Avatar

Dr J and I rarely go to the movies. When you have three kids and are thirty year old students, finances are usually to tight to swing tickets and a babysitter. Mostly we don't mind. A long time ago we got Netflix and in general that satisfies our need for movies and dates. Occasionally though a movie comes out that you must see in the theater. Avatar happens to be just that. The first thing my sister said to me this Christmas break was, "You have to go see Avatar. It is the best movie I've seen all year. It has everything. You will love it." The only thing I'd heard about it was that it was the most expensive movie ever, but her words made me weary. My whole family swore up and down that Nacho Libre was hilarious. It wasn't. I've often asked my self if the build up I gave the movie was the problem. Free babysitting though is hard to pass up, so the day before Christmas I headed to the theater with Dr J, two of my babysisters, one of their spouses, and my two younger brothers. Tickets were almost completely sold out so we found ourselves down in the front area. I was prepared to be disappointed but instead was amazed. I am not going to promise that the story is without flaws. I'm still confused as to what tree is first bulldozed and why they chose to have the Avatars have human like hands versus the hands of the people of Pandora. My brother tried to argue that the story was a tired mix of Pocahontas, Fern Gully, and Dances with Wolves, but the story line stays interesting even if it does borrow. There are times when it gets a little preachy, but I think a little preachy is ok. The story line is good. The action is great. The computer animation is AMAZING. A must see on the big screen!!! There is one part in the story where I almost chocked back a sob. For those who have seen the movie it involves a the line, "I see you." Embarrassing I know but the story has it all. Definitely worth the babysitting money if you are on the fence about seeing it. We walked out of the theater and I spent most of the night thinking about the movie and how good the graphics were. Later that night we watched GI Joe with my brother and sister in law. I wanted to throw something at the screen. What a waste of space. My sister is right, Avatar is probably the best movie of the year.