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AVATARMovie Reviews
Science fiction tale about a band of humans who, having located a rare resource on the planet of Pandora, are pitted in a battle against that distant planet's indigenous population, the Na'vi. Cast:Sam Worthington, Sigourney Weaver, Michelle Rodriguez, Joel Moore, Zoe SaldanaDirector:James CameronRelease Date:December 18, 2009DVD Release:April 20, 2010From:20th Century FoxRating:PG-13Length:2 hr 42 minIn 3D
Avatar played to excellent reviews. • Kenneth Turan wrote in the Los Angeles Times, "You've never experienced anything like it... to see 'Avatar' is to feel like you understand filmmaking in three dimensions for the first time." • And Peter Travers wrote in Rolling Stone, "...extends the possibilities of what movies can do. Cameron's talent may just be as big as his dreams." More Reviews Below...
Joey Bartolomeo, People: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...features groundbreaking 3-D special effects... But prepare to be unimpressed by the story.... It's a hokey morality tale we've seen before."(See all of Joey Bartolomeo's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 171 words, 12/31/09
Richard Corliss, Time: OUTSTANDING "Cameron has never been a great director of actors... but objections shrink to quibbles and then simply disappear in the face of the picture's unprecedented visual flourishes."(See all of Richard Corliss's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 1,280 words, 12/18/09
Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly: VERY GOOD(cg) "...dazzling and immersive, a ravishing techno-dream for the senses, but one that's likely to leave audiences simultaneously amazed and unmoved."(See all of Owen Gleiberman's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 1,060 words, 12/18/09
Jake Coyle, Associated Press: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...clearly revolutionary, a spectacle that millions will find adventure in. But it nevertheless feels unsatisfying and somehow lacks the pulse of a truly alive film."(See all of Jake Coyle's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 1,044 words, 12/10/09
Claudia Puig, USA Today: VERY GOOD(cg) "For all the grandeur and technical virtuosity of the mythical 3-D universe Cameron labored for years to perfect, his characters are one-dimensional..."(See all of Claudia Puig's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 442 words, 12/17/09
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NEW YORK/LOS ANGELES/CHICAGO/TORONTO (12 Reviews)
Manohla Dargis, New York Times: OUTSTANDING "...glorious and goofy and blissfully deranged.... Cameron hasn't changed cinema, but with blue people and pink blooms he has confirmed its wonder."(See all of Manohla Dargis's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 1,794 words, 12/18/09
Joe Neumaier, New York Daily News: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...visually stunning, but cheesy plot, dialogue take us back down to earth.... The CGI world is indeed like nothing you've ever seen. Too bad its corniness is so familiar."(See all of Joe Neumaier's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 459 words, 12/18/09
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: OUTSTANDING(cg) "...extraordinary... It takes a hell of a lot of nerve for a man to stand up at the Oscarcast and proclaim himself King of the World. James Cameron just got re-elected."(See all of Roger Ebert's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 932 words, 12/17/09
Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times: OUTSTANDING "You've never experienced anything like it... to see 'Avatar' is to feel like you understand filmmaking in three dimensions for the first time."(See all of Kenneth Turan's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 1,171 words, 12/17/09
Rafer Guzman, New York Newsday: OUTSTANDING(cg) "...every minute is vastly entertaining.... may mark a whole new way of making movies - especially if you have a few hundred million to spend."(See all of Rafer Guzman's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 326 words, 12/13/09
David Edelstein, New York Magazine: OUTSTANDING "...dizzying, enveloping, vertiginous... I ran out of adjectives an hour into its 161 minutes.... James Cameron is king of a world he made from scratch."(See all of David Edelstein's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 972 words, 12/28/09
Rick Groen, Toronto Globe & Mail: VERY GOOD(cg) "...a movie to boost our faith in movie spectacle, and to remind us that Cameron is that rare technocrat who knows how to tell a story."(See all of Rick Groen's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 923 words, 12/17/09
