«Avatar: The Way of Water». Think you’ve seen it all? Think again

First off, my review contains no spoilers. Any information stated here is featured in trailers that have already been released.

«Breathe, Luca. Breathe.» An otherworldly voice speaks to me. «Wake up,» it gently says.

«I don’t want to,» I answer. «Just give me a bit more time on Pandora, fifth moon of gas giant Polyphemus. Let me linger a little longer with the ancient seafarers. By the three brothers, mighty rocks defying the stormy seas. With the Tulkun, giant whale-like creatures, moving here and there like nomads. Please…»

But the voice – reality – is becoming impatient. Suddenly, the glaring lights come on, bringing me back to the movie theatre I had long since left behind. In front of me, the credits roll: «Avatar: The Way of Water,» the sequel to «Avatar», has ended, and I still don’t quite know how to put what I’ve seen into words.

What «Avatar: The Way of Water» is all about

After the Sky People were defeated by the Na’vi – Pandora’s deadly forest-dwelling natives – peace seemed to have settled: humans had returned to earth. Their days of exploiting the distant moon for its valuable raw materials were over. At least that’s what Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) and Neytiri (Zoe Saldana) thought. They have a family now: two boys, a girl and an adopted daughter, Kiri (Sigourney Weaver). All seems well.

The peace lasted for over a decade. But the Earth is dying, and humanity needs a new home. Equipped with new technologies, weapons and armies, the Sky People return to Pandora, more relentless than ever. And with them an old enemy, back from the dead.

Back home, to Pandora

One second. That’s all director James Cameron needs to return me to Pandora. I had long since forgotten what it felt like to set out for this strange yet familiar world, all the way back in 2009. Since then, I’d never really paid attention to all the planned sequels. Initially, the first sequel was slated for 2014. Then 2017. 2018. 2020. But then the pandemic hit –

it seemed as if «Avatar» had never existed. And if it had, the sequels would be too little, too late. The world has long since moved on. Marvel and DC dominate the world of cinematic spectacles – outside of superhero film adaptations, the masses can hardly be lured to the big screen any more.

But then, that one second.

Did I think that seeing the Hallelujah Mountains would still blow my mind 13 years later? Definitely not. I’ve seen basically everything that could surprise me on the big screen anyway.

And yet there I sit, marvelling at the mighty masses of rock still hovering majestically above the surface of the moon. Root systems, lianas and shrubs grow and seemlessly blend the rocks with the vegetation on the ground. In the background, I hear the old familiar musical theme, originally written by the late film composer James Horner – «Iknimaya – The Path to Heaven». Goosebumps. It’s as if I’d never left. It’s 2009 again. And all the wonders of cinema are still ahead of me.

It almost brings a tear to my eye.

A director and his vision

James Cameron’s script – Cameron doesn’t just direct his films, he also writes them himself – doesn’t mess around. «Avatar: The Way of Water» contains more than enough action. To this end, the arrival of the Sky People marks the beginning of a chase that lasts the entire film. It’s clever. The film may seem interminably long with a running time of 3 hours and 12 minutes. But because we as viewers understand exactly where a situation is headed at all times, we can’t help but stay glued to the story. Even when the film takes its time to expand on new tribes, cultures and characters to us.

This in particular is really worth it. I said the same about the Star Wars series «Andor» in the digitec Podcast: if you don’t care about the characters, you won't feel the suspense. But studios are always trying to cut down films that are supposedly too long because they don’t trust us to stay focused for more than two hours. Action sells, apparently. That’s why it’s often quiet moments, when little aside from vital character development occurs, that fall victim to editing. Yet the plot suffers in turn.

However, with «Titanic» and «Avatar», James Cameron has been responsible for two of the most successful movies of all time. He’s been big enough to do whatever he wants without any studio interfering for years now. Sony even built him a completely new film camera – the Venice Camera System – to shoot «The Way of Water». That’s how much weight his name carries in the industry. No wonder. «Avatar» also triggered the first big cinema 3D boom in 2009, which has since petered out. With the associated ticket surcharges, it provided cinema operators and studios with a lot of additional revenue. You don’t forget something like that.

