Avatar

awesome as!!!!!!!!!!!!

 5

really cool graphics looked totally real and lots of action again like alice in wonderland if you have not seen it you need to see it or it will become a matter of LIFE or DEATH. really cool just maybe a little long

By charlie stone (the man)

patronizing bs

 3

the special effects were awesome but the storyline smacked some sort of greenpeace meets rambo mashup . I suppose i should be thankful that there were no 60ft blue todgers waving in the wind so 3 stars for effort

By Sapphie

Pretty effects/Boring story

 1

Unfortunately the story was very predictable. Even my 12 year old son didn't really care for it. 1 billion dollars could've been spent better elsewhere.

By Lauren

Drop dead special effects can only go so far.

 1

A movie has to have a story as well.

By Anon

I love it i love it.

 5

It is very qood movie to watch its very interestinq and a qood entertaininq movie to watch qreat show qreat show

By Tyler

 3

Was expecting to see more action after all the good remarks from everyone I know.
Graphics are good but the story is slow and drags on.
Great that this movie is original but could have been more creative with the war parts.

By Nardz

Pleasantly surprised

 5

No the story wasn't original (or as good as District 9) but a true reflection of the Human Race's awful traits (anyone who says there was no storyline is either stupid or ignorant), and the effects were fantastic and made up for anything the story lacked. Fantastic movie, as a rule, I pay to see movies twice but am contemplating seeing this again because of what I may have missed in the background.

By Tricia

WOW! .... Speachless.

 5

It is amazing. It is just simply AMAZING. There is no movie like this. Great graphics great story, everything was so perfect. I watched it in 2D so im planning to go and watch it in 3D which is gonna be even better. Don't miss it.

By Grace

good but not great

 1

district nine was way better

By k

avatar

 5

best movie at the mo

By Te uara

avatar

 5

best movie at the mo

By Te uara

Pretty... derived.

 2

Looking forward to the sequel where humans return to scorch the face of the planet killing all life in order to get what they want.

The two stars are obtained purely by the CGI team. The story was implausible, ridiculous, and derived. The plant life was a combination of sea life and trees, the animals were as they are on earth - with gills (Well done James Cameron - Very creative). I was expecting something to rival Star Wars. Very disappointed.

By Gruk

very good

 5

so good i want see it 2nd time

By glen

Avatar- worth paying 14.50 twice or even thrice!!!!

 5

I've seen it twice and also plan to see it in 3D.
Great themes, amazing graphics, all-round stunning, so brilliant!

By Maria

Avatar

 5

This movie is my favorite movie yet, graphics are amazing.
Went to this movie about 4 weeks ago and am going to it again today . =) 5 stars

By Tayla

Plotless, predictable and moments of dialogue cringe

 2

Am I the only one left feeling strangely empty after seeing this movie? The 3D and special effects, were admittedly incredible but after 30 minutes, the novelty of the effects wore off leaving behind a shell of American cliches, stilted dialogue and a story stolen from every Disney movie ever made. What the hell is 'Unobtanium'? An unobtainable rock? How utterly banal. Seems like Cameron has been infected by Lucas disease. Jar Jar Binks copulating with Pocahontus anyone? It is sad to see the demise of good storytelling dissolve into the burning pit of CGI imagery and capitalist profit. The amount of money it took to make this blue-tinged carnival could have saved a small country. Depressing stuff. Go take some acid and pray to the hope tree for the Avatar hysteria let up.

By Andrew

overrated

 1

Boring, predictable plotline. Very dissappointing. special effects didn't make up for the dull story.

By Tony

Derivative drivel that takes itself too seriously.

 2

3D are special effects are cool but do not make up for the fact that this film is an entertaining rush of derivative drivel populated by stereotypes dancing to the beat of moronically mundane music. An unoriginal blend of 'Star Wars' meets 'Dances with Wolves' Vs 'LOTR' but an hour too long and without the humorous self-mocking of recent sci-fi hits like 'District 9'.
Fail!

