Avatar Review

The Terminator, Aliens, Titanic; James Cameron has created some of the most memorable films of the last century. But does his latest, heavily hyped, and long developed film, Avatar, live up to all of the press it's been given in the past year? You'll have to read on to find out!

While you've probably already heard about the special effects of Avatar (and I will get to that eventually), there is actually a story here, and it works quite well despite being all too familiar. But bear with me here, because it's a new science fiction franchise (can you believe that?!) there's some explaining needed. The centers around Jake Sully (Sam Worthington), the twin brother of a recently fallen Marine, who has replaced his brother in an experimental "Avatar" project on the planet Pandora. Pandora is a planet not unlike our own, except the plants are more exotic and lush with color, the animals are complex in design, and the whole world is connected via this nature, which is looked after by the native Na'vi (the blue ones). But the Na'vi are no longer alone; a private company has set camp on Pandora, in a search to find Unobtainium (I kid you not), a precious mineral, and are mining the planet, using mercenaries to kill anything that stand in their way.

As part of the "Avatar Program," select humans have their DNA meshed with that of the Na'vi, allowing them to remotely control a Na'vi body so that they can infiltrate the tribes, and be accepted among them to get inside intelligence to further aid the mining project. For Jake Sully, who has been a paraplegic for most of his life, he sees the Avatar Program as a second chance to walk again, but once he becomes accepted amongst the Na'vi, he learns that walking may not be all that he has been looking for. And really, that's all I can say without spoiling much of this nearly three hour epic.

But what did I feel about the story? It works, really, I mean the thing I've always found with James Cameron's films is that they're science fiction that anyone can get. Like the two Cameron-directed Terminator films, it may be hard (or even boring) to explain in sentence form, but if you watch it, and pay attention, it's understandable and just works for the film. Story-wise, Avatar will not blow your mind, to be coy, it's kind of like Dances With Wolves, in space; it's kind of an unfair judgment considering the nature of the film, but I couldn't help but feel like I've seen the story before; i.e. a lot of it becomes predictable.

Acting-wise, once again, it works, I never felt like anyone did a bad job, but again I wasn't blown away. But, like the Terminator films, Cameron knows how to cast people for the roles he's created; who would've guessed Arnold could be fitting for any role until The Terminator? I think Sam Worthington was the right person to play Jake Sully, he hasn't really been in anything mainstream until last summer's Terminator Salvation (which I've yet to see), but I think casting a reasonably unknown as an informal, out of place character works really well, and his change in character from handicapped human to brave and agile Na'vi is something special. Like wise, the film's main villain, Colonel Miles Quaritch (Stephen Lang), also works well for the role; I can't say there wasn't a moment when he appeared on screen that I didn't want to punch him in the face, so I think the job was done right. And lastly on the human side is Sigourney Weaver, who plays a badass scientist that doesn't take crap from anyone; my only complaint with her character was that her Na'vi avatar looked a little too much like a blue Sigourney Weaver, and not as much like the standard Na'vi like everyone else did.

As for the Na'vi, that's where the film gets interesting, since unlike those in the Avatar Program never have human on-screen counterparts to compare them to. The main tribal Na'vi, Neytiri (Zoë Saldana), looks (to an extent, like you'd really have to study the face) and acts like Ms. Saldana, but in the context of the film it's as if she is a whole other person. Granted that most of this is in part to the motion capture, as I don't recognize any of the other main Na'vi by the actors portraying them, but I really think she showed that she can pull off a role other than Uhura, which is good for an emerging actress.

But really, the motion capture is what makes this film. Unlike Robert Zemeckis' dreadful looking motion capture films (they're honestly why I hated the idea of using such technology), the mo-cap of Avatar feels believable. Not in the sense that I think blue-cat people roam the streets (that's for another article), but in the sense that they didn't act like 3D messes that used to be humans. Their body movement looks natural, their faces emote as if the actor was being filmed right there sans-CGI, and amongst the CG environment, they look like they fit right in. Even with humans around the Na'vi people never felt out of place. For me at least, the only time I felt CGI just didn't feel like it belonged was when the mech-suits used by the mercenaries were on screen. It was actually kind of peculiar, I think, to see how organic and motion captured CGI characters and environments worked so well, but the unnatural parts just seemed so out of place (perhaps a nod to the film's plot? I doubt it, but that would be a good excuse).

