I choked up several times during Avatar not only from the beauty of the animation but the emotional level it registered on. It sparked my imagination like I haven't felt since I was a child.
While movies like Transformers and Iron Man really upped the anti on CGI and special effects it was still apparent that they were graphics inserted into the live action film. With Avatar it's completely the opposite and it's done so seamlessly that you really can't tell where the reality ends and the virtual begins.
The storyline was OK. It was basically Fern Gully in space. The acting was superb all around especially Neytiri played by Zoe Saldana. Her animated character gives easily one of the best female performances of the year.