I just saw it and I had unbelievable expectations for it(the kind that expected the next Star Wars out of it). And I was not disappointed in the least. I had read many comments about it being Dance's with Wolves in Space. I knew all the so called critical badmouth of the story. I have to tell you that I not only loved the characters, I loved the story as well. Something that many people forget is that there is a difference between plot and story. Plot is the generalized events that happen within a story.
"A person learns the ways of a race he originally looked down upon or did not understand. He ends up joining them in a battle against the people who he originally identified himself with."
That is a plot very cut and dry. There are many films with similar plots, in fact more than you would think. Does this plot line sound familiar to you? Guess why? Because you saw it in a little film I like to call 'District 9'. The man in District 9 looks down upon a race he does not understand, but as he becomes one of them(parallels Jake Sully in Avatar) he begins to identify with them and in the end fights with his own people. This film hailed by every living man and woman as original is almost identical with Avatar in plot.
What you misunderstand is that what makes a film original is not it's plot but the story that carries the plot. District 9 is original because you have never seen Science fiction come to life as if it could happen. The story(the plots delivery if you will) makes all the difference.
So now that we know the difference between plot and story lets look at why Avatar is original. While the story may draw parallels to Dances and Pocahontas it is by no means a copy. Never have you seen a paraplegic marine get his legs back by living through a organically grown alien. Never have you visited Pandora and explored such a vast and 'original' world. Or felt the thrill of flying on a dragon beside an ever increasingly attractive alien princess. The originality in this story is incredible for one reason alone, that the story takes the audience member on a journey with the character Jake Sully. We truly get to discover this amazing new world with him and share his excitement.
Many people have said that this film has no character development, I beg to differ, I believe it adds a new depth to character development in cinema. How do we get to know people in real life? By sharing our time with them and laughing along with each other. Instead of this film telling you what to think of each character through their words, it allows us to share the events with the characters. As Jake learns to fly, we get the feeling of learning to fly along with him. The love story comes naturally because as we experience these things with Sully we too grow attached to Neytiri.
As it has been said, this film is an experience. It is a journey we have never taken before and will wish to take again. That is why audiences adore this film, because it is original and we just aren't used to originality.
