Avatar (2009)

A paraplegic Marine dispatched to the moon Pandora on a unique mission becomes torn between following his orders and protecting the world he feels is his home.

Director:

James Cameron

Writer:

James Cameron

Stars:

Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Sigourney Weaver

Won 3 Oscars. Another 56 wins & 73 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Sam Worthington	...	Jake Sully
Zoe Saldana	...	Neytiri (as Zoë Saldana)
Sigourney Weaver	...	Grace
Stephen Lang	...	Colonel Miles Quaritch
Michelle Rodriguez	...	Trudy Chacon
Giovanni Ribisi	...	Parker Selfridge
Joel David Moore	...	Norm Spellman
CCH Pounder	...	Moat
Wes Studi	...	Eytukan
Laz Alonso	...	Tsu'tey
Dileep Rao	...	Dr. Max Patel
Matt Gerald	...	Corporal Lyle Wainfleet
Sean Anthony Moran	...	Private Fike
Jason Whyte	...	Cryo Vault Med Tech
Scott Lawrence	...	Venture Star Crew Chief

Storyline

When his brother is killed in a robbery, paraplegic Marine Jake Sully decides to take his place in a mission on the distant world of Pandora. There he learns of greedy corporate figurehead Parker Selfridge's intentions of driving off the native humanoid "Na'vi" in order to mine for the precious material scattered throughout their rich woodland. In exchange for the spinal surgery that will fix his legs, Jake gathers intel for the cooperating military unit spearheaded by gung-ho Colonel Quaritch, while simultaneously attempting to infiltrate the Na'vi people with the use of an "avatar" identity. While Jake begins to bond with the native tribe and quickly falls in love with the beautiful alien Neytiri, the restless Colonel moves forward with his ruthless extermination tactics, forcing the soldier to take a stand - and fight back in an epic battle for the fate of Pandora.

---

Plot Keywords:

paraplegic | colonel | native | marine | avatar | 

---

Taglines:

Return to Pandora

---

Genres:

Action | Adventure | Fantasy | Sci-Fi

---

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for intense epic battle sequences and warfare, sensuality, language and some smoking

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site

Country:

USA UK

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

18 December 2009 (USA)

Also Known As:

Avatar: An IMAX 3D Experience

Filming Locations:

Hamakua Coast, Hawaii, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$237,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£8,509,050 (UK) (18 December 2009)

Gross:

$760,505,847 (USA) (12 November 2010)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation, Dune Entertainment, Ingenious Film Partners

Technical Specs

Runtime:

162 min 171 min (special edition) 178 min (extended cut)

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital DTS SDDS Sonics-DDP (IMAX version)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

All animals on Pandora have six limbs, except for the humans and Na'vi.

---

Goofs

A large mining machine, a bucket wheel excavator [BWE], is seen during the shuttle landing sequence. It is shown operating incorrectly, with the descending part of the wheel against the rock. A BWE operates with the ascending part of the wheel against the rock, so the spoil can fall into the buckets.

---

Quotes

[first lines]
Jake Sully: [Narrating] When I was lying in the V.A. hospital with a big hole blown through the middle of my life, I started having these dreams of flying. I was free. But sooner or later, you always have to wake up.

---

Crazy Credits

There are no opening credits of any kind (outside of the 20th Century Fox title card). The title of the film doesn't appear on screen until the end of the movie.

---

Connections

Referenced in Yu-Gi-Oh! The Abridged Series: Requiem for a Nyeh (2009)

---

Soundtracks

"I See You (Theme from Avatar)"
Performed by Leona Lewis
Music by James Horner and Simon Franglen
Lyrics by Simon Franglen, Kuk Harrell, and James Horner
Produced by Simon Franglen and James Horner
Leona Lewis performs courtesy of Syco Music

User Reviews

Avatar is a masterpiece & a breakthrough in cinema

It was Terminator in the 1980's and then Titanic in the '90s and it's definitely Avatar in the 2000s!!

James Cameron is my most favourite director and he has once again broken all boundaries and created a visual extravaganza.

Avatar is Cameron's latest magnum opus is probably one of the most anticipated movies since Titanic and now it seems that the visionary director has indeed created a film that'll revolutionise the world of cinema.

The movie is set in the year 2154 and is about a man called Jake who can't walk and he is selected in the Avatar program where he has to go to Pandora jungle which is not a planet but it is one of the three giant gasses that is about 4 light years away from earth. On Pandora there are life forms such as the navis that are about 10 feet tall have sparkly blue skin, big eyes and tails. The humans have genetically bred human-navi hybrids known as Avatars. Jake is able to walk but falls in love with a female navi and now he has to choose the side between humans or the navis.

The film was absolutely fascinating, interesting, entertaining and emotional. I loved the look on the Pandora jungle and it must be the best scenery in film history and the navis are definitely the best digital characters since Gollum from The Lord of the Rings. The special effects are so amazing that Pandora looks like a real location and you can mistake the navis as real characters. Avatar was almost 3 hours but it didn't seem that long.

Avatar already makes it on my top 5 favourite movies and I intend to see it again and I am already waiting for it to release on Blu Ray because I'm sure that it will be one of the best Blu Ray titles.