25 Shocking CGI Movie Moments That Left You Speechless

Avatar is, at the time of writing, the highest-grossing movie of all time, but where would it have been without the simply spectacular special effects? Not even close. The ground-breaking CGI was the main selling point of James Cameron's 2009 effort, and it cannot be argued that the film is aesthetically spectacular.

From the Na'vi themselves to the creatures and the background of Pandora, and the wild action sequences both on the ground and in the sky, there really isn't anywhere visually that Avatar falls short. However, there is one crowning glory that arguably tops anything else.

The film had already established itself as a cut above the rest in terms of visuals, particularly with the emphasis it put on being in 3D, but when Jake (Sam Worthington) and co. took to the Hallelujah Mountains, things were taken to another level entirely. This shouldn't have been possible, but it was.

Pandora was created to be this stunningly beautiful place, but the vision and the detail in the floating mountains made them something that even the native Na'vi would behold. It's no real surprise that the sequels to Avatar have taken this long, but The Way of Water was just as visually stunning as its predecessor, and there's no reason to think that Fire and Ash will be any different when it releases later in 2025. The wait is more than worth it if they continue to look like this.