Over christmass I went to see Avatar with my girlfriend. This is the first film I’ve ever seen in 3D.
Let me say this, 3D does not make up for a poor plot. Everywhere people seem to be going “3D is the next big step since colour”. I’m afraid I’m not convinced. I guess this is partly because I had to keep closing one eye or lifting the glasses off my face to quell the eyestrain I was having. I’d be more inclined to liken 3D to the jump from stereo to 5.1 (and whatever it is in cinemas now), nice, but just not essential.
Don’t get me wrong, the 3D in Avatar is some of the best I’ve seen, carefully limited so you don’t have to focus on stuff far in front of the screen and otherwise well implemented. Far better than the unfortunate adverts that came before it which seemed to think that you should cross your eyes every 10 seconds.
But, the plot for avatar is a tad weak and definitely confused. Is it an action movie or a romance?
As a romance it fell down badly when romatic lead promised his undying love and “mated for life” while still sitting in a tin can totally owned by the big bad corporation and being scheduled to be sent home at the end of his duty. I’m sorry, but really I don’t think a lover I could identify with would put someone in a situation like that where they couldn’t even promise to be around in 12 months time let alone for the rest of their life!
Barry Norman once said in a critical review that he felt that the characters were doing things because it’s required by the plot and since then I’ve used that as something of a yard-stick. If they’re not doing it because that’s exactly what they would do then my enjoyment starts to fall apart. (Action movies are exempt from this rule)
And as an action movie you had to wonder what was the point of all that romatic fluff?
P.S. Sue had a splitting headache for the rest of that day and the next night. So I don’t think I’ll be watching much more in 3D, and I don’t think I’ll miss it.
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