Wow, I never saw the similarities of those movies until just now. Even so, Avatar was still an amazing movie due to the talented animators that brought it to life. 10/10 No questions asked.
I haven't seen it, but I honestly think that with those sort of graphics, they had a lot more potential, Weta studios are amazing, but Peter Jackson's films are either terrible or have stolen a famous story..
However what made this movie so great for me was how they potrayed Pandora.... It was so magical and so beautiful. The creatures were absolutely interesting too!
The 3D was mesmerizing and was not an afterthought -- it was central to the immersive cinematic experience. You have to admit that you have never experienced anything like this before. It takes a visionary to craft such a masterpiece. Cameron set the benchmark and generated buzz around the notion of 3D entertainment and he spawned other 3D technology. The parallels to the real-world and the deeper connotations and message are what made this movie shine. Yeah, if you don't delve deeper you may miss the real point!