Jake Sully, a paraplegic former marine, is recruited to replace his deceased twin brother in the avatar program. He controls a genetically engineered Na’vi hybrid body to infiltrate the Omaticaya clan and gather intelligence for the RDA (Resources Development Administration). While lost in the forest, Jake is saved by Neytiri, daughter of the clan leaders. Her parents decide the best way for Jake to learn the ways of the Na’vi is by having Neytiri teach him. Jake eventually falls in love with Neytiri and the Na’vi culture, eventually realizing the RDA’s greed is destroying Pandora.
The culture in this movie is like something you’ve never seen before. Neytiri and Jake, a human and a Na’vi falling in love, must be one of my favorite love stories because their chemistry works so well together. The movie has also won a bunch of awards such as best picture, best visual effects, and best cinematography which is what made me want to watch it in the first place.
Jake’s superior, Colonel Miles Quaritch, promises to restore Jake’s legs in exchange for information on how to destroy the Na’vi’s ancestral home, the Hometree, which sits atop a massive unobtanium deposit. When Jake chooses to side with the Na’vi, the RDA launches a brutal attack, destroying the Hometree and killing many Na’vi, including Neytiri’s father. To regain the Na’vi’s trust, Jake bonds with a massive flying predator called the Toruk, becoming the legendary “Toruk Makto.” He unites various Pandorian clans to fight back against the RDA’s advanced military technology.
In a climactic war, the Na’vi are nearly defeated until the moon’s biological neural network (Eywa) intervenes, causing Pandorian wildlife to join the fight. Neytiri kills Colonel Quaritch, saving Jake’s human body from suffocation. After their defeat, most humans are forced to leave Pandora and return to a dying Earth, though a few allies (like scientists Norm Spellman and Max Patel) are allowed to stay.
With the help of the sacred Tree of Souls, Jake undergoes a ritual to permanently transfer his consciousness from his human body into his Na’vi avatar. Significant deaths include Dr. Grace Augustine (the head of the Avatar Program) and Trudy Chacón (a rogue RDA pilot who aided the Na’vi).
This movie is very well established and made me feel for every character while also making me fall in love with the Na’vi culture. This is definitely one of the best movies ever made and the current highest grossing movie of all time.