By Gina - Academy Cinemas

Pretty Cool in 3-D

 3

OMG! I wish it was real!! Well I hope it actually happens in reality in the year 2145! I like the the Girl But I can't remember her name but she is a bit weird.
But the movie was all right for a sci-fi.

By CC

A must-see visual specatacular

 4

Like others on this site, I believe that visually this is absolutely the best movie I have seen.

However plotwise it does take a hit from the similarity to so many other films - Fern Gully for example in the 'must stop the forest from destruction by giant bulldozers, and oh look I can fly on something!' line. Dances with Wolves I haven't seen but it does sound like a takeoff of that too.

The romance plotline is cute but somethat stilted, and as someone else pointed out, I was expecting a Jake Sulley/Tsu'tey brawl, rather than just a couple of shoves.

I'm very eager to see how well Avatar goes down in the United States - what with the very anti-American, anti-military, anti-big corporate takeovers themes.

I am looking to get one or two of the books on how the world of Pandora was created, and I might even have a shufti at the Na'vi language - yes apparently it is a full 1,000 word language up somewhere on the Net.

So, in summary - awesome awesome graphics, pity the plot didn't quite measure up. Better plot in the sequel please!

By Rhiannon

Woah!

 5

Really cool movie... good graphics but please people dont sit up the front.. it hurts your eyes real bad..!

By Leah =]

WOW

 5

DAMN...............IT WAS THE LAST HIT FILM OF 2009 THAT ROCKS.... this film will remind me of the end of 2009 ROCK ON......BLUE MONKEYS....YEAH

By Aced

BEST MOVIE OF ALL TIME

 5

This is it. Go see it, now, because it needs to be seen on thw big screen. The bigger the better. This movie is on a whole new level. It doesn't get much better than this.

By Sam

Loved both 2D and 3D

 5

The visual effects in both are great. The story line as others have said is nothing new (Dancing with Woles etc), but who cares. Bing a graphics geek it was fantastic.

By Torben

the best movie ever..........extrodinary

 5

it was fantastic i loved the grafics the little detail that everyone misses the navi draged me in it was spectacular i know iam going to by the dvd and watch it every night ....hahahahahaha THE BEST EVER

By lizzy

Wow.

 5

Simply the best movie in the world.

By Jojo

Must see on the Big Screen

 5

Avatar was an amazing movie and the 3D was something else. Unlike previous 3D films which had very annoying and nauseating pop-out like effects Avatar used 3D throughout the entire film and was more subtle. To those who think this is just another action film they are misleading themselves. Avatar has an amazing culture and the visual effects are phenomenal. Throughout the entire 3 hours I was captivated.

By Kawiti

James Cameron is a GENIUS a must see movie

 5

The guy behind Terminator 1 & 2, Aliens, and Titanic

inviting Speilberg, Lucas, and Jackson to share his wisdom on state of the art stereoscopic filming during the production of AVATAR which gives us that 3-D magic.

Visually stunning and great line up of cast and Sam Worthington definately the next big thing.

By Anony Mous

See it in 3D

 4

Well i had a whale of a time with this beaut..Our local cinema upgraded it's main Auditorium to Project 3D and gave us a new sound system to boot.

So for me near perfect cinema going experience.

pros/cons

+ Incredible visual effects, richly organic designs to creatures and to "Pandora" in general.
Never got bored staring at this rich eco system.

+ 3d is not a gimmick, really added depth to the visual experience, saw it in Real D 3d for the first time. BEAUTIFUL, makes me wonder if new movies can utilize 3d as effectively as this?.

+ A sonic performance to rattle your bones. Beautiful tribal music, subtle jungle effects from the rear speakers to giant concussive explosions. Through a freshly installed D-cinema it sounds a treat.

- Its true the story doesn't really delve too deeply into uncharted territory as far as narrative goes, it really is a hodgepodge of classic movies we've seen before.

- The dialogue in some places is also flat and somewhat by the numbers.

