Avatar: The Way of Water

In an interview, when James Cameron was asked when audiences can use the bathroom during Avatar 2, he responded, "Any time they want", due to them being able to see the scene they missed when they come back to see the movie. For a guy who's been working on the same movie for the past 13 years, it's no wonder he has that sort of confidence. Cameron has devoted more than the last decade to creating this film and this series, investing so much time and money that reports say the Way of Water needs to make upwards of 2 billion dollars just to break even. Considering the first Avatar was so groundbreaking that audiences suffered diagnosed depression from being unable to live in the world of Pandora, Cameron had big shoes to fill. The question is, does he fill them?

Surprisingly, yes he does. Avatar 2 is a superior movie to the first Avatar in almost every way. I'm glad I watched the original movie just a few days before watching the sequel as it allows me to compare the two pretty well. Looking back on the first film, that itself isn't the revolutionary movie people make it out to be. Don't get me wrong, the visuals are still stunning, and the world-building is great, but our protagonist Jake Sully is one-dimensional, the writing is stale, and the plot is fairly thin and basic. Does Avatar 2 remove all of those problems? No, not at all. The Way of Water is far from a perfect movie but it does fix many of the mistakes from the first movie.

First, the character development is legions above that seen in the first movie. Jake Sully is a far more interesting character, actually having layers to his personality, and audiences are far more invested in his character especially now that he's a father. Due to the massive time jump, the Sullies now have kids, each of which is fairly interesting. The three stand-outs are Sigourney Weaver, who plays a much younger character as the eldest daughter of the Sullies; Lo'ak, played by newcomer Britain Dalton; and Jack Champion's character, Spyder. Although it's been 13 years since Pandora has graced the big screen, Cameron makes it so that the audience is immediately thrust back into the world without missing a beat. Maybe it was the magic of IMAX and 3D, but it felt as though I was one of the Sullies, swimming in the water or riding the mythical beasts, sharing the hardships and turmoil the characters faced.

This immersive experience was heightened by the main draw of these movies which is the VFX. The first 45 minutes-ish when the movie is just exposition dump is more of what we saw in the original movie, but as soon as the film shifts to the water scenes you're just blown away. The beautiful layered colors of the water, the new creatures, and the luminescent glow emitting from the sea in the night, all blend together to create a gorgeous movie-watching experience for the next two and a half hours. I truly understand now why people fell into depression after having to deal with the realities of the world, having been ripped away from the paradise they spent the last 3 hours in. It's clear to see what Cameron spent his hundreds of millions of dollar budget on. One thing that cannot be denied is the love and care that Cameron has for this world as he truly has crafted every detail of the film, both visually and audibly. The score, composed by Simon Franglen, is just as powerful as the legendary James Horner, from the original film, and truly contributes to the emotional ups and downs experienced throughout the movie.

While there are a lot of things done right, as I said before not all of the original problems were fixed. Structurally, the movie, while more interesting than the original, is still pretty basic in terms of the plot with the added issue of the run time being a whopping 3+ hours long. Nothing much happens, even when they get to the water, and the movie really takes its time building up characters and moving pieces with different points of view, while allowing the audience to be in Pandora. This all culminates into an enthralling third act, with phenomenal action sequences and very solid suspense that really made up for the lack of things that happened before. Of course, any movie keeping consistent pacing for that length of time is an impossible feat, and up until the third act, the movie's pacing can get a little wishy-washy, but honestly, it doesn't really matter. With the incredible visuals and the explosive third act, I never really felt the run time as much as I thought I would. Will this change upon a second viewing if it's at home or not in IMAX? Yes probably, but the spectacle is the primary draw of these films. Writing has never really been one of James Cameron's strong suits and honestly, Way of Water is no different, but these problems are all trivial and never really ruined the viewing experience for me. If anything, the issues with the slow plot and moving pieces, really just makes me more excited for the upcoming movies as it's clear there is a lot more story to tell.

Star Rating: 8/10

Final Thoughts: Ultimately, Way of Water is an upgrade from the original movie in almost every facet with better characters, better visuals, and a (relatively) better plot, making for one of the best theater experiences I've had all year and hope for Cameron's broader Avatar saga.