reality and be completely immersed in the experience. At one point somebody a few rows ahead of me stood up and it actually made me jump before I realised that there were other people in the room with me. As I’m sure any of the people I regularly go to the cinema with will attest too I am very fidgety and never stop changing my position to try and find some semblance of comfort in the seat but I honestly don’t think I moved until at least half way through this and Imax seats are notoriously uncomfortable.
So what about the story? I have not seen Avatar in 2d (and now don’t think I could) and I’m sure that the people who have only seen it in this medium don’t understand the hype surrounding the film that today became the highest grossing film of all time and that is because the actual story of the film itself is not groundbreaking and the acting at times is a bit shaky, however this in its most basic form is not a bad film in fact it is actually quite good. I enjoyed the story as it developed and the relationship that builds between Sam Worthingtons Avatar and the N’Avi people is actually very engaging. When the death and destruction eventually arrives you actually back the human race to lose and the final showdown is up there with the best battle scenes in recent memory.
But it is the overall experience that makes this film what it is and that is why this film is getting the rating that I have given it. It remains to be seen if this movie is the game changer that many including myself are predicting but one thing is for certain ‘We’re not in Kansas anymore’
9.5/10
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