Avatar: An IMAX 3D Experience (2009)Movie Reviews

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Avg. Critic Score: 83 out of 100 Universal acclaim Metascore^® based on all critic reviews

Information for Parents:

OK for kids 13+

Read Common Sense Media review

Critic scores range from 0 to 100, with higher scores indicating more favorable reviews.

100

Chicago Sun-Times | Roger Ebert
Once again, [Cameron] has silenced the doubters by simply delivering an extraordinary film. There is still at least one man in Hollywood who knows how to spend $250 million, or was it $300 million, wisely. Read full review
100

The Hollywood Reporter | Kirk Honeycutt
A fully believable, flesh-and-blood (albeit not human flesh and blood) romance is the beating heart of "Avatar." Cameron has never made a movie just to show off visual pyrotechnics: Every bit of technology in "Avatar" serves the greater purpose of a deeply felt love story. Read full review
100

The New York Times | Manohla Dargis
Glorious and goofy and blissfully deranged. Read full review
100

Los Angeles Times | Kenneth Turan
Avatar's shock and awe demand to be seen. You've never experienced anything like it, and neither has anyone else. Read full review
90

Wall Street Journal | Joe Morgenstern
Much of the time, though, you're transfixed by the beauty of a spectacle that seems all of a piece. Special effects have been abolished, in effect, since the whole thing is so special. Read full review
90

Variety | Todd McCarthy
Avatar is all-enveloping and transporting, with Cameron & Co.'s years of R&D paying off with a film that, as his work has done before, raises the technical bar and throws down a challenge for the many other filmmakers toiling in the sci-fi/fantasy realm. Read full review
88

Rolling Stone | Peter Travers
Tone-deaf but thunderously exciting. Read full review
75

San Francisco Chronicle |
Vast, beautiful and meticulously detailed. Read full review
75

USA Today | Claudia Puig
The scenes in Pandora -- a planet with an Earth-like environment -- are so breathtaking that the narrative seems almost beside the point. Read full review
75

Entertainment Weekly | Owen Gleiberman
As visual spectacle, Avatar is indelible, but as a movie it all but evaporates as you watch it. Read full review

Metacritic link View more reviews for Avatar: An IMAX 3D Experience (2009) on Metacritic

Information for Parents

Common Sense Media says OK for kids 13+ Action-heavy epic has dazzling effects, familiar story.

What Parents Need to Know Parents need to know this highly anticipated James Cameron sci-fi epic may be too intense (and long, at 161 minutes) for some tweens. There are several effects-heavy battle and hunting sequences that include missile-launching military aircraft, nerotoxin-laced arrows, scary Pandora-dwelling fauna and flora, and lots of explosions -- all of which has more impact when the movie is seen in 3-D. Salty wartime language includes many uses of "s--t" and comparable words. As in his previous epics, Cameron infuses the action-driven story with strong female characters and a morality tale centered in a romantic relationship -- though the human-Na'vi relationship in question gets a bit complicated, because the human is actually in his avatar. The romantic leads' chemistry is made more sensual by the barely dressed bodies of the Na'vi. (Note: Fans of the animated series Avatar: The Last Airbender should know that this movie is in no way connected to that show or the movie based on it.)

Families can talk about the movie's revolutionary special effects. Do they overwhelm or support the movie's story? How does the portrayal of the Na'vi affect the movie's emotional impact?
What themes does Cameron consistently work into his films? Compare the strong female characters in Avatar, Terminator, and Titanic. Any similarities?
What political messages is Cameron exploring in the movie? How are its themes relevant to what's going on in today's world? Do you think these messages will stand the test of time?

The good stuff

Positive messages: Overall, the movie's message is that we could all stand to learn something from a (fictional) peaceful, nature-loving alien population. Strong environmental and pro-peace themes. Some viewers may see the message of occupying a foreign land to usurp their cultural riches as a political dig at America's involvement in the Middle East.
Positive role models: Several characters make difficult but moral choices. Jake chooses to defend the Na'vi even though it's against orders to do so and means he must fight (and kill) fellow human soldiers. Neytiri, Grace, and Trudy all make personal sacrifices to help the clan; they're strong, courageous, and assertive female characters. (In both the human and Na'vi populations, female characters are just as brave and important as the males -- even the Na'vi mating ritual requires that a female accept/choose the male who chooses her.) On the flip side, the Colonel and corporate boss Parker are portrayed as bloodthirsty and greedy.

What to watch for

Violence: Characters (supporting and extras) die due to explosions, bullet wounds, arrows (some treated with toxins), precipitous falls, and asphyxiation. There are several intense scenes involving frightening Pandoran creatures and plants, as well as tension between Jake's rogue group of pro-Na'vi humans and the rest of the humans sent to Pandora.
Sex: Many longing looks between Jake's avatar and Neytiri, which eventually leads to kissing and "mating" (only kissing and touching are seen on screen). The Na'vi's humanoid bodies are barely dressed.
Language: The word "s--t" is said several times (as well as its brothers, "bull s--t" and "holy s--t"). Other colorful language includes "goddamn," "piss," limp-dicked," "hell," "oh my God," "ass," and mild insults like "stupid," "ignorant," etc.
Consumerism: No product placement in the movie, but there are dozens of tie-in merchandising deals tied to the title -- including toys and books aimed at young kids.
Drinking, drugs and smoking: Sigourney Weaver's character, Grace, smokes cigarettes and somewhat glamorizes the activity.

Common Sense Media An independent nonprofit dedicated to providing families the information they need to help kids thrive in a world of media and technology. © Common Sense Media Inc. 2010. All rights reserved.