“Avatar: The Way of Water” Review
After being marked for death Neytiri (Zoe Saldaña) and Jake (Sam Worthington) fight back against humanity with new allies in “Avatar: The Way of Water,” the sequel to the groundbreaking highest grossing film of all time.
If I were to quickly sum up my thoughts on 2009’s “Avatar,” I would say four words: “great effects, okay story.” The blockbuster sensation may have the title of the highest grossing film of all time, but it didn't connect with me on the same level of other billion dollar hits like “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” “Avengers: Endgame” and “Titanic.” While the film’s story was something I’ve seen a million times, the world that James Cameron created was so unique and told with such immersive technology that I’m still blown away by this towering achievement.
When I heard that Cameron was working on more “Avatar” films, I was somewhat interested. I never lay awake at night wondering when the hell “Avatar 2” would come out already but I wanted to see what Cameron would accomplish. If there’s one thing you can count on from James Cameron, it’s his unrelenting perfectionism and his need to top himself in creating a spectacle. When he makes a sequel to “Alien,” it’s going to be the “Alien” sequel with “Aliens.” If he’s going to make an action-comedy, he’s going to make the action-comedy with “True Lies.” And when you ask him to make a jaw-dropping historical epic, he’s going to make the highest grossing film of all time with “Titanic” which is going to tie “Ben-Hur” and “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King” for the most Oscars of all time.
So, after 13 years of waiting, “Avatar: The Way of Water” has arrived and, in many ways, it’s superior to the first film. From the perspective of storytelling, characterization and visual effects, “The Way of Water” is a masterfully told experience that completely shatters the barrier that divides the fictional world on the big screen from the audience.
Set over ten years after the first film, Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) is now living his life as one of the Na’vi, a race of blue aliens living on a far-away moon called Pandora, after transferring his consciousness from his human body into a Na’vi one. Alongside his mate Neytiri (Zoe Saldaña), Jake commands a mighty tribe of forest dwellers and has started a family. However, humanity has returned to Pandora to both take the moon’s resources and make it a home for the human race, even if it means taking out the Na’vi. After being targeted by the Earth’s military, Jake and his family flee their home and settle with the Metkayina, a tribe of Na’vi who live on islands and have a harmonious relationship with the ocean. This peace is short lived when the humans, led by a revived Colonel Miles Quaritch (Stephen Lang), wage war on the Metkayina, leaving Jake and his allies to fight back in an epic conflict.
One of my biggest problems with “Avatar” was that I didn’t have an affinity for most of the main characters, who were human. Whenever Jake wasn’t in his Avatar body, I found myself losing interest in his journey. However, in “The Way of Water,” Jake is completely a Na’vi and the focus is entirely on these aliens. The sequel has improved its characters with Jake being far more of a bold presence as well as more vulnerable. As a leader and a father, the ways he can be hurt have increased which in turn increases our concern for him.
After over a decade of waiting, director James Cameron has, once again, made an immersive experience of spectacle and groundbreaking digital effects.
Neytiri is just as much of an incredible action heroine as she was back in 2009 and, like Jake, her struggles as a parent and how she balances that with leadership are interesting. Unlike the first film, which had a greater focus on the individual, this film chooses to focus more on groups whether that be tribes or families and how they interact with each other.
All of the children that Jake and Neytiri raise are characters that I want to spend more time with and that I’ve grown to love. My favorite is definitely Kiri (Sigourney Weaver), who was born from the Na’vi Avatar that was inhabited by Dr. Grace Augustine (also Sigourney Weaver) who died fighting for the Na’vi in the first film. When I heard that Weaver was going to be in this film but wasn’t exactly reprising her role, I was curious and I loved Kiri’s connection to the planet and all of its inhabitants.
After having to leave the forest and find refuge with the Metkayina, the Sully family must adapt to the way of water. While it may seem tiresome to show Jake learning another tribe’s ways after he did that in the last film, it doesn’t feel that way. First of all, he acknowledges that he is out of his element and that he’s willing to learn. So many characters that go on this kind of journey don’t want to change and think they know best which is beyond insufferable to watch. It’s nice that Jake and his entire family experience this assimilation and we’re taken along for the ride. Seeing how the Metkayina and the Sullys interact and how this balance of Na’vi and ocean life works is all fascinating.
However, despite making improvements in its protagonists, the antagonists leave something to be desired. All of these “evil humans” are over-the-top without a sense of fun. They’re very one-note and the typical “I-don’t-care-about-the-world-I-just-like-money” type of villains that are boring. One of them is a hunter of large marine animals who constantly talks about money and that’s about it. It’s like the annoying hunter from “Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom.” Completely devoid of anything resembling realism.
