We Finally Saw "Avatar"

It was not all that and a bag of chips. Too much hype, not a great plot (your standard human greed theme) and the volume contributed to its getting only a mediocre review from me.

We decided to go to the 23:40 showing. It was 22:45 when we got there and got on the line waiting for the movie. The 20:15 showing was not out yet, and we estimated that with a 2:50 running time and the usual insult of watching adverts for upcoming movies it would be 23:10 - 23:25 before the previous showing would get out? Then the cleaning staff would whip in and do their thing and we'd be able to sit.

Standing in line was its own trial and I won't bore with the details of it.

The story was as weak as I had read, and the graphics were amazing - the first of the kind. Seeing the scenes on the planet, where they bond with and ride six-legged horses, winged creatures and with the tree of life is incredible. The darkened forest with the glowing areas is stunning. It was hard not to raptly watch the characters running through the woods, riding up to the floating mountains, etc. For that I have to give the movie very high marks.

But the 3-D was mistake.

It started out well enough, but the motion and the blurriness of the screen if you weren't looking dead center caught up with me and I began to feel sick. By the time the movie reached the part where the gung-ho kill-everything-in-our-path colonel was planning how to exterminate the 2,000 warriors that came to fight us off, I had to leave the theatre or end up ruining a lot of other movie-goers viewing pleasure. In short, I really did not want to end up getting physically sick in the close quarters of the theatre.

I told Luis to stay and went out into the hallway. It was a relief to be out of the confines of the theatre and the absolutely mega-decibel volume. I forgot to bring earplugs with me and I see no reason under the sun why the volume had to be as loud as it was. I have excellent hearing, but after sitting through the noise, my ears and head ached.

Sensory overload.

Given the opportunity, I should have seen Avatar in the regular theatre. I would have enjoyed it more. The IMAX screen is not large enough. (Motion sickness - such as in a car - is a result of the mind's inability to rationalise the motion of the outside against the stillness of everything inside the vehicle. I get severe motion sickness in the back seats of vehicles - too much that is not in motion. In the front seat or as the driver I'm much better. In the better IMAX theatres, the screen reaches from the very low floor to a very high ceiling and is very wide - much wider than the width of the seats all totaled. In the Rockaway AMC IMAX, the screen is not even a 70mm, and the lack of motion outside the visible screen conflicted with the outrageously obvious motion of the movie, grossly overemphasized in 3-D rendering. I was fine for the first 90 minutes ad then it started out slowly and then reached a level that was too much. Closing one eye or both did not help. And finally, when things were being blown up and the chairs were shuddering from the sound concussions, I ust whispered to Luis, "I'm going out, you stay."

He loved it and was glued to the screen. I had a book with me if I got bored, but frankly, at 02:16, I was completely contented to sit on the bench outside and across the hall from the theatre in the deserted hallway. I could hear every line of dialogue anyway, and the booming and crashing of the final battle. I did not miss anything. The movie ended at 0238 and I did not peek in to see the credits (normally something I feel strongly about) and Luis was quickly to see if I was OK.

I can honestly say I survived it.