J. Hoberman, Village Voice: MODERATE "...a technological wonder... [but] let no one call so spectacular an instance of political correctness run amok 'entertaining.' "(See all of J. Hoberman's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 777 words, 12/16/09
Scott Foundas, LA Weekly: OUTSTANDING "...a nonstop wow.... Cameron remains committed to the discovering of new worlds at a moment when we seem so certain that everything worth discovering already has been."(See all of Scott Foundas's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 1,600 words, 12/17/09
Norman Wilner, Toronto Now: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...plays like a nerdy debate about who would win in a fight between the Starship Troopers and the Orcs from 'The Lord Of The Rings'.... when it works, it's truly thrilling."(See all of Norman Wilner's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 439 words, 12/17/09
Amy Biancolli, Houston Chronicle/San Francisco Chronicle: OUTSTANDING(cg) "...transports its audience so fully and persuasively to an alien realm that the absolute cosmic other-ness of it all seems the most natural thing in the world."(See all of Amy Biancolli's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 621 words, 12/17/09
Tom Maurstad, Dallas Morning News: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "While 'Avatar' is impressively seamless, you're never fooled. This doesn't look like a documentary film; it looks like a video game."(See all of Tom Maurstad's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 789 words, 12/18/09
Ty Burr, Boston Globe: OUTSTANDING(cg) "...as close to a full-body experience as we'll get until they invent the holo-suits. Cameron aims for sheer wonderment, and he delivers."(See all of Ty Burr's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 1,362 words, 12/17/09
Moira Macdonald, Seattle Times: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "Cameron's filled the movie with action and spectacle, and thrown in plenty of references to his earlier work... but what he hasn't done is given us a reason to care."(See all of Moira Macdonald's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 571 words, 12/18/09
Shawn Levy, Portland Oregonian: EXCELLENT(cg) "There is no other movie like 'Avatar,' and there never has been.... it blasts open the possibilities of the cinema as few films ever have."(See all of Shawn Levy's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 1,094 words, 12/18/09
Joe Williams, St. Louis Post-Dispatch: VERY GOOD(cg) "Cameron may have resurrected the moviegoing experience for a second time. What he hasn't done is raise the level of his storytelling above soap-opera simplicity."(See all of Joe Williams's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 431 words, 12/18/09
Roger Moore, Orlando Sentinel: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "As visionary tour guide, Cameron has no equal. Predictable story, clichéd dialogue and logical lapses aside, he's still the man we want leading us into his Pandora's box."(See all of Roger Moore's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 693 words, 12/17/09
Rene Rodriguez, Miami Herald: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...immerses you in a photorealistic, painstakingly detailed world more fully than any science fiction movie before.... When the ride is over, though, you're still left hungry..."(See all of Rene Rodriguez's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 786 words, 12/17/09
Lisa Kennedy, Denver Post: OUTSTANDING(cg) "If the better popcorn movies engage youthful imagination but also send the jaded adult on a journey of hyper-connection, then 'Avatar' is an astounding mash-up, a trove."(See all of Lisa Kennedy's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 841 words, 12/18/09
Peter Keough, Boston Phoenix: MODERATE(cg) "...might well be, as some have speculated, the future of movies -- in this case, the longest, loudest, most expensive ad for a video game ever made."(See all of Peter Keough's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 624 words, 12/17/09
J. Hoberman, Village Voice: MODERATE "...a technological wonder... [but] let no one call so spectacular an instance of political correctness run amok 'entertaining.' "(See all of J. Hoberman's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 777 words, 12/16/09
Scott Foundas, LA Weekly: OUTSTANDING "...a nonstop wow.... Cameron remains committed to the discovering of new worlds at a moment when we seem so certain that everything worth discovering already has been."(See all of Scott Foundas's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 1,600 words, 12/17/09
