Is 'Avatar' the blockbuster it's claimed to be?

Only if you're talking in gross money terms, it seems. In terms of numbers of tickets sold, it's still big, but only 26th on the list of all-time greats. The Hollywood Reporter notes:

With everybody reporting how "Avatar" is The Biggest Movie of All Time based on grosses ($1.859 billion and counting), it's important to remember how rising ticket prices skew the returns.

Here's the Top 20 movies of all time ... by number of tickets sold:

1 "Gone With the Wind" (1939) 202,044,600
2 "Star Wars" (1977) 178,119,600
3 "The Sound of Music" (1965) 142,415,400
4 "E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial" (1982) 141,854,300
5 "The Ten Commandments" (1956) 131,000,000
6 "Titanic" (1997) 128,345,900
7 "Jaws" (1975) 128,078,800
8 "Doctor Zhivago" (1965) 124,135,500
9 "The Exorcist" (1973) 110,568,700
10 "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" (1937) 109,000,000
11 "101 Dalmatians" (1961) 99,917,300
12 "The Empire Strikes Back" (1980) 98,180,600
13 "Ben-Hur" (1959) 98,000,000
14 "Return of the Jedi" (1983) 94,059,400
15 "The Sting" (1973) 89,142,900
16 "Raiders of the Lost Ark" (1981) 88,141,900
17 "Jurassic Park" (1993) 86,205,800
18 "The Graduate" (1967) 85,571,400
19 "Star Wars: Episode I" (1999) 84,825,800
20 "Fantasia" (1941) 83,043,500

"Avatar," despite topping the worldwide gross list, by and by, is only No. 26 on the ticket sales list with 76,421,000 sold ... at least, so far...

There's more at the link. Interesting reading.

Another interesting 'Avatar' vignette: it seems that an area of China has topography and geological features almost identical to those of the movie's imaginary planet 'Pandora'.

The 3,544ft Southern Sky Column is one of 3,000 in the Zhangjiajie National Forest Park and became the inspiration for the magical 'floating peaks' in James Cameron's film after a Hollywood photographer spent time shooting there in 2008.

A national park spokesman said: 'Many pictures become prototypes for various elements in the 'Avatar' movie, including the 'Hallelujah Mountains'.'

Now as film fans flock to see the column, the column has had its named officially changed to 'Avatar Hallelujah Mountain'.

There's more at the link, including more photographs. It certainly looks like a beautiful place.

Peter