Directed by: James Cameron
Starring: Sam Worthington, Sigourney Weaver, Zoë Saldana, Giovani Ribisi, Stephen Lang
Rating: PG-13

Sam Worthington and Zoë Saldana star in Avatar. (Courtesy photo)

Avatar, James Cameron’s first movie since Titanic in 1997, can be viewed in a few ways, literally and figuratively. It can be seen on giant IMAX screens in 3-D or on regular old movie screens. It can be seen as a reasonably entertaining piece of spectacle with cornball dialogue and loud, unsubtle, and ultimately undermined pro-environment and anti-war messages. Or it can be seen as a powerful treatise on humankind’s destructive sense of entitlement, wrapped up in a spectacularly entertaining adventure, the likes of which have seldom been matched. I’m in the former camp. Apparently most of the rest of planet Earth is in the latter. A month ago, everyone was making fun of the silly giant cartoon people, and an industry-veteran friend of mine said to never bet against James Cameron. Avatar is now poised to become the second highest-grossing movie of all time, worldwide—behind, of course, Titanic.

The year is 2154, and paraplegic veteran Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) arrives on the planet Pandora. There he joins the Avatar program. Headed by Dr. Grace Augustine (Sigourney Weaver), it allows a human to live through the body of one of the planet’s natives known as the Na’vi. As a Na’vi, Sully meets Neytiri (Zoë Saldana), who sees something special in “Jakesully.” She teaches him the ways of her tribe, which includes communicating—literally—with the trees. But the Avatar program is funded by Parker Selfridge (Giovanni Ribisi), whose real goal is to drill for a valuable mineral located directly under the tribe’s home. The head of security is ex-military, the cold-blooded Colonel Quaritch (Stephen Lang). Quaritch has recruited Jake to secretly report everything he learns about the Na’vi. The colonel has no faith in diplomatic efforts to relocate the Na’vi, meaning they’ll need to destroy the great tree in which the Na’vi live. As the days go by, Jake neglects to worry about the inevitable betrayal until—surprise—it’s too late.

With regard to the anti-war, pro-environment messages, Cameron’s heart is in the right place. But after more than a decade of development, Cameron’s method of bringing about peace on Pandora is a head-scratcher: Jakesully brings together the different native tribes and leads a massive frontal assault almost completely devoid of strategy, incurring far more losses than the bad guys. In his big speech he declares, “No matter what we do, the humans will just keep coming ... unless we stop them.” Though frustrating, the final battle is impressive. Cameron tends to have everyone speak the way a 12-year-old imagines marines to talk, and everyone sounds exactly the same. The exceptions are the Na’vi, who embody a different cliché: humorless natives who studiously avoid contractions in order to sound more serious. The action of the first two acts of the movie is mostly unmotivated visual splendor—Jake’s introduction to the ways of the Na’vi. The world of Pandora is bursting with reptilian creatures of all sizes and stunning landscapes. If eye-candy alone isn’t enough for you, there’s not much else to enjoy. But that’s this man’s style, and who’s to argue with results like this?

Sam Worthington is the latest Australian import being groomed for superstardom. His first major role in the United States was in Terminator Salvation. His next is as the lead in the massive Clash of the Titans remake due out in March. He’s fine here as Jake, but it’s too soon to judge how he’ll fare as the face of multiple franchises. In fact, Avatar isn’t really an acting showcase for anyone. Weaver struggles mightily with the dialogue she used to manage back in Cameron’s 1986 Aliens. Saldana (Star Trek) gives it her all as Neytiri, and does make an impression. But she’s stuck being all-good. Ribisi is all-greed, and Lang is all-bad—which makes Lang the winner. The absurdly muscled Lang looks almost as digitally enhanced as the Na’vi. He’s no more believable a character than anyone else in the movie, but he is truly scary.

How does Cameron do it? I thought Titanic was two hours of colossally silly romance followed by one hour of eye-popping spectacle. Avatar is a better movie overall. Its blockbuster success isn’t surprising or unmerited, but its stranglehold on the world’s imagination is harder to understand. Why this one, over all the other movies since Titanic? That film tapped squarely into the most formidable moviegoing group alive: 13-to 16-year-old girls. Is it simply that Cameron makes sure to draw male and female viewers by putting romance at the forefront of his actioners? Is it the tried-and-true story structure? Or is it nearly as much about the hype, the manufacturing of the event, as the event itself? Avatar doesn’t hold a candle to Lord of the Rings, the Batman reboots, or two dozen other big-budget event movies. But it is the most expensive movie ever made, and at times an impressive experience. If it gets younger viewers inspired about peace and the environment, all the better.

Alex Manugian lives in Sherman Oaks, Calif. He grew up in Groton and has reviewed movies for Harvard readers for many years.