Everything else... Music wise, I wasn't blown away by the score. The film constantly felt epic thanks to the sound design and the music, but at the time of writing this I can't say anything was memorable in this department. As said before, visually this film is stunning, and depending on where you see it you may have options. The newspaper advertised "2D, RealD 3D, Digital 3D, and Imax 3D;" I honestly have no idea what the difference between RealD 3D and Digital 3D is, but my glasses say RealD on them so I'll assume that's the way I saw it. Considering this is the second film I've seen in 3D (first being Coraline) I can't say it really aids the film that much. I mean, in clear parts I took my glasses off just to compare, and I'll at least say the 3D makes the experience more engaging, but it's hard to say whether or not Avatar (or any film at that) needs it.

All in all, Avatar is, as you've probably heard elsewhere, a technical masterpiece. I really had my doubts about this film prior to seeing it, but it truly is a technical achievement in how CGI and motion capture can be used to tell a story that probably couldn't have been shown otherwise; and it certainly changed my opinion on motion capture in cinema. Sure, the story itself and the acting aren't anything phenomenal, but they certainly aren't bad. Like Cameron's other films, Avatar takes a lot of mixed elements and just makes them work really well to tell the story he wants to tell. They may not be the best ever, but they are far from bad. Now the question is, where does James Cameron go from here?

Overall Score: 8/10

Star Trek Blu-ray review

After years of not purchasing anything live-action on disc (DVD or otherwise), one movie finally makes me take the leap away from animation... But in the end, was it worth it? Of course it was, this is Star Trek we're talking about here, the only movie all summer I managed to see multiple times!


Disc 1
Of course, if you're buying this on Blu-ray it's because you want to see the fantastic, eleventh Star Trek feature film. The film of which, centers around the story Romulan rogue, Nero, who rips a whole in time to destroy Spock's home planet, Vulcan, and in doing so resets the timeline before The Original Series would have started. A great new cast, a great director, and not only just one of the greatest pieces of Star Trek material, but a great film in general.For a better analysis of the film, check out my original review, this way I don't repeat myself.

The disc also features audio commentary by J.J. Abrams (Director), Damon Lindelof (Producer), Bryan Burk (Producer), and Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci (Co-Writers). The commentary is pretty interesting, though sometimes they tend to run off, not to mention a lot of what they have to say gets repeated in the second disc's numerous features. There's also BD-Live support, though as of now, there's just NASA news updates, despite the inside pamphlet's advertising of 'Exclusive Star Trek content for your Blu-ray player' which doesn't seem to be in the BD-Live section anywhere. Instead what you're left with is a lifeless, soundless menu, that features some news from NASA and a 'Picture of the Day'; nothing you'll come back for to say the least. But otherwise the film itself looks fantastic in HD and the sound is glorious; couldn't ask for anything more than that.

Disc 2
While the first disc may not seem to have much, the second is packed full of behind the scenes and documentary content. There are 10 main featurettes, and most of them have branching videos that can be access during play by an indicator, or watched separately on their own. First off is "To Boldly Go", which is a behind the scenes look at how the project got started, with interviews with Leonard Nimoy, J.J. Abrams, and the like, discussing how the film came to be. Then there's "Casting," "A New Vision," and "Starships," which all mainly focus on how The Original Series and his new film compare, and for a fan of both, such as myself, they're pretty insightful. "Aliens," "Planets," and "Props and Costumes" are the next group of videos, and while they too compare the old and new Trek, their main focus is how the physical effects of the film were made. And the last of these subject-divided behind the scenes featurettes are "Ben Burtt and the Sounds of Star Trek," which I actually found really helpful fora project I'm working on, and "Score," which obviously both focus on the sounds and music of the film.

