Avatar (2009 movie) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Avatar |
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| Directed by | James Cameron |
| Produced by | James Cameron Jon Landau |
| Written by | James Cameron |
| Starring | Sam Worthington Zoe Saldana Stephen Lang Michelle Rodriguez Sigourney Weaver Giovanni Ribisi Joel David Moore C. C. H. Pounder Wes Studi Laz Alonso |
| Music by | James Horner |
| Cinematography | Mauro Fiore |
| Editing by | James Cameron John Refoua Stephen E. Rivkin |
| Studio | Lightstorm Entertainment Dune Entertainment Ingenious Film Partners |
| Distributed by | 20th Century Fox |
| Release date(s) | December 10, 2009 (London premiere) December 17, 2009 (United Kingdom) December 18, 2009 (United States) |
| Running time | 161 minutes |
| Country | United States United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $400 million |
| Money made | Domestic: $760,507,625 Foreign: $2,021,767,547 |
Avatar is an exciting science fiction adventure movie from 2009. It was made in the United States. The main characters are Jake, played by Sam Worthington, and Neytiri, played by Zoë Saldaña.
The movie was directed by James Cameron. He first thought of the story for Avatar way back in 1994. But he waited until 2006 to start making the movie. This was because the special effects technology wasn't good enough yet.
Avatar was very expensive to make. It cost about $280–310 million. Another $150 million was spent on marketing to tell people about the movie. It was released in both regular 2D and amazing 3D. Just three weeks after it came out, Avatar earned more money worldwide than almost any other movie. Only Cameron's own movie, Titanic, had earned more.
The movie won many important awards. In 2010, it won Golden Globe awards for "Best Director" and "Best Motion Picture - Drama." It also won six Critics Choice awards. Avatar was nominated for 11 Academy Awards and eight BAFTA awards.
Contents
The Story of Avatar
The story of Avatar happens in the year 2154. It takes place on a faraway moon called Pandora. Humans have traveled from Earth to Pandora. They want to mine a very special and valuable mineral called unobtanium.
The biggest amount of this mineral is under a huge tree. The local people, called the Na'vi, call this tree "Hometree." It is very important to them. Parker Selfridge leads the mining operation. He uses marines to protect the mining site. The marines want the Na'vi people to move away from Hometree. This way, they can mine the unobtanium.
The humans have tried many ways to make the Na'vi leave. They offered them clothing and education. But the Na'vi did not want to move. So, the humans plan to blow up Hometree.
Who are the Na'vi?
Pandora is home to the Na'vi. They are a blue-skinned species of humanoids. They have some cat-like features. The Na'vi are much stronger and taller than humans. They live in harmony with Nature. They worship a mother goddess named Eywa.
Human scientists on Pandora want to learn about the Na'vi's culture. To do this, they use "avatars." Avatars are special Na'vi bodies. They are made with human DNA. Human operators can control these avatars with their minds. They use avatars to talk with the Na'vi people. They hope to create peace.
Jake's Mission
Jake Sully is a marine who cannot use his legs. His brother was a scientist who controlled an avatar. When his brother dies, Jake takes his place. Jake's mission is to become friends with the Na'vi. He needs to convince them to move away from Hometree. This would allow the humans to mine the unobtanium.
Many people, like Grace, an avatar expert, doubted Jake. They thought he wasn't experienced enough. One day, while in his avatar form, Jake gets lost in the jungle.
Jake and Neytiri
Jake's avatar is saved by Neytiri. She is a female Na'vi. Neytiri takes Jake to Hometree. This is where her clan, the Omaticaya, live. Neytiri's mother is a spiritual leader. She asks Neytiri to teach Jake about their culture.
Jake and Neytiri have many adventures on Pandora. Neytiri shows Jake how every living thing is connected. At first, the Na'vi call Jake a "sky-dreamer." As he learns their ways, he earns their respect. He becomes a member of the Omaticaya clan. Neytiri didn't like him at first. But as he became more skilled, their friendship grew. They eventually become partners.
The Conflict Begins
Time passes, and Jake has not convinced the Na'vi to move. Parker Selfridge gets impatient. He tells Jake that they will bomb Hometree. Jake tries to warn the Na'vi people. But the Na'vi feel betrayed. They think Jake knew this would happen.
The Na'vi try to fight back. But their bows and arrows are no match for the marines' weapons. Hometree is bombed, and many Na'vi people die. Neytiri's father is among them. Jake and Grace are then jailed by the mining company. This is because they sided with the Na'vi.
The Great Battle
A marine pilot named Trudy helps Jake and Grace escape. They fly away in a helicopter. They go to a nearby base to switch into their avatar forms. Then they return to the Na'vi. Jake tells the Na'vi that they must still fight. He helps train them for battle. Soon, more Na'vi come to defend their land.
The marines decide to destroy the Na'vi instead of just moving them. Many people think this is wrong and cruel. But the marines don't listen. They go to attack the Na'vi. A very large battle begins between the marines and the Na'vi.
When it looks like the marines will win, something amazing happens. Many of Pandora's animals join the fight. They help the Na'vi against the marines. Near the end of the battle, Jake, in his avatar, fights Parker Selfridge. Neytiri saves Jake when he is almost defeated. The Na'vi eventually win, but many lives are lost.
After the battle, the marines are sent back to Earth. Jake Sully chooses to stay in his avatar body forever. He becomes the leader of the Na'vi, alongside Neytiri.
Why James Cameron Made Avatar
James Cameron was inspired by many science fiction books he read as a kid. But the look of the Na'vi came from a dream his mother had. She dreamed about a 12-foot-tall blue woman. Cameron thought this image was very cool.
Cameron wanted Avatar to make us think about how we treat nature and other people. He said that the Na'vi show our best selves. They represent how we should live. The humans in the movie show the parts of us that harm our world. They show how we might ruin our future.
The movie Avatar was released on Blu-ray and DVD on April 22nd, Earth Day, in many countries. Later, a special edition was released with extra features.
Images for kids
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Pandora's floating "Hallelujah Mountains" were inspired in part by the Chinese Huangshan mountains (pictured).
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Zhangjiajie National Forest Park
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Cameron pioneered a specially designed camera built into a 6-inch boom that allowed the facial expressions of the actors to be captured and digitally recorded for the animators to use later.
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Cameron at the 2009 San Diego Comic-Con promoting the film
See also
In Spanish: Avatar (película) para niños
