Book Review: Avatar: Collector’s Vault Book 3-D

Posted in Books, Film
By Sam Bathe on 18 Nov 2010

I’m going to be upfront with you, and if you have read many of my film reviews this won’t come as a surprise; I hate 3-D. The biggest con in the modern film industry, charging a bigger ticket price for technology that regularly harms the cinematic experience and certainly never brings anything new, (yes, that includes Avatar‘s cinematic release), I would happily see the back of the extra dimension and forever sit comfortably in front of regular old 2-D.

James Cameron, however, can’t get enough of it. Developing new technologies purely for Avatar and claiming to give a cinematic experience unparalleled by anything before it, while he’s certainly a forward thinker, his views are at times a little over the top. With Christmas now approaching, and at last some Avatar DVDs with the scent of a special feature, comes a new collector’s edition book. And yes, every page is in 3-D.

More of a guide to Pandora, Avatar‘s characters and the plot the film explores, this isn’t the ‘making of…’ you might have expected it to be, but still makes for a compelling read even if it goes into a little more detail than the film ever demanded. In it’s defense, the 3-D imagery is excellent implemented too. Somewhat subtle, though you’ll need the provided 3-D glasses for every page, creatures jump off every page which will have kids in screams of excitement at each page turn.

With special Avatar playing cards, stickers, pull-outs and posters dotted throughout the book, Avatar: Collector’s Vault Book 3-D is out now, and worth even the £34.99 pricetag.

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