There's still more though! One last short documentary, "Gene Roddenberry's Vision," which discusses how Star Trek, the TV show/franchise, was created and just how influential and important the series is to TV and science fiction. Then there's 9 deleted scene, yes, even the scenes with the awesome looking Klingons(!!!), all of which have commentary tracks from the same group as the film (minus Roberto Orci for whatever reason). Also included are the three theatrical trailers, and a Gag Reel, which I found really amusing, as it evoked a much similar feeling to when I watched bloopers from The Original Series, and it's just kind of charming to see these iconic roles come out of character and be human. While all of this is also on the DVD version there's only one Blu-ray exclusive extra (other than BD-Live): 3D ship-models of the U.S.S. Enterprise and the Narada, which allow you to view the ships from multiple angles and read up about the different parts. I could delve into how awesome each feature is here, but my fingers would collapse; just know there's multiple things to enjoy here, fans of the franchise or just new to the film.

Digital Copy
The Digital Copy works for PC or Mac, as it should be, and the installation is simple; but what make this different is that the disc also includes a demo of Star Trek D-A-C for Xbox 360 (oddly enough). But upon inserting he disc into the computer, you can find weblinks for PC or PSN demos of the game as well. Though, the PSN link doesn't do much on a PC besides show you Sony's game page. You'd actually have to go to the PS Store on your PS3 to that; which I did, two weeks ago, and I was unimpressed by the game. Point is, the trial being on this disc serves no purpose, since you can already get the demo otherwise. I just found it odd to see Xbox 360 labeling, on a Blu-ray set (though it is on the one DVD disc of the set, but still).

Final Thoughts
Considering how much I surprisingly (I had many doubt about recasting my favorite characters!) loved this film when it released over the summer, it seemed like a worthy addition to my movie collection, and even more worthy of the 'first live-action anything I've purchased' title. Not to mention, I was really eager to see the Klingons and other deleted scenes that I saw in the trailer but didn't make it into the final film. The extras just sweeten the deal, they're robust, informative, and it was great to see other original Star Trek cast members Walter Koenig and Nichelle Nichols talking alongside their new counterparts. I could go on and on here, but overall it's a great package whether you just got into the film or have been a long time Trek fan.

Overall Score: 9/10

On a side note, those you with a Best Buy around may still be lucky enough to pick up their exclusive collector's set that includes four replica Starfleet badges from the film. The badges themselves are awesome looking, though I wouldn't dare touch them. But it should be noted that the package you see picture is all that hold them, there's no secondary, interior case which I was saddened to find out. Because, with items so nice, a double sized cardboard box with a thin plastic window doesn't do them justice. Also, the included Blu-ray package differs slightly from the stand-alone one in that it has a 2-front covers, instead of the expected information back-cover, which instead is on paper and stuck on. I put it in the box, but It's just something I thought should be noted for those who planned on getting this set and actually watching the movie.

Star Trek review

I've been writing about it for months, and waiting anxiously all this time, but the day has finally come! The J.J. Abrams directed film hoped to revitalize the public interest in Star Trek; does it do the franchise justice, or is all hope lost in space?

For those of you unfamiliar, J.J Abrams' Star Trek is the eleventh film in the Star Trek movie franchise, but re-imagines the characters of Gene Roddenberry's original television series. In actuality though, I don't think this is much of a spoiler, the film is a sequel to pretty much the entire Star Trek franchise in that the film's villains, Nero and his Romulan henchman, are from a future yet to be seen in the franchise, but one in which the original Spock, reprised by Leonard Nimoy, existed. The rest of the film however takes place in an alternate timeline from that of The Original Series and subsequent Star Trek films and shows, thanks in part to Nero's tamperings with time. So, for fans, all this is thankfully well explained and shouldn't really interfere with set stories and future films; but for new viewers it won't matter.

But, if anyone out there wants to read more into the character of Nero and his connection with Spock and Star Trek as a whole, you can pick up the film's prequel comic book, Star Trek Countdown, which not only connects Nero with J.J. Abrams' Star Trek, but Star Trek: The Next Generation as well. I haven't read it myself (though I have skimmed through it) but after seeing the film I certainly plan to pick it up now, if only to get a better understanding of the film and character.

As for the film itself, it centers mainly around the lives of James Tiberius Kirk (Christopher Pine) and Spock (Zachary Quinto); in fact they're really the only characters in the film with back stories explained, where as most everyone else gets a few spoken sentences regarding their past. Thankfully, because I found the child portrayals to be rather annoying, Star Trek takes a cue from Abrams' series, Lost, and "Three Years Later" appears on screen, putting all the past behind and jumping right into the story at Starfleet. The rest of the film follows the young Enterprise crew as they learn about one another as they try to defeat Nero; that's just really summing it up though, there's more too it but I'd hate to be the one to spoil it for you.

