Avatar: The Way of Water. Did Cameron make a great sequel?

Finally, the long-awaited premiere of the film "Avatar: The Way of Water" took place. The film, announced years ago, is finally out to bring the viewer back to the planet Pandora.

The first "Avatar" appeared on the screens in 2009 and collected almost $ 3 billion. For some time, the amount seemed unattainable, until Avengers: Endgame came close to the record holder.

Meanwhile, director James Cameron was preparing a continuation of the cult picture. The second part of "Avatar" was expected back in December 2014. Since then, the release date has been moved almost every year, with James Cameron explaining that he doesn't just want to make a big movie, he's making two films at the same time. Perhaps only after the release of the trailer, there was confidence that the film was really filmed.

The budget of the picture is estimated at $ 250 million - James Cameron said that a billion has been prepared for 4 parts (from the second to the fifth). Starring all the same Sam Worthington ("Hacksaw Ridge"), Zoe Saldana ("Guardians of the Galaxy"), Stephen Lang ("Johnny D"). Cameo roles went to Sigourney Weaver ("Alien") and Kate Winslet ("Titanic").

The events of the picture "Avatar: The Path of Water" unfold 10 years after the end of the first part. Jake and Neytiri have three children of their own, as well as two adopted children. A happy family life ends when people attack Pandora again. Moreover, one of their tasks is the elimination of Jake. Therefore, Jake, along with his wife and children, goes to unfamiliar territories of Pandora. To join the new clan, they are forced to enter the water world as deeply as the forest. But even far from home, danger awaits them.

Timing is a problem

Avatar: The Path of Water runs for 3 hours and 12 minutes. The first part was also not very short and was 2 hours 42 minutes, but the film remained balanced. Now it turned out differently.

The first hour is spent on a brief retelling of the events that have taken place since the end of Avatar, as well as the beginning of a new plot. Everything is harmonious and understandable - the high pace of the narrative, vivid scenes that remind the viewer of the events of the first film.

Going to the cinema without revisiting the first part is not the best idea, many heroes can be forgotten.

The third hour of the film is a solid action scene, interrupted by dramatic events. This is a mixture of action and classic Hollywood drama, and it is executed at the highest level.

The main problem of the film is the second hour. The famous underwater scenes, which were announced almost as the main advantage of Avatar 2, manage to get bored several times. Undoubtedly, they are beautiful, but practically do not differ from each other. The endless shuffling of different heroes descending under the water makes you look at your watch.

Some scenes are annoying because they just copy the first part. A new Na'vi representative wants to ride a toruk? Well, he will suffer and almost die, but he will be able to subdue a powerful creature - everything is the same as in the first part, but a little shorter. Immediately, experienced heroes want to tame aquatic creatures resembling flying fish - and they do it in the same way as with the toruks in the first part, no innovation, but a waste of time. Perhaps in the third part, the heroes will tame rhinoceroses or giant ants in approximately the same way - the background will simply change.

Of course it turned out nice.

The water scenes are beautiful, but Cameron's best visuals are in the dark. Fire or red, pre-setting sun is used as lighting. And these episodes look majestic - they are few, but each of them is incredible. Cameron uses all the technical potential, so techniques are constantly changing - from wide-angle camera to dynamic the approach and distance of individual pieces of the screen to the flying camera (the speed of movement between the events of one battle colossal).

Although some decisions raise questions - not negative, but interest. There are scenes that combine scenes with different frame rates. Sometimes they just burst in the middle of a fight and look foreign, but interesting. The problem is that not all movie screens are capable of fully transmitting video, so only the lucky ones will be able to keep track of all the moves.

It is unlikely that James Cameron once suffered from low self-esteem, but in the second "Avatar" he confesses his love for himself several times. Visual references to the Titanic and Terminator appear at the most crucial moment of the picture, and they are a separate pleasure. It's good when you can just remember the brilliant scene that you shot yourself.

Predictability kills intrigue

The first two hours of the film can be divided into 10-12 scenes. Each of them is a brief guide to what the three acts are. For example, the hero wants to learn how to swim underwater for a long time. At first he fails, and everyone laughs at him, then he throws down the most difficult challenge and, almost dying, achieves the result. For some reason, Cameron decided to endow certain scenes with his ending.

That is why the second hour of the film is more like a few short films, united by one universe, and not a whole picture.

Gradually, you can get used not only to the sequence of events, but also to the pace, and then what is happening on the screen will become not so much a movie as formulas. Because of this, not only the “magic of the cinema” collapses, but also the intrigue - from the first minute of the new scene, you can understand how it will end and when it will happen.

Destroys the intrigue and focus on the action. If the hero has options to hit, shoot and explode, then he will choose each one in turn - even if there is no logic in this.

Heroes disappoint

The first appearance on the screen of each character explains what to expect from him in the future. Villains are always bad from the first frame, good people are generous from the first line. It is easy to predict those who will change sides in the conflict. To do this, you do not need to be a psychologist - just watch 3-4 films in your life.

The inner emptiness of the characters leads to bad dialogues. You can guess and replicas, and emotions, and jokes. With the latter in "Avatar" everything is really bad. The villain Miles Quaritch is an example of an anti-charismatic villain. Both the appearance and the “bites” that he releases through the word look too small. And James Cameron does not hesitate to use the heroes who died in the first part - you should get used to this at the very beginning of the film.

It is important to note that if the characters are flat, then they will still feel sorry for them - just sad scenes were invented by masters who were able to make drama from cooking scrambled eggs.

Deep thoughts are not worth looking for

Prior to the premiere, Cameron said that the film would be about protecting the environment. It is unlikely that this happened - at least the first part more convincingly accused humanity of destroying everything it reaches.

In the new "Avatar" Cameron does not delve into complex matters. Messages in the spirit of “Brothers, do not shoot each other” and “Family is sacred” can hardly be called original, but they are implemented in such a way as to simply glue events together.

Inconsistencies are annoying

If in the first part, earthlings came to Pandora for a great source of energy, which was inextricably linked with the forest, then in the second part another substance turns out to be a more important mineral (associated with sea). Given that not so many years have passed between the films, it looks strange.

It is also mentioned in passing that people need Pandora because it is no longer possible to live on Earth - they need to move. Yes, Cameron brings to the fore other plots and issues, but such things spoil the impression.

The likely sequel is scary

Cameron is not a magician, if only because he creates by cold calculation, and not by intuition. Even before the premiere, he said enough to treat his new picture negatively. For example, he quite calmly explains that the scripts and filming are arranged in such a way that if the second part fails, the third will be the last - and if successful, the audience will have 5 parts. By the way, a failure at the box office would be a kind of symptom that something is wrong with the modern audience - these are also the words of Cameron.

At the end of the film there was a completely ridiculous episode, hinting at the likely development of the next part. I would like to believe that this is a game with expectations, and not such a banal hint.

Avatar: The Way of the Water is a good sequel, but not Terminator 2 at all. Of course, James Cameron is a genius. Of course, Avatar: The Way of Water is a high-profile and important movie. However, it seems that if Cameron thought a little less about what a genius he is, then the new Avatar would be even better. Incredible visuals are the backdrop for boring conversations, and the desire to squeeze the most action out of any situation turns the film into a video game. Attempts to find something deep in the picture seem ridiculous - under all the explosions and shots they hide the simplest truths that tritely stick together the plot. However, Cameron still has time to show Pandora from a new side - perhaps the continuation will not even have to wait 13 years.