Avatar Review

Last night after the storm invaded the southwest Missouri sky,
I started the epic that caused a splash in the entertainment realm.
The movie that spent over $300 million,
but grossed more than $700 million.
The top box-office movie of all time.
The Best Picture Academy Award Snub.
Avatar.

And here are my reflections:

Avatar is an epic story of colliding cultures. On the planet Pangea, the Navi people, a humanoid race, are being exploited by a human invasion orbiting around a mineral that produces $20 million per kilo. Much like other Epics, Avatar focuses on the interaction of cultures and the affects that said interaction has on the individual experiencing a more "primitive" culture (see also Lawrence of Arabia). The ex-Marine main character, Jake Sully, incurs a paradigm shift involving the relationship between nature and money because of his involvement in the indigenous culture. His intrinsic values transform to reflect the values of the infiltrated culture. As the evolution proceeds, Jake Sully abandons his human tendencies, even "betraying his race" for the naturalistic Navi people.

I appreciate the experience focused transformation of Jake Sully that reflects our post-modern culture. Avatar is truly a post-modern movie, illustrating how truth can be blurred by perspective, producing the human perspective from a greedy, mineral hungry corporate exec, and a patriotic marine looking to defend human values. Such a presentation of relative truth encourages the audience to root against their own kind in favor of the more primitive Navi people without investigating the consequences of such an action.

If the human perspective were presented from an experience that would gain support, the audience would have rooted against the blood thirsty, poison arrow shooting Navi people in favor of the more likable characters. And thus is the beauty of post-modernism. Perspective changes truth. And thus is the danger of post-modernism.

There were many other things to appreciate about Avatar, such as its focus on Nature Preservation, Cultural Intolerance, and the Evolution of Man, but what was most striking was its proper presentation of current culture through a futuristic tale. I would give Avatar a solid 4 Stars out of 5.