After 13 years, James Cameron is back to direct a sequel to the highest grossing movie of all time, Avatar. I won’t lie, I had many doubts about a sequel that has been delayed for so many years to one of the most popular movies ever made, now we are here. This review will be kept as vague and basic as possible in order to avoid giving anything away. Avatar: The Way of Water takes place about a decade after the first film and centers around Jake Sully, Ney'tiri, and their recently formed family as they move throughout Pandora and find a new home in the oceans, all while a familiar threat returns. This film works both as a direct sequel to the original, building on existing characters, and as a springboard for the entire Avatar franchise in terms of expanding its rich universe. Pandora has never looked better and this film, Cameron puts on display some of the most awe inspiring, breathtaking, and gorgeously impressive visual effects in any movie ever. The underwater sequences are unlike anything I’ve ever seen, with such impeccable detail on every sea creature both big and small. It’s another breakthrough in visual artistry and a testament to Cameron’s wild imagination. We all knew the technical aspect would be top tier, but how is the story? The story itself is pretty simple as stated earlier, but I think that mostly works in its favor, putting stronger emphasis on character relationships rather than being overly complex. This also benefits the overarching theme of the movie being the importance of family and how imperative it is for a father to be the fearless protector, especially in the most dangerous of times. Sam Worthington once again does an excellent job as ex Marine turned Na’vi Jake Sully, this time around bearing the responsibility of fatherhood. Zoe Saldana in particular brought a ton of emotional weight to Ney'tiri and she delivers in both the action scenes and the dramatic moments. There’s a heavy focus on the younger generation in this, and seeing the kids from different tribes bond, argue, and learn from each other really gave the film an extra layer of depth for me. Colonel Quaritch returns and I won’t say how or in what context, but Stephen Lang just kills it again. He was always perfect casting as the one dimensional warlord and elevates what would typically be a boring generic villain to a menacing and imposing militant threat. The run time could have been trimmed a bit, as Cameron really emphasizes taking in the spectacle, and some characters make a few questionable decisions that could’ve been explained better. The last hour is as exhilarating and emotionally thrilling as one could ask for, and you feel as if you’re on a roller coaster. That’s what this is, it’s theme park cinema as described by Martin Scorsese, and damn it, I enjoy the hell out of it. Overall, Avatar: The Way of Water has its clunkiness but is made well worth the 13 year wait with a powerful story about the importance of family, state of the art VFX, great characters old and new, and the sort of creativity that feels rather devoid in many Hollywood blockbusters today. If you liked the first, I definitely think you will also get a kick out of this one, and like the first, is one of the rare movies that is absolutely worth experiencing in 3D/IMAX 3D.
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