Also, ‘Avatar’ is very predictable, but nevertheless enjoyable, thanks to the fairly well developed story and characters – though it must be said that there was plenty of room for improvement.

The action scenes are very ably done, showing clearly who is doing what, unlike in some other action films where a lot of detail is lost in the mayhem of battle and special effects. ‘Pacific Rim’ and some of the Marvel films spring to mind as prime offenders here. As a result, the action in ‘Avatar’ is thrilling, largely because we can understand what is happening, and this draws the audience into the scene.

The visuals of ‘Avatar’ are nothing short of spectacular, with a vast range of colours and detail all round. Even though the film was designed for 3D, I’ve only ever seen it in 2D on Blu-Ray, and it is probably one the prettiest, and most nicely designed, films I’ve ever seen, from a purely visual and esthetic standpoint.

The special effects are generally awesome, and the clarity and crispness of detail, both in the jungle, and in the live acted scenes back at the military and scientific base is second to none. I have no idea what camera/s James Cameron used, but they were clearly state of the art.

But my biggest gripe with ‘Avatar’, especially contrasted against the amazing visuals, is the comparitively bland and generic sound design, which I listened to in lossless DTS-Master 5.1 Audio track. Don’t get me wrong, dialogue is crisp and clear, and there no real issues to report. But I just found it lacking in dynamics, discrete satellite sounds, and punchy LFE. The upshot being a fairly unengaging experience. It’s a shame that some of the best action soundtrack designs of modern times are in the sub-par and lacklustre ‘Transformers’ franchise, and not in ‘Avatar’, which is clearly a far superior action/drama sci-flick.