Who would have thought? A movie without a pre-determined cinematic universe, not based on decades of books or comics, with revolutionary politics at its core, a movie in which American soldiers are triumphantly killed – who would have thought it would be so damn successful?
Directed by James Cameron, Avatar holds many box-office records, including the overall highest-grossing film title. In 2009, it was the first film to earn more than $2 billion and closed its original box office run with gross receipts of $2.749 billion. The film also broke the record for the largest domestic opening weekend for a film not based on a franchise and the largest opening weekend for an environmentalist film. Domestically, it had led the box office for seven consecutive weeks. This was the longest straight lead since Cameron himself’s 15-week run, with his 1997 film, Titanic. Worldwide, the film was the number one box office for eleven weeks in a row, surpassing the previous nine-week record held by Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest.
Updated September 25, 2022: If you love Avataryou’ll be pleased to know that we’ve updated this article with additional information about the franchise, including this year’s highly anticipated sequel and the recent box office returns of the theatrical reissue.
In 2019, the huge box office triumph lost its highest-grossing film title to Avengers: Endgame, which grossed $2,797 billion. However, a 2021 reissue in 2021 Avatar in China led to the film regaining its title and positioning itself with a cumulative gross profit of $2.847 billion. Awaiting the release of Avatar: The way of the water20th Century Fox re-released Avatar in theaters on September 23, 2022, where it took the number three spot with $10 million, beating out other major reissues such as Spider-Man: No Way Home and jaws. Worldwide reissue of Avatar brought in $30 million, making it the biggest film at the global box office, taking its already storied take at $2.85 billion.
After more than 12 years, the film is still incredibly relevant and loved by many, by millions of people. ahead of the sequels, the second and third of which began filming in 2017 and have 2022 and 2024 release dates, respectively. But what exactly made this 2009 adventure fantasy so incredibly popular? Everyone expected it to be a bomb, but it turned out to be a surprise hit that did the amazing feat of staying relevant almost 12 years later.
James Cameron’s track record
James Cameron has a hugely successful and comprehensive resume. A director’s brand awareness and appreciation can do a lot to popularize a movie. Cameron’s film career became a success with his 1984 film The Terminator. The unique science fiction story, both written and directed by Cameron, captivated and entertained an audience whose world was and continues to be increasingly integrated with technology. With this film, Cameron established himself as an incredibly competent world builder and creator with strikingly original ideas. His next films, from the 1986 Aliens to its most recent, Avatarall demonstrate his ability to create new, relevant and moving stories.
In addition to telling original storytelling (which is an incredible feat in itself), James Cameron is able to translate his ideas effectively on screen. Many other great stories, usually in the form of novels or comics, find a lackluster rendering when adapted for cinema. This could be because the medium was not originally intended for the screen, or maybe it’s the fault of a mismatch between the original creator and the hired director; sometimes it’s just impossible to turn a sci-fi idea into a visual medium. Be that as it may, we don’t see it in Cameron, who is able to effectively create an original story made solely for cinema, something that is becoming increasingly rare.
For him, the translation of the story to the film is not as direct as making a screenplay or script. Cameron is involved every step of the way, and with a blockbuster like Avatar, there are many processes. Cameron prepared the actors for the shoot by sending them to Hawaii to experience a tropical environment and had them meet with a professor of plant physiology to understand the methods a botanist can use. He appointed a linguist to develop the Na’vi language and worked closely with designers and illustrators on 3D renderings, paintings and sculptures. Moreover, Cameron had new technology built especially for this film. Cameron is ambitious and determined not only in this epic masterpiece, but also in his anticipation of four additional sequels, creating a total of five films in a process that is sure to take more than two decades. Now Cameron no non-Avatar related film from the past 12 years and for the foreseeable future, it looks like the director is poised to dominate the 2020s with his blue, alien vision.