- 3d, as awesome as it was, I couldn't help but feel without it, its just a simple rehash of old themes and that brings it down a star for me.

having said this for a near three hour movie, it sure moves along at pace. i never felt the minutes, unlike 2012.. the pros far outway the cons..i left very impressed.

By Marley

Sit back and let it happen

 5

Took kids to see this and sat down with glassess in my hand thinking shall I go to sleep or make the effort to stay awake.
Well I made that effort and this movie blew me away. Unbelivable fantastic can't wait to see it again. Go and see it you will not be dissapointed.

By Sean Ellis

The best sci fi action to date

 5

simply amazing viewing

lots of twists and turns , imagination runs wild as your pulled into to this movie and submersed into full immersion

plot is seemingly prdictable but a story can be told many ways and this is no different with details adjusted , did i mention twists ? , simply not that case that the story is old and bland .

this has best picture written all over it , cast do an awesome job with thier characters

roll coaster ride will leave you guessing till the end that YOU wont want it too end .

if you have any kind of action sci fi bone in your body you must go see this movie , you wont regret it .

By matthew

Escapism Extreme

 5

I watched this movie in 3D at Aucklands Imax theatre.

The last time I gone to the mivies to watch something in 3D was 20 years ago and after 10 minutes I had to remove my glasses to deal with a splitting headache!

Wow.....I'm happy to say that 3D has come along way. The best thing about this movie is the world of Pandora itself. The depth perception 3D gives you makes the stunning enviroments so much more real. Weta has taken CGI to a whole new level with this movie and it's so cool to know they are a New Zealand company.

Make this movie your compulsory Christmas watch.

By Mattly

LOVELY PLUMAGE, THE NORWEGIAN BLUE!

 5

A while back I posted a comment on this site saying that based on the trailers I had seen I felt that AVATAR was possibly a reworking of Aliens. The fact that Sigourney Weaver featured in it as an irascible tech-head added to that suspicion. Then there was the nameless Company and Company Man and the heavy hand of the military (even a tough as female marine). I also felt that the world of Pandora bore more than a passing resemblance to the worlds and creatures created by Edgar Rice Burroughs in his Mars, Venus and Pellucidar stories (I would add also at least one Tarzan story involving people with tails). Another element is the fantasy illustrations of Roger Dean.
Then there is the direct similarity between the battle of Pandora with the Empire's attack on the Ewoks in the Star Wars saga.
So a lot of influences and reference points. I'm sure more could be found if one were to try hard enough.
But for all that, AVATAR has succeeded fantastically in creating an amazing world that draws the viewer in. It succeeds in becoming more than the sum of its influences, more than the genera of its plot. It is truly an experience and it does what movies should do - it makes us suspend our disbelief for nearly three hours and when we come out of the theatres we're surprised to discover that we're back on earth.
That, at least, is how I felt. I can think of maybe half a dozen movies that have made me feel that way - 2001 springs to mind.
Forget the banality of plot and dialogue - yes it could have been better and different.
Get on board, strap in and take the ride. It's the only way you're going to get off-planet.
Now, of course, we're going to get a string of crap imitations as accountants clamour for profits.
A string of dead parrots with lovely plumage...
SO GO SEE THIS MOVIE NOW WHILE IT'S NEW AND FRESH AND ALIVE!

By REXH

Predictable but visually entertaining

 4

Don't go for the story because you've seen it already. Go for the experience of the most detailed lifelike animation that has been seen yet.
Best seen in 3D if you can stand it too as portrays depth pretty well. Sure it's not like real life colour but it's a modern cartoon so.....
Pretty much summed up as a pretty "Dances with blue cats"

By Alan

All looks no brains.

