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Originally Posted by WingedWolfPsion

This was definitely one of the top movies I've seen, ever. Graphically beautiful, engaging characters, interesting storyline.

Is it a brand new story? No, it's a combination of primitives versus high-tech exploiters, and a very common science fiction theme, the idea of a sentient world. But it's definitely an old story done in a new way.

We've seen a similar story in Dances with Wolves, though the ending didn't turn out quite as good in that one.
No, not in Fern Gully. This isn't about an evil demon directing people to destroy the environment. The destruction of the environment is really secondary to the issue, here--at least, that's what the invaders thought. This isn't about environmentalism, it's about respecting the rights of people who may be 'more primitive' technologically than you are. It's about how people can use force to oppress others in order to take what they want, and feel they have a right to do so. It's also an epic story about how a single person can make a difference, and also about how it's really dumb not to listen to the scientists. <grin>

In this one, the scientists turn out to be the good guys--that's always a nice change.

You've never been so happy to see people being eaten, at least not since Jurrasic Park. ;)

There's many layers here dealing with 'human' rights, environmentalism, and the wisdom of looking before you leap. The human future painted is unabashedly dystopian, but not without hope of redemption. They just won't find it on Pandora.

In terms of an alien world, perhaps the Na'vi are bit too human--a common enough error in science fiction. But the planet itself is incredibly colorful and unique, with air too thin or too toxic for humans to breathe without respirator masks, for all of its lush profusion of life.

Rather than seeing the wildlife of pandora as 'modified prehistoric animals', I was very impressed by the variations in body form (six-legged carnivores, 4-winged fliers, nectar-drinking hooved animals with breathing pores on their necks that are ridden like horses--land-going corals, small reptile-like animals that fly via propeller-like fans...the biology of this created world is detailed, fascinating, and realistic. One does expect to see things taking similar forms and routes to what we see on earth, because these body plans and forms work for the environments they are in, and Pandora is just enough like Earth to pull that off. Pandora actually has more diversity in its land-going organisms than Earth does.

For example, we see wolves in the Northern hemisphere--a 4-legged carnivore built for stamina. It has a long snout with sharp teeth for grabbing and pulling down prey. It's a communal hunter.
In Africa we see the Hyaena--it looks so similar to the wolf, a canine, that we thought it must be related, but in truth, it's not related to the wolf at all--it's not a canine, it's actually a type of weasel.
So we would expect to see creatures with a somewhat similar appearance filling a somewhat similar niche on another world.

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YouTube - Science of Avatar: Convergent Evolution

Yes I like the biology 101 lecture...
But 4 winged flyers were actually six limbed...like the other evolved creatures on the planet except the Na'vi...
4 limbs for flying, and then legs...
wolves have 4 limbs, whales have four limbs, the others are vestigal now or part of their tails...
INSECTS...have multiple limbs...
Mammels do not. on Earth....
there have been countless sci fi / Nat Geo biology shows showing what evolution on other planets may be like..
I think the biggest failure here in this movie is the greatness of multilimbed creatures, and the wonderful variety of wild life showing.. and then you have giant blue skinned., 4 limbed smurf/elves...
Why couldn't James Cameron have gotten the bright idea to have co-hesiveness in his creatures to his intelligent, gorgeous Na'vi??
THat is a failure. I like my movies to have cohesiveness...its jarring to some sense in the brain.
It is a wonderful movie, great special effects, great creature creations... but lack of a good story, plot holes the size of the moon, and non cohesion, make my brain go OOOOOKKKK.

I didn't see 6 limbs on the flyers--only 4. And the primate-like ro-lemurs (sp?) had only 4 limbs as well.

Vertebrate life on earth follows a generally 4-limbed body plan, with some few species sporting 2 limbs, or none. So why could Pandora vertebrates not sport a generally 6-limbed body plan, with some life forms sporting 4, 2, or none?

That the Na'vi are far too human is obvious, but their evolution is not implausible given the other life forms depicted.

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Originally Posted by Montessa Python

Yes I like the biology 101 lecture...
But 4 winged flyers were actually six limbed...like the other evolved creatures on the planet except the Na'vi...
4 limbs for flying, and then legs...
wolves have 4 limbs, whales have four limbs, the others are vestigal now or part of their tails...
INSECTS...have multiple limbs...
Mammels do not. on Earth....
there have been countless sci fi / Nat Geo biology shows showing what evolution on other planets may be like..
I think the biggest failure here in this movie is the greatness of multilimbed creatures, and the wonderful variety of wild life showing.. and then you have giant blue skinned., 4 limbed smurf/elves...
Why couldn't James Cameron have gotten the bright idea to have co-hesiveness in his creatures to his intelligent, gorgeous Na'vi??
THat is a failure. I like my movies to have cohesiveness...its jarring to some sense in the brain.
It is a wonderful movie, great special effects, great creature creations... but lack of a good story, plot holes the size of the moon, and non cohesion, make my brain go OOOOOKKKK.

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Are you really arguing about how realistically Cameron's made up creatures evolved in a sci-fi movie? I think sometimes you have to sit back and just enjoy a movie and not try to pick apart every small detail.

I know I know.. as MSTK3 said.
Its just a show, so sit back and relax

This is fun for me. lol

Sorry.. yet another GIANT plot hole.. as per goofs reported IMBD

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Plot holes: Near the ending of the movie, after the Na'vi have taken over the base, when they are marching the human military back onto the cargo planes to leave they are not wearing any masks to protect them from the air.

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Avatar is not the first nor the last movie to have a lot of plot holes. It isn't worth taking a fantasy movie and getting overly irritated at all the miniscule little things that weren't quite right.

From my experience with writing and creating visual things for story telling it is important to make things that the viewer can relate and connect to. Sure, the Na'vi were a lot more humanoid than what we would probably find on any other planet, but it enables us to connect and empathize with the race on a visceral level.

Yes, I enjoyed the movie. :) Sure, it had it's quirks/easter eggs but you will be very hard pressed to find a movie that doesn't.

Seen it twice. One of my favorite movies and by far some of the best digital/graphic set-ups I have seen in a movie so far.

IMO MP, you're reading WAYYY too much into it. It's a movie, it's fantasy, and it's sci-fi. That makes any of the 'logic' irrelevant and pointless because they can do whatever they want because it does not have to be logical in any way. Basically what pfan said, stop trying to pick apart a movie like it's supposed to be a real life situation. They can make they're creatures however they want to and it doesn't have to be based off of anything.

If you don't like true fantasy, then don't watch the movie. I hate when people go to relatively good movies that they know they're not interested in (the genre) and they purposely find more reasons to hate it. Go watch something else!

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Originally Posted by Montessa Python

Sorry.. yet another GIANT plot hole.. as per goofs reported IMBD

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Plot holes: Near the ending of the movie, after the Na'vi have taken over the base, when they are marching the human military back onto the cargo planes to leave they are not wearing any masks to protect them from the air.

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I don't know WHERE you got that from but it is wrong. After seeing the movie twice I remember pretty clearly that humans are ALL wearing masks at the end, unless there's a stray somewhere that I missed. (the second time around I was paying more attention to visualization and possible accidents such as that). Also, not wearing masks would not be considered a 'plot hole' because plot holes have to effect the plot and story itself. Even if they actually were missing the masks, which they were not, it would not have been incredibly detrimental to the story at the end of the movie.