Fortunately, the film’s main villain is quite effective with Stephen Lang having a ball as the devious Colonel Quaritch. In the first film, his motivation was to service some company that wanted the resources of the Na’vi. In “The Way of Water,” he’s just hell-bent on getting revenge on Jake Sully who, along with Neytiri, killed him in the first film. After having his memories implanted in a Na’vi body, Quaritch is stronger than ever which makes him a substantial threat to Jake and his family. While I enjoy deep villains with complicated emotions, sometimes it’s just nice to see someone with a simple, primal goal.
The problems with most of the film’s villains also are within the story. The conflict between Na’vi and humans is what keeps the story going. However, there are scenes that show humanity’s careless nature and really sink that message in like when the humans are hunting the ocean’s animals to draw Jake and the Metkayina out of hiding. Despite knowing the deep bond between the Na’vi and their animals, the humans couldn’t care less. We see these animals being hunted while the humans look unphased and the film’s score heavily implies that we should feel bad and also guilty. Like the first film, “The Way of Water” has a clear message on environmentalism which I think is handled pretty well. However, scenes like this try to force you to feel emotions that should be occurring naturally.
Remember when Dr. Seuss wrote for 40 pages how careless the Once-ler was for chopping down all of the trees without care in “The Lorax?” No, because he didn’t have to. In many cases, less is more and you don’t have to hammer in something when you can lightly tap it instead. The audience can handle the rest. The film also has storytelling cliches that I found to be overused and got under my skin. For instance, one of Jake’s sons, Lo’ak (Britain Dalton), has bonded with a creature that is misunderstood and hated by the Metkayini. But when Lo’ak tries to explain his situation, no one wants to listen and they immediately dismiss him. This kind of plot device is frustrating to me and reminded me of the “liar-revealed” arc that Jake went through in the first film. It’s tiring and I’m sick to death of it.
The film’s visual connection between people and nature is one of the best aspects of the film as Jake’s son Lo’ak (Britain Dalton) bonds with an outcast beast of the sea.
When the story really works for me is when great ideas are conveyed with simple dialogue or with visuals. In the ocean village, Kiri begins to feel an incredible kinship with the water and its creatures in a way she doesn’t fully understand. Through choice words and amazing imagery, Kiri’s bond is explored without being explained. But it doesn’t need to be. It’s like trying to explain the contents of the case in “Pulp Fiction.” It’s best left to our imaginations.
Despite my praises and complaints towards the characters and story of “The Way of Water,” I understand that many people are interested in the film purely for its escapism. While the effects of “Avatar” are still incredible and have held up extraordinarily well, “The Way of Water” has blown them out of the water. This is a film that should not only be seen in theaters but on a large screen format like IMAX and in 3D. I was prepared to analyze every frame but, after ten minutes, I found myself just surrendering to the magic trick and being taken on this incredible journey.
I hope that this film inspires more films to be shot in 3D with the intention of immersing the audience instead of the 3D films we’ve been getting. Let’s be honest, when you see a blockbuster in 3D, does it even feel worth it? I am so sick of films being converted into 3D during post-production because it’s not justified. Either shoot the film in 3D or don’t because we can tell the difference.
One of the reasons why the production of “Avatar: The Way of Water” took so long was that James Cameron and his team of amazing visual effects artists worked for years to create motion-capture technology that would work underwater. Unlike “Aquaman,” which shot its actors dry and then added the water in post-production, this film had its actors learn deep-diving and submerge themselves underwater for lengthy periods. I understand why these films took different approaches since the characters of “Aquaman” all talk underwater and the Na’vi can’t in “The Way of Water,” but this motion capture technique has created a new level of realism amidst all of the magic of computer effects.
There were multiple action sequences that dropped my jaw and absolutely floored me. I know that James Cameron always wants to make a spectacle with his films but he still continues to surprise me by truly caring about the experience that film lovers will have. While more “Avatar” films are planned, with the third film already having been shot and currently in post-production, “The Way of Water” is a self-contained story that is open for more sequels. There is no attempt to sequel-bait and thank Christ almighty for that.
While I like the original “Avatar,” I didn’t get the hype surrounding it. I loved the world and the visuals but I just didn’t think the story could match it. Now I understand what everyone was talking about. “The Way of Water” is a superb sequel that now has me invested in the world of Pandora and where it goes next.
