I had the opportunity last Friday to see the new Avatar movie with my boys. I had passed on an earlier opportunity to see it as the theater only had the 2D version and I really wanted to experience the film as it was intended. Avatar was shot entirely as a 3D movie with special camera rigs, and I wanted to see what the director envisioned.

It was worth the wait. The movie is spectacular. It’s certainly not heavy into the plot or charater development. It’s a solid, yet predictable, story line. But the effects are breathtaking. The 3D is not overwhelming. It doesn’t try to play games by having stuff jump off the screen at you. Rather it adds a compelling depth of field to the view allowing you to feel immersed in the scene. This is the future of 3D. Further, the animation is so lifelike and blends so well with the real scenes and characters that you don’t really get a sense of what was computer generated and what was physically in front of a camera.

In many real senses, I think this film is the Star Wars of the next generation. Inasmuch as Star Wars set a significantly higher bar for theatrical quality effects in the 70’s, Avatar sets a new standard some 30 years later.

If you haven’t seen it, it’s well worth the inflated price of a 3D ticket. I recommend the Real-D theaters over the IMAX as I think it’s a higher quality viewing technology. I also recommend you refrain from all beverages for 2 hours prior to start time and do not take a 32oz soda into the theater. It’s a 2hr 40min movie and you won’t want to miss any of it running to the rest room.