Avatar 2009

Avatar is a 2009 American science fiction film written and directed by James Cameron starring Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Stephen Lang, Michelle Rodriguez, Joel David Moore, Giovanni Ribisi and Sigourney Weaver. The film using motion capture animation technology for its ground breaking visual effects. James Cameroon began the development of Avatar in 1994 with an 80 page of script and planned to start shoot after Titanic. But the technology for the film was not yet available in that time and he postponed to future. The movie broke several box office records and become the highest grossing film of all time in worldwide. The film collects a worldwide total $2,782,275,172. The film got nine Academy nominations including Best Picture and Best Director.


Directed by : James Cameron
Produced by : James Cameron, Jon Landau
Written by : James Cameron
Starring : Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Stephen Lang, Michelle Rodriguez, Sigourney Weaver, Joel David Moore, Giovanni Ribisi
Music by : James Horner
Cinematography : Mauro Fiore
Editing by : James Cameron, John Refoua, Stephen E. Rivkin
Studio : Lightstorm Entertainment, Dune Entertainment, Ingenious Film Partners
Distributed by : 20th Century Fox
Release date: 10 December 2009 (London premiere), 18 December 2009 (United States)



Plot Summary :
In 2148, the Earth's natural resources have been severely depleted. In 2154, the RDA Corporation is mining a valuable mineral called unobtainium on Pandora, a densely forested habitable moon orbiting the gas giant Polyphemus in the Alpha Centauri star system. Pandora, whose atmosphere is poisonous to humans, is inhabited by the Na'vi, 10-foot (3.0 m)-tall, blue-skinned, sapient humanoids who live in harmony with nature and worship a mother goddess called Eywa.



To explore Pandora's biosphere, scientists use Na'vi-human hybrids called 'avatars', operated by genetically matched humans; wherefore Jake Sully, a paraplegic former marine, replaces his twin brother Tom as an operator thereof. Dr. Grace Augustine, head of the Avatar Program, considers Sully an inadequate replacement and assigns him as a bodyguard. While protecting the avatars of Grace and scientist Norm Spellman as they collect biological data, Jake's avatar is attacked by a thanator and flees into the forest, where he is rescued by Neytiri, a female Na'vi. Upon sight of an auspicious portent, she takes him to her clan, whereupon Neytiri's mother Mo'at, the clan's spiritual leader, orders her daughter to initiate Jake into their society.

Colonel Miles Quaritch, head of RDA's private security force, promises Jake that the company will restore his legs if he gathers intelligence about the Na'vi, on grounds that they occupy the richest deposit of unobtanium in the area. When Grace learns of this, she transfers herself, Jake, and Norm to an outpost. Over three months, Jake grows to sympathize with the natives. After Jake is initiated into the tribe, he and Neytiri choose each other as mates; and soon afterward, Jake reveals his change of allegiance when he attempts to disable a bulldozer that threatens to destroy a sacred Na'vi site. When Quaritch shows a videograph of Jake's attack on the bulldozer to Administrator Parker Selfridge, and another in which Jake admits that the Na'vi will never abandon Hometree, Selfridge orders Hometree destroyed.

Despite Grace's argument that destroying Hometree could damage the Biological neural network native to Pandora, Selfridge orders Jake and Grace to convince the Na'vi to evacuate. When this fails, Quaritch's forces destroy Hometree, killing Neytiri's father and many others. Mo'at frees Jake and Grace; but they are detached from their avatars and imprisoned. Pilot Trudy Chacón (Michelle Rodriguez), disgusted by Quaritch's brutality, carries them to Grace's outpost; but during the escape, Quaritch injures Grace.

To regain the Na'vi's trust, Jake connects his mind to that of Toruk, a dragon-like predator feared and honoured in Na'vi history. Thus connected, Jake finds the refugees at the sacred Tree of Souls and pleads with Mo'at to heal Grace. The clan attempts to transfer Grace from her human body into her avatar with the aid of the Tree; but she succumbs to her injuries before the process can be completed.

Supported by the new chief Tsu'tey, who acts as Jake's translator, Jake speaks to unite the clan and tells them to gather other clans for battle against the RDA. On the eve of battle, Jake prays to Eywa, via a neural connection to the Tree of Souls, to intercede on behalf of the Na'vi. Having noticed this convention, Quaritch organizes a pre-emptive strike against the Tree of Souls, believing that its destruction will demoralize the natives.

During the subsequent battle, the Na'vi suffer heavy casualties, including Tsu'tey and Trudy; but are rescued when Pandoran wildlife unexpectedly join the attack and overwhelm the humans, which Neytiri interprets as Eywa's answer to Jake's prayer. Jake destroys a makeshift bomber before it can reach the Tree of Souls; whereupon Quaritch dons an AMP suit and breaches the avatar link unit containing Jake's human body, exposing Jake to Pandora's poisonous atmosphere. In reply, Neytiri kills Quaritch and rescues Jake.

With the exceptions of Jake, Norm, Max and several other scientists, all humans are expelled from Pandora; whereafter Jake is transferred entirely into his avatar with the aid of the Tree.


Reception : The film got high acclaim from critics and audience with 83% of positive review in Rotten Tomatoes and 8.1 in IMDB.