Let's face it, if he directs it, they will come. And by "he" I mean James Cameron (Terminator 2: Judgement Day) and by "they", I mean audiences all over the world. If you don't believe me, you have probably been living under a rock because the sequel Avatar: The Way of Water, which premiered in theaters late last year, is now the third highest-grossing film of all-time behind Avatar and Avengers: Endgame. If you need further proof, Cameron directed three of the top four highest-grossing films, which is a feat in itself. The number one movie on that list, Avatar, is another Cameron production and, to coincide with the sequel's 4K release, the original Avatar has also been released in 4K.
Disabled Marine veteran Jake Sully (Sam Worthington; Clash of The Titans) takes the place of his twin brother in a project on a planet called Pandora. Earth is trying mine precious resources from Pandora that have long since been depleted on our planet but the terrain and atmosphere are toxic to humans and the natives are uncooperative. In order to roam Pandora, Humans have a genetically linked Avatar that looks like the natives. When Sully befriends one of the natives named Neytiri (Zoe Saldana; Guardians of the Galaxy) they begin to trust him even though the Officer in charge wants Sully to spy on the Natives.
When Avatar was released it brought new and exciting visuals to theaters and, thankfully, the 4K transfer is superb. There is so much depth and richness integrated into the color palette and the details are clean and sharp. Cameron creates an entire world to be explored and watching that world in 2160p resolution is truly a sight to behold. There is very little artifacting, which is incredible considering the movie is a dozen years old.
The Dolby Atmos audio is a beautiful complement to the stunning video. It surrounds the viewer with sound from all sides, fully enveloping them in the world of Pandora with its harsh terrain and deadly creatures but stunning landscapes as well. James Horner's full-bodied score beautifully sets the tone as Sully explores the world outside his "pod".
Fox's 4K Ultra HD is beautifully packaged with the film in 4K on UHD and 1080p HD on Blu-ray (again, also sourced from the 4K remaster). There are no special features on either, however, you also get a dedicated Blu-ray of bonus features, which include: Memories from Avatar, Avatar: A Look Back, Capturing Avatar, and Featurettes: Sculpting Avatar, Creating the Banshee, Creating the Thanator, The AMP Suit, Flying Vehicles, Na'vi Costumes, Speaking Na'vi, Pandora Flora, Stunts, Performance Capture, Virtual Camera, The 3D Fusion Camera, The Simul-Cam, Editing Avatar, Scoring Avatar, Sound Design, and The Haka: The Spirit of New Zealand.
The first two features are brand new, while the rest of the bonus disc carries over substantial content from the 2010 Extended Collector's Edition Blu-ray. With a running time that is a little under four hours of content, all of the extras are interesting and worth watching at least once.
Cameron is a master filmmaker whose movies will endure long after he stops making movies. He makes masterpieces that use the latest technologies and will certainly serve as examples of the highest standards of filmmaking at that time.
Avatar has a decent, if unoriginal, story, but viewers won't really care when they are presented with amazing video and incredible audio. My only criticism about the film itself is Cameron's inability to properly edit it so as to keep the length of his films much longer than necessary.
I suggest that you pick up both combo packs for Avatar and Avatar: The Way of Water as they will make excellent additions to your home entertainment library.
Grade: B+
