Avatar was a cultural phenomenon when it came out back in 2009. It was a huge hit financially having made 2.9 billion dollars. Breaking James Cameron’s record that he set with Titanic. Cameron has been working on Avatar ever since or trying to create new and innovative ways to make movies. He also studied the ocean. Adding the two together and the audience are about to get the long awaited sequel to Avatar, Avatar the Way of Water.
Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) and Neytiri (Zoe Saldana) have raised a family on Pandora. Like most families, they have issues with the kids doing their own thing and trying to be independent of their parents. When a threat from the past re-emerges the family must leave their home in the high mountains to find shelter and friendship elsewhere. They end up stopping their journey at the sea and in doing so they have to reintegrate into a new society and learn a new way of life. The way of water if you will.
James Cameron has done it again with Avatar The Way of Water. The visual effects are astounding. The way he films water makes it come alive. It’s like the water is actually real. All the studying of the ocean has come in good hands. It doesn’t matter if the characters are riding animals or just swimming, the water is amazing to look at throughout the film. The 3d makes it come alive and that is why people go to see Avatar films.
The cinematography is incredible as well. The depth and realism of structures like trees, boats, and sea ships are mind-blowing. There is a gritty dirty nature to some of the things in the movie but there is also a pristine nature to some things as well. Such as the operations deck and the ships that come from the sky. Everything in the film looks authentic. The technical aspects of the film are just as good as you’d expect from a Cameron film. Especially one that took this long to come to fruition.
With all of Cameron’s studying of water and how it looks and feels he has also developed a love for sea life in its many permutations. That comes into effect with the plot of the movie. He infuses an environmental subplot into the overall story and works perfectly with the main theme of trying to preserve this beautiful planet and its native people. Once again the natives are a part of everything and all the creatures live together as one with each other and the planet. I love these themes in the Avatar films. They don’t feel shoehorned in at all.
Another story aspect I found pretty good is the family dynamic and how the family has trouble getting along with the sea people and each other. Kids will be kids and they usually cause drama for the parents. And this movie has issues of bullying, and peer pressure that cause problems but they also strengthen bonds between members of these different cultures and the wildlife as a whole. The kids brought a whole new perspective to this film.
Avatar the Way of Water was worth the wait. Fifteen years seemed like a long time to most but not to Cameron who was developing techniques and ways to make this immersive film and franchise come alive. The visual effects and 3D were absolutely incredible to behold. I can’t say enough about how gorgeous this film is. That being said I loved the messages of the family overall and the environmental subplot they added to the story. This movie is a true achievement in filmmaking as only James Cameron can do. It is one of the best films of the year bar none.
5 stars
Dan Skip Allen
From the Fourth Row! 