Groundbreaking special effects and technology
The film was originally scheduled to begin production in 1997 and was slated to be released in 1999. However, Cameron postponed this because he felt the technology hadn’t yet developed enough to tell the story as he envisioned. Leading up to major photography in 2007, James Cameron and Vince Pace developed a custom 3D camera to capture their images. In addition, Cameron . used innovative and new visual effect techniques. This included a larger motion capture platform and an improved method of capturing facial expressions. During the motion capture process, Cameron used a new virtual camera system that placed the actor in a virtual environment and could display reactions in real time. Cameron has said: that the film is 60% CGI and 40% live-action, and yet the combination is quite seamless.
The sheer amount of data being stored and transferred led to the creation of a new cloud computing digital asset manager created by Microsoft. The company responsible for the visual effects in Avatar Weta Digital is based in the capital of New Zealand. Weta used a massive server farm consisting of 4,000 HP servers, 35,000 processor cores, 104 terabytes of RAM, and three petabytes of storage. Cameron had previously pushed the boundaries of digital technology with the abyss and Terminator 2: Judgment Daybut with Avatar the filmmaker took it to the next level and that work came on screen. The dedication paid off, as the visuals were not intended to obscure the story, but as a tool to amplify it and bring the viewer into the story.
3D helped boost Avatar’s ticket
It cannot be underestimated how much 3D has been played in it Avatars success story at the checkout. While 3D had seen a resurgence in 2009 with releases like My Bloody Valentine 3D, Monsters vs Aliensand A Christmas song it was Avatar which showed the public a new way of using the technology. It brought viewers into the world of Pandora, and it was such a breathtaking sight that they wanted to keep returning to it because they wouldn’t get the same thrill when the film finally arrived on home video.
3D ticket prices are more than standard tickets, so that definitely helped Avatars theater box office. Even with the recent re-release, 90% of people who went to see it over the weekend chose 3D. Avatar created the modern 3D trend, and while other movies have used it effectively, while others tried to cash in quickly, Avatar remains the gold standard for what audiences envision as a 3D cinematic experience.
A much-needed metaphor and a powerful story
Throughout the film, Cameron uses metaphors and symbolism to push for a much greater meaning. One of the most obvious is the relationship between humans and the environment. Avatar, we see people destroying the natural world and stripping it of its resources. Without regard for the indigenous people or the ecosystems in which they live, the people in the film are motivated by greed and constant gratification. Both in 2009 and today, ecological degradation resonates with many viewers.
In addition, the theme of imperialism is present throughout this film. Avatar undermines the alien invader group with humans as the one with the advanced weapons going to a new planet to conquer with the Na’vi in the role that humans have to find in alien invasion stories like War of the Worlds. The attempted extermination of the indigenous population is shown and evokes the idea of colonization. The use of terms like ‘shock and awe’ in the film describes the technique of overwhelming display of force reference used in modern occupation and warfare. Naomi Klein has even written a book on the subject, about how greed exploits and takes advantage of disaster, especially with the help of different armies. The theme of corporate interests transcending the needs of the planet and the people has only become more topical since 2009.
Although the world we see throughout the film is fictional, the familiarity with the realistic themes creates a deep emotional response. Towards the end of the film, through the work of the protagonists, the evildoers come to their end and the good ones actually win out for a bit, inspiring the audience to join the very real fight against climate disasters, war, greed and racism. . Avatar is a cinematic spectacle, a visually and technologically innovative film from one of the world’s most successful directors, and one that takes viewers on a thrilling, emotional journey through powerful motives and empathetic characters. Audiences will be able to travel this journey again and again this decade as sequels are sure to dominate the box office again. Welcome at the Avatar Decade.
Lineup for a promising franchise
Talking about the Avatar Decade – a big reason audiences flocked to theaters in 2009 was because of the long 12-year gap between Titanic and Avatar, knowing that whatever the movie that kept him away for so long had to be special. Well it’s been 13 years since the first Avatar and audiences crave that cinematic spectacle James Cameron has provided for more than four decades. What started as a single one-off sci-fi movie has now grown into a massive sci-fi epic of the generation. With the press and the buzz around it The way of the water, 20th Century Studios’ exciting trailer for the sequel was released online to great acclaim and record numbers. And the internet quickly dissected it, frame by frame. The highly anticipated film will hit theaters on December 16, 2022.