For years film-goers have been bombarded with films that have attempted to venture into the third dimension, but have dismally failed to deliver any form of delectable cinematic feast. Gimicky, cheap and devoid of a story or a talented cast, they have given 3D films a bad name.

 So when James Cameron promised to create a live-action 3D film, whilst shouldering the slain beast of Titanic, critics must have drawn their bows with baited breath, waiting for his Achilles heel to show.

 It’s now stuff of legend that Cameron shelved the idea of Avatar, twelve years ago after Titanic, supposedly waiting for the technology that would enable him to realise his vision. Much like George Lucas with the prequel Star Wars trilogy (which we can now see was a marketing ploy to give credence to a sh*t idea).

 Time and time again he has broken boundaries in terms of visual superiority and gross profits. Avatar is now the quickest film to earn the $1bn mark. He has also shown the world’s largest penchant for expensive taste. But for Avatar, he would have to create a whole new technology.

 It’s comparatively easy to make a 3D animated film. After all, the basic 3D technology (cheap plastic glasses) has always been around, and animated films have always been made in 3D on a computer. But with live action, the only success with 3D has been the layering of 2D images. Imagine a sheet of paper noticeably forward of another. Thus far, the only way to properly map a human in 3D has been to hire Andy Serkis, and cover him with a shedload of ping pong balls.

 So with reports of Cameron’s success, and an oncoming culling of 2D films, it’s no surprise to see animators releasing a flurry of 3D films. Last year, the lovingly rendered UP was released, with the technically amazing A Christmas Carol hot on its heels. Realising that they had a whole back catalogue of films waiting to be put into 3D, Pixar started to release the Toy Story films in the format. The second Star Trek film has also been rumoured to be in a stereoscopic consultation stage.

 The technology that Cameron has created has had astounding results. The whole of Avatar was filmed in a warehouse, which has motion sensors on the floor and ceilings. The cast of Avatar were totally naked to the camera, in what Cameron has described in interviews to be a more pure form of acting. The footage was then fed into Peter Jackson’s thousand processor super-computer for painstaking rendering.

 The result is astounding. There are no gimmicky screen pop-outs. A living, breathing, on-screen world has been created. The depth and range of colour is incredible, and flawless. The 3D gives everything scale, and weight. There is a real sense that what is on screen is really there, piercing the numb, blasé, apathetic immunity that years of computer generated imagery has built up. Coupled with crisp audio, the ultra-futuristic technology of the film seems real, a sci-fi fanatic’s dream.

 But Avatar is not a sci-fi. The science fiction element merely facilitates the eventuality of the characters ending up on the wonderous world of Pandora. The environment is full of colour, with no detail spared. Essentially a massive jungle, the planet is spectacular. Kind of like Rambo meets Final Fantasy. Times ten. To the power of six. 

A gaping chasm is gaping. A shear drop is shear. The third dimension really invigorates these dramatic devices that we have long been numb to, after years of usage. 

Thankfully though, Cameron cut the film down to a “mere” two and a half hours, for a very sensible reason. Watching a 3D film stimulates more of the mind, and Cameron’s guess is that people would have been able to watch much less of one. Indeed, in my own mind there was the severe juxtaposition of glee and amazement, against wanting it all to stop. The intense action is all too much to watch at times, meaning the film could be watched a hundred times before it is all absorbed. Like a car crash, Avatar can be a brutal assault on the senses that is too much to remember. 

The film has been made out to be a technical exercise. The performances of Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana and Sigourney Weaver are by far overlooked. A whole language was created that only adds to the reality of the film. Although the plot could be a lot more intricate, the film is as watchable in 2D as it is in 3D, making it as much of a film as an incredible experience. 

Don’t wait for this film to come out on DVD, go and see it on the biggest screen you can find. A turning point in the future of film only comes around once.