Avatar

Since this is such a huge film, I'll throw in my two cents, as well.

I saw Avatar twice on the big screen, once regular and once in 3-D, and there wasn't much difference between the experiences. (I've seen two or three movies in 3-D and think it's overrated.) I went in with low expectations. I didn't care that everybody loved it and that it made lots of money. So did the second Transformers movie, and I almost walked out of that. The only real interest I had in Avatar was that it was made by James Cameron, who has made several movies that make it into my Top 10.

After seeing it a couple more times since then and mulling over it a lot, I have to say I'm not real impressed with it. Sure, it's pretty and expands the boundaries of filmmaking capabilities, but that's just not enough for me. The story and characters are as bland and unoriginal as you can get. I spent a lot of the movie with my cheek resting against my hand, thinking, "Been there, done that." The only character I really cared about was Neytiri, and about half of that is because I have a crush on Zoe Saldana.

Now, I'm not saying Avatar is a bad movie. It is certainly worth watching, especially if you're a science fiction fan. And, to give credit where credit is due, this is the Star Wars of the new millennium. It sets the bar pretty high for every science fiction film that follows it. I just don't understand why it's the highest grossing film of all time. All in all, though, it's fun and has some substance.