Cameron made clever use of his blank cheque. Starting with a film longer than most studios would allow. Not even Disney, who only a few years ago bought 20th Century Fox and with it the film rights to «Avatar». And yet, «The Way of Water» is half an hour longer than its predecessor. That, too, is indicative of Cameron’s standing. This extra time pays off, delving deeper into Pandora’s characters and mythology. Especially at the end, the big showdown. Don’t worry, I won’t spoil. But I suffered through – and enjoyed – every single second of it. Now that’s what I call storytelling.

The deep blue sea, Cameron’s great love

But what can a sequel 13 years in the making possibly offer? Well, surprisingly much, actually. But I should’ve known better. Cameron wouldn’t be Cameron if he had spent all that time working on the story, camera systems, algorithms and diving training for his cast, only to end up with more of the same.

Admittedly, «The Way of Water» doesn’t reinvent the wheel. However, it offers much more than just an obvious rehash of «Pocahontas» and «Dancing with Wolves», as the first part did. The family dynamics surrounding Jake, Neytiri and their children in particular give the sequel a much more mature feel. It even offers a surprise or two. Drama. And romance… At least a little bit.

On top of that, there’s the underwater worlds. Oh boy. About a third of the way through the film, just when I felt I’d had my fill of the beautiful, but ultimately already familiar rainforests of Pandora, Cameron changes the rules. Or rather, the setting. How on earth all of this was created digitally is beyond me. The water is too realistic. The shore too dreamlike, as is the spray and the beaches. Light breaking against the surface, or the edge between sea and sky when characters gaze at it from below. Plus the textures of the rocks and the colourful coral reefs. But more than anything else, it’s the vivid sea creatures in all their shapes and colours, as they elegantly roam the oceans, excitedly squeaking like whales or dolphins. Everything is so full of love and attention to detail, it’s almost unbelievable.

«What’s the matter with you? Since when have you become so sappy?», I think to myself. For a second time, the force of the entire kaleidoscope nearly brings tears of joy to my eyes.

There’s no doubt that technically, «The Way of Water» is simply breathtaking, an almost triumphant achievement in digital effects in every single shot. However, I’ve now found the first thing about this movie that doesn’t surprise me: the full-on pure beauty of the seas. After all, James Cameron’s love of water runs through his entire career. Starting with the fantasy underwater thriller «The Abyss», through «Titanic» and his subsequent diving trips to the first «Avatar» movie.

Let’s recap. Perhaps «Avatar’s» most fascinating aspect lies in its rainforests. Especially at night, when all its living beings came together to create a bioluminescent natural spectacle familiar from deep-sea exploration, just on the surface – we’d never seen that before.

In «The Way of Water», Cameron seems to have brought to life his own dream world, and perhaps our own as well. In fact, he and his creative team were given no financial limits whatsoever. The film is said to have cost $250 million, and you can see every single cent. It feels like 60 per cent of the runtime takes place underwater. If not more. Just for starters, Cameron and his special effects team had to tinker for years to make the motion and performance capture system suitable for underwater use. Only then could actors’ performances be transferred to a digital counterpart.

Verdict: the most beautiful spectacle of the year

«Avatar: The Way of Water» could’ve gone many different ways. Repetitive. Uninspired. Unnecessary. Especially when considering how much time has passed since the first part. Too long a pause between movies in the same franchise often has a debilitating effect when it comes to replicating the magic of the predecessor. The «Hobbit» trilogy failed because of this. Or worse… «Matrix: Resurrection.»

But James Cameron is known for taking notoriously long breaks between his films – there were already twelve years between «Titanic» and «Avatar» and six between «Terminator 2» and «Titanic» (admittedly, he also made the thriller «True Lies» in between). However, Cameron is never inactive. He uses breaks to bring the film industry and its technological standards up to speed. It’s the only way he can realise his visions.

And with «The Way of Water», he’s clearly nailed it. Visually, the movie isn’t just stunning. It’s the most beautiful cinematic spectacle I’ve ever seen. Anyone who doesn’t watch it in cinemas – in 3D if possible – has only themselves to blame. On top of that, the sequel has even progressed on a narrative level, delving deeper into Pandora’s mythologies than ever before. In this respect, the first part was still a bit poor. «Avatar: The Way of Water,» however, hasn’t just met my expectations, but exceeded them. And ever since I began writing this review, a single thought has been on my mind:

I want to go back. Back to Pandora.

«Avatar: The Way of Water» starts in cinemas on December 14. Runtime: 192 minutes. Age rating: 12.