I just now had a difficult time remembering what the story was about. I do recall walking out of the movie thinking that it was visually stunning, but the characters were not especially compelling. It was basically Dances with Wolves but with blue people and dragons. I now remember thinking something like that as I walked out of the theater. I saw Avatar because I had heard that it was an amazing 3D movie that was unlike any previous. Visually, it was. I'm not sure why people saw it multiple times, perhaps to go take people that hadn't yet seen it.
I'm trying to remember a lot of details about the plot and character development; I can't remember much. I don't remember the details, so I don't know if I'm talking about a corporate or governmental interest, but I do remember the display of how far people were willing to go to advance their power in some way (read: genocide fo' $$$). Even if I don't remember anything about the characters or plot details, this was still a really great thing about the film.