AVATAR
The movie’s well on its way to becoming a success. It will probably create a cult-like following like Star Trek, Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, and other megahits.

I saw it today in 3D. The plot was familiar but that didn’t detract from the story. The movie’s visual effects were impressive and very enjoyable. My enjoyment of the movie, however, arose from the emotional connection that it made with me. That’s what separates Avatar from other movies that were also rich in visual effects. Waterworld (1995), for instance, was a relative dud despite Kevin Costner’s star (which might have been soaring higher than anyone else’s when the movie was released).

I think that Avatar will succeed on two levels: commercially and as a pop culture icon. There should be nothing deregatory about becoming a pop culture icon. Pop is short for popular and popular culture refers to the “totality of ideas, perspectives, attitudes, memes, images and other phenomena that are deemed preferred per an informal consensus within the mainstream of a given culture.” (Wikipedia)

Incidentally, “avatar” is a fairly new term. One of my first encounters with it occurred in Second Life. However its roots, according to Wikipedia, can be traced to Hinduism where its meaning loosely refers to the descent of a deity into the physical world. In the movie, the human protagonists are projected into the alternate reality of the alien inhabitants of the fictional planet Pandora.

I recommend it. I think you’ll enjoy it.