Avatar: The Way of Water

It has been over a decade since the original Avatar premiered and took theatre audiences by storm, becoming one of the most popular and lucrative films ever.  The original story of evil colonization and the abuse of the indigenous residents and lands was not really all that original and had been told on screen before, but never with the flare and excitement that filmmaker James Cameron is famous for.  With the use of amazing special effects and “edge of your seat” action sequences, the film was both emotionally stirring and fun to watch.  It is amazing that the studio allowed James to wait this long to make the sequel.  Usually, studios are clamoring for a follow up when I film breaks box office records.  First off, I have to say that I was one of those people who was deeply touched by the original.  Its story was poignant, but more than that, I connected with the characters in a way I rarely do, on a level I can only recount as spiritual.  With that, I was a bit trepidatious venturing into the sequel, as sequels rarely live up to their parents.  But even more than that, I wasn’t looking forward to the emotional turmoil and roller coaster ride, that I suspected this film would put me through.  And to me, both these things were valid fears and inevitably true.  So does the sequel, that re-unites the majority of the original cast, even those whose characters perished in the original film, live up to its predecessor?  Yes and no!

The sequel picks up where the original film left off and recounts the events in Jake Sully’s life since he transferred his being into his Avatar and became a true Na’vi.  Jake and Neytiri (Zoe Saldana) have three kids of their own, and adopt Kiri, a child that was born of Dr. Grace Augustine’s Avatar (Sigourney Weaver plays both Dr. Augustine and the teenage Kiri).  Miles “Spider” Socorro (Jake Champion) a human child who was too young to be put into stasis and so was left behind, is also something of a family member and has a specific bond with Kiri. Jake becomes the Chief of his tribe and lives in peace with the human scientists that stayed on Pandora. Their life seems ideal, until the “Sky People” return and with them is the “reincarnation” of big bad Colonel Miles Quaritch whose memories have been inserted into his Na’vi avatar.  The ensuing battles cause Jake and family to take refuge with a water tribe and learn their ways, while the Colonel uses his son Spider, to help him hunt down Jake to get revenge for killing his human body.

A large portion of the movie is devoted to the children adapting to their new watery home and the bullying they receive from some of the water tribes’ children for being different and not understanding the way of water. At first glance, the two movies are very similar in plot, and you could argue that the sequel brings nothing new.  But when you examine the overall themes of the two films, you see that the action sequences still center around evil humans raping and pillaging and harming the sensitive ecosphere of the planet. But the themes of the sequel are a bit more complex.  Familial dynamics, being different and finding one’s place in the world and the evils of revenge are all examined in detail, while still being an entertaining action movie.  Jake’s sons must find their way in the world with one being the “good” son and the other being the “rebel” and never doing anything that lives up to his fathers’ expectations.  Kiri doesn’t know who her biological father is, and struggles with being different, but discovers her gifts and learns how to find her place in the world.  Spider must come to terms with the biological feelings he has for his father versus knowing that the man is truly evil.

The production value on this film is very high, it is a stunning spectacle and Cameron makes you feel like this planet, with all its inhabitants, really exists.  There isn’t any portion of the movie that doesn’t feel real, even though the majority of the film is CGI, but to be honest, there also isn’t anything we haven’t already seen, there is just more of it done better!  The running time for this film is needlessly long, taking far too much time on certain scenes that could have been cut with no loss of emotional impact or compromising of story.  The death of several of the fictional animals in the film is heartbreaking, and even though you know these things do not exist, it is still difficult to watch.  I have never hated humans as much as I have after seeing this film.  The convention is employed that the dialogue we are hearing is in the language of the Na’vi, but we are hearing it in English.  Since the focus is really on the teenage children of Jake, the use of the word “Bro” and other modern American teenage vernacular took away from much of the poetic nature of the film.  I did connect with the characters, like the first film, which is a credit to Mr. Cameron, and I did cry several times, got furiously angry at certain characters, and laughed at the joys the characters experienced.  But I did not walk away from this movie with the same spiritual feelings I did from the first movie. James Cameron revolutionized the 3D process in the first film, using it it to fully immerse the audience into the movie as opposed to just having stuff fly out at the audience. So, we went into the sequel hoping to see how he evolved the process further but alas, there was really nothing new done with the 3D. Avatar 2 The Way Of Water stands with other sequels to big blockbusters that only serve up a rehash of the original’s themes. With at least 2 more films on the way, we will likely not be heading out to the theater to see a third and fourth retelling of the same story.