Personally, The Original Series is my favorite when it comes to anything Star Trek, so for me I was really interested to see how this new, young cast portrayed the characters I loved. To say the very least I was pleased, but why don't we go into some detail? When most people think of the original Star Trek, they usually think of the trinity of Kirk, Spock, and of course, Dr. Leonard "Bones" McCoy. Portrayed in the film by Karl Urban, I felt that his character was a nice emulation of the same one played by DeForest Kelly, but I don't think he was given the attention he deserved. Yes, the "I'm a doctor, not a ..." lines were intact, and that was nice, but I would have liked to see more of him, as McCoy was my personal favorite from the series. But, as stated before, the real focus is on Kirk and Spock, and both characters portrayals are pretty true to their original counter parts. Pine definitely offers a different side to Kirk than Shatner, but come later in the film, as the character develops, it's the start of the Kirk we've come to love. As for Spock, I don't think anyone could have portrayed him better than Quinto. He had the look, and the attitude, it was spot on and it was great.

As for the rest of the cast, Uhura (Zoë Saldana) was given more prominence this time around than in The Original Series, and the fact that she was marketed alongside Kirk, Spock, and Nero in promotional materials now makes more sense after seeing the film. Her performance is not ground breaking, but she doesn't ruin the already developed character, she just adds a little bit more to her. Then there's the forgotten ones, not forgotten in terms of no one liking them, but these guys just really have no attention or development in the film. I'm talking mainly about Pavel Chekov (Anton Yelchin) and Hikaru Sulu (John Cho), the former of which didn't even appear in The Original Series until its second season, so his inclusion now is a bit odd, but maybe it has to do with the whole "alternate timeline" aspect, but your guess is as good as mine. The character of Chekov is still comedic in his lack of being able to pronounce "v" but he really felt unnecessary; I also don't get why he has to have curly hair now but ... whatever. As for John Cho as Sulu, he gets his one scene in the spotlight and that's pretty much it for the film; and he doesn't have George Takei's voice, but then again, who does?

Lastly, Montgomery Scott (Simon Pegg), first off he doesn't even appear until much later in the film, and he really didn't seem to be the same Scotty that James Doohan played; once again you could bring up the "alternate timeline" aspect, but there definitely seemed to be something lacking from his character. Oh, and I can't forget Nero (Eric Bana); he's not the most memorable of Trek villains in terms of something that makes him unique, and there's really no compassion for the character, try as the writers might though. In the end he just works to drive the story along, and he obviously poses a threat, being that he is the sole causer of the alternate timeline. He's no Khan though, to say the least. Last note, Nimoy definitely stole the show me, to say the least, just thought you should know. (Trekgasm)

With the acting out of the way it's time to talk about the rest. One thing I noticed a lot, lense flares and awkward camera movement. Like, I don't think there's a two minute gap without some sort of flare effect; not that big of a deal, but it is noticeable. As for awkward camera angles, there's a few times where the image is literally on its side and then will twist and turn to set itself normal; once again not something that bothered me that much, but those prone to motion sickness may want a bag at hand. And then there's the soundtrack. The orchestrated pieces are brilliant, and the track that recreates the original theme gave me goosebumps in a good way. But there's one scene that used the Beastie Boys' track, "Sabotage", and it just seemed really out of place for the 23rd century.

Overall, J.J. Abrams and his crew, not to mention the cast, really have brought Star Trek to a new audience and generation. Not to mention that it's certainly the flashiest, most engaging, and even the most welcoming Trek film to date. The "alternate timeline" allows new viewers to get into the series, while Trekkies and casual fans will be able to sleep at night knowing their original characters are safe in their own timeline. Not that it's a bad thing, but time travel can cause a whole lot of continuity issues, so I was glad to see the writers figured out a way to get it done right. Let's just hope everyone else can agree that this crew is the right way to bring Star Trek back as well.

Overall Score: 9.3/10