 2

If you happened to wake up and think Avatar is a 5 star film maybe you should go back to the bong.
For all its visual splendor and technical finesse Avatar is little more than the beautiful half sister of Jar Jar Binks and boy, that's how the lead female alien pans out.
Maybe Cameron and Lucas could have got together and brain stormed some Shakespearean dialogue.
As for the story it is nothing more than a clunky scifi rip off of Dances with Wolves and any deeper statement Cameron tries to make comes off with the subtlety that is like being knocked round the head by the hammer off the Soviet Union flag.
Now that he's perfected the technical side of his film making maybe next time Cameron can focus more on creating characters with 3D personalities and dialogue that even Jar Jar would be proud of.

By Andy

Wow

 5

how did a friend say "freakin awesome" and indeed the movie is awesome and visually the best I have ever seen. Anyone who said this was seen before must have been blind or some problems with their eyes. I saw it in 3d in a German theatre in German (buhhhhhh). HD Cinema where u can see every little detail from hairs to dust crystal clear. Some times I have forgotten to watch an animation movie when the hunted through the forest. Absolutely amazing and first class. Second class is the story. It is good enough to tell an entertaining story which is known from other flicks but who does care with these pictures. So go go go as long as u have the chance. I for one will watch it again in the sydney IMAX.

By Teejay

Looks fantastic, the plot, generic.

 2

If you love mainstream film, this is for you.

The visuals are amazing.

But the plot provides no new advances, it is generic and tedious.

By Steve.

Utterly Amazing!

 5

this movie is breathtakingly awesome! i just watched in 2-D and wow! although i was expecting more of a rivalr between jake and that warrior for taking his girl. 5 stars indefinatley.

By max

Stunning 3D

 5

Nothing much to be said. Everyone love it. Brilliant Graphics~

By JC

TRULY INCREDIBLE

 5

Firstly, notice how the people leaving the bad reviews can't even string together a proper sentence?

Avatar is, without a doubt, the best movie I have ever seen. And I have seen A LOT.

I am a huge movie buff and in a way, Avatar has ruined film for me as it is going to be a VERY long time before this one is beaten. SO WHAT AM I SUPPOSED TO WATCH NOW?!?!?!

GO AND SEE IT!!!!!

By Manta

Really good, but still overrated

 4

Hey just saw the movie in IMAX 3D. 3D gave me a bit of a headache and was a bit blury so recommend the 2D myself... Anyway movie is great, but just not ground breaking in my opinion. Graphics are excellent but the script/story just doesn't match. Go with lesser expectations than the flicks and other review say, and you'll enjoy a great movie.

By Mr G

Nothing new, storyline or special effect

 2

If you are looking to see the new technology then you will be disapointed. New Zealand theatres are not equipped with teh right stuff to appreciate thi smovie (Avatar). Story is "Dancing with Wolves", great similarity between the bluesh Na'vi poeple with native Indians. Politically it is the invasion of Iraq by US mercinaries using Shock and Awe.
Whether you see it in 3D or 2D, not much difference.

By Daniel

Amazing

 5

An amazing movie - everyone should see this. The 3D effects were superb but even more important was the story - something we should all think about at the moment as the Copenhagen Climate Summit ends in disarray.

By Daniel

Brilliant effects and detail - but....

 3

.... it's a story line we've all seen before ("Dances With Wolves", anyone??) The graphics are amazing - even in 2D and Cameron and Weta have another huge technical accomplishment under their belts - I'd be very surprised if the work done on this film wasn't Oscar material.

The plotline, well - sorry but nothing new there and the ecological message was about as subtle as the bad guy's humungous bulldozers!

Do go see it for the spectacular visual treat whether in 2D or 3D - you don't want to wait for the DVD/Blu-Ray release - ya gotta see it on the big screen!!

By Mike R

Disappointed

AS the 3d is supposed to be half the thrill of this film was pretty disappointed when I found my local theater(Palmerston North) was not showing it in 3d very annoying they dont advertise could of gone and seen in 3d in Wellington I feel if picture is supposed to be in 3d should get in for half price as now will have to pay again if I want to go to 3d

By Steve

Too Long and to Loud

 1

This movie was so boring in the normal cinema the graphics arent to bad nothing really new only abit , and the pandora planet seems like brazil only with blue looking nerds running around 95% naked winening at each other and the story is weak and Its like a dreamy movie this was worser than transformers 2 and I thought that was loud but this is a very depressing movie nuff said.