Norman Wilner, Toronto Now: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...plays like a nerdy debate about who would win in a fight between the Starship Troopers and the Orcs from 'The Lord Of The Rings'.... when it works, it's truly thrilling."(See all of Norman Wilner's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 439 words, 12/17/09
Tricia Olszewski, Washington City Paper: WEAK "It's imaginative, but not transportive.... Adjectives such as 'beautiful' and 'breathtaking' have been thrown at 'Avatar,' and they're apt. But I'll throw in a third B: Boring."(See all of Tricia Olszewski's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 788 words, 12/17/09
HIGHBROW PRESS (5 Reviews)
Manohla Dargis, New York Times: OUTSTANDING "...glorious and goofy and blissfully deranged.... Cameron hasn't changed cinema, but with blue people and pink blooms he has confirmed its wonder."(See all of Manohla Dargis's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 1,794 words, 12/18/09
Joe Morgenstern, Wall Street Journal: OUTSTANDING "The vein of awe mined by the movie is nothing short of unbelievium.... Much of the time, you're transfixed by the beauty of a spectacle..."(See all of Joe Morgenstern's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 1,136 words, 12/18/09
David Edelstein, NPR Fresh Air: OUTSTANDING "That trademark Cameron blend of grandiosity, jaw-dropping technology and cornball populism is back and mightier than ever... but I bow to his titanic will."(See all of David Edelstein's reviews...)(Listen to the full review...) 359 seconds, 12/18/09
Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times: OUTSTANDING "You've never experienced anything like it... to see 'Avatar' is to feel like you understand filmmaking in three dimensions for the first time."(See all of Kenneth Turan's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 1,171 words, 12/17/09
Kirk Honeycutt, Hollywood Reporter: OUTSTANDING "...brings science-fiction movies into the 21st century with jaw-dropping wonder... Every bit of technology in 'Avatar' serves the greater purpose of a deeply felt love story."(See all of Kirk Honeycutt's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 1,176 words, 12/11/09
Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times: OUTSTANDING "You've never experienced anything like it... to see 'Avatar' is to feel like you understand filmmaking in three dimensions for the first time."(See all of Kenneth Turan's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 1,171 words, 12/17/09
Manohla Dargis, New York Times: OUTSTANDING "...glorious and goofy and blissfully deranged.... Cameron hasn't changed cinema, but with blue people and pink blooms he has confirmed its wonder."(See all of Manohla Dargis's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 1,794 words, 12/18/09
Joe Morgenstern, Wall Street Journal: OUTSTANDING "The vein of awe mined by the movie is nothing short of unbelievium.... Much of the time, you're transfixed by the beauty of a spectacle..."(See all of Joe Morgenstern's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 1,136 words, 12/18/09
19.4 Percentage Points Average Difference Between Reviews (Norm is 18.4pp; <18.4pp = More Consistent; >18.4pp = More Mixed)
Avatar's reviews are separated by an average 19.4 percentage points. The norm for this measure is 18.4 percentage points. Less than 18.4 indicates more consistent reviews; greater than 18.4 indicates more mixed reviews. In the chart below, each dot represents a review, with the dots at the top more positive than the dots at the bottom. From left to right, the dots represent reviews in big, bigger and biggest publications. Roll over each dot for more detail.
Avatar (43 reviews) Roll over dots for each review
Coverage:Avatar's reviews cover 85.4% of potential readers (average is 67.9%). Volume:The film's reviews total 34,393 words involume (average is 20,194 words). Length:The film's reviews average 800 words in length (the norm is 517 words).
Reviews Broke 65.5 Hours After Release (Norm is 1.2 Release)
Avatar's reviews on average broke 65.5 hours after opening. Norm for this measure is 1.2 hours before. The chart below shows reviews on opening day and the days before and after opening; the left side is earlier and the right side is later. The red bars extending above the horizontal mid-line represent more positive reviews, and the red bars extending below represent more negative reviews. The white space/red bar in the middle is Avatar's opening day. Click on any bar for a list of the reviews for that day.
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