Avatar: the new Star Wars

Had a chance to see Avatar over the holidays, and was completely blown away. Mr. Cameron has not only hit this one out of the park, grossing over 1 BILLION DOLLARS in 17 DAYS, but he has redefined cinema in the process.

From the beginning of the film, I was waiting to be disappointed, and sure, there were a few moments where my eye was telling me that something wasn't quite right. But about 20 minutes in, that went away, and I was fully immersed in the incredible world that required $300 million and 800 people working around the clock for 6 months to create.

Look at this chase scene. Towering trees + plants, rushing water, angry furry animals, streaming sunlight, or even just someone running -- all these organic components that until now have defied CGI, because our eyes are just too smart. When it's off by a millimeter, or millisecond, our eyes know it.



It's the first CGI feature I've seen that looked and felt real. And I walked out of the theater just speechless. Avatar is the first film to get CGI right. And from here on out, it's only going to get more believable, and more common. We are at the beginning of an amazing era in image creation, where literally anything (ANYTHING) is possible.



Some may think that this is the beginning of the end for us image makers, as we are slowly replaced by software, but I think otherwise. There was an interesting interview with JC and Peter Jackson in Newsweek, where they discuss the future of CGI and cinema. As Cameron says:

"Computers don't create beautiful images. People do."

Amen.