By Boring Bugger

Bliss

 5

I was disappointed when buying my ticket to be told that I was in the front row. This feeling quickly changed as I was transported away from the Christmas madness outside and deep into the vibrant world of Avatar. In fact I would recommend, for total immersion, getting as close to the screen as you can for this 3D wonder.
The imagery is truly breath taking, and making all the different creatures hair/furless has solved one of the major visual problems of past computer drawn films.
The cast is spot on both in their human and native forms, with the natives having a great balance between the familiar and unfamiliar in their look and ways that produces a people the viewer grows to care about through the coarse of the film.
The use of the familiar imagery used in an unfamiliar setting also helped mirror the films story to that of our own recent past, present, and no doubt in terms of the films ‘teaching’ future. An example being the bringing down of the giant tree. Compare this in your mind to the collapse of the ‘Twin Towers’ and the ensuing dust cloud and fleeing people.
When I was a child my father took me to ‘The Gumball Rally’. Afterward as we headed home I noticed his driving had changed, for a few minutes he was still ‘in the rally’. As I drove down the motorway last night I again was aware of a change. My perception of space and light seemed enhanced, and my old car glided its way home. Bliss!

By Bernie Harfleet

THE BEST MOVIE EVER

 5

WOW WOW WOW 24 HOURS AFTER SEEING AVATAR I AM STILL BUZZING, THE FASTEST 3 HOURS AT THE MOVIES EVER! I WALKED OUT OF THE MOVIES WITH THE BIGGEST SMILE ON MY FACE AND MY 2 DAUGHTERS LOVED IT ALSO, A BIG CALL BUT TO BE HONEST IT WAS THE BEST MOVIE I HAVE EVER EVERE SEEN!!!! I WANT TO SEE IT AGAIN AND AGAIN AND I WILL OWN THE DVD WHEN RELEASED

By wayne

AVATAR ROX!!!

 5

Love the movie. It's awesome.
With stunning animation and breath taking scenery, Avatar is a movie of wonders. Avatar is a movie full of imagination and creates a unique twist from the normal sci-fi movies like Star Wars. Avatar is not only a film full of action, it is also a romantic film which dwelves deeper than you can think. With the action packed and nerve wracking plot Avatar sure makes the blockbuster sci-fi movie of the year.

By Jess

AVATAR ROX!!!

 5

Love the movie. It's awesome.
With stunning animation and breath taking scenery, Avatar is a movie of wonders. Avatar is a movie full of imagination and creates a unique twist from the normal sci-fi movies like Star Wars. Avatar is not only a film full of action, it is also a romantic film which dwelves deeper than you can think. With the action packed and nerve wracking plot Avatar sure makes the blockbuster sci-fi movie of the year.

By Jess

See it in 3d/imax

 5

up close cos this is amazing and one of those things that you have to believe in to take it. This is so up to a new level of experience and i'd easily see it again

By Ken Burns

WOW

 5

What a movie i was stuck to my seat the whole time no going to the toilet in this movie.The special effects were incredible the story gripping (evil man ) cant help them self's a must see movie.

By leon k

Saw the full movie this morning...

 5

And I can honestly say it is beautiful. Don't bother trying to forget the hype, as it completely lives up to it.

Cameron builds a whole new universe, makes you connect with it, then sets you down right in the middle of it.

In 3D it's simply incredible. It's not the grand scenery that stands out, its the subtlety of the trees and the flies buzzing around that make you realise you're part of something very special indeed.

A story that is original and unlike anything ever approached in cinema, that is well acted by Worthington and Weaver. Keep an eye out for scene stealers in the form of Giovanni Ribisi and the militant chief of security.

A visually stunning, completely enthralling, film that is a guaranteed Best Picture contender.

By Tom