Avatar The Way of Water Review: Critics Call James Cameron's Sci-Fi Sequel a Beautiful But Flawed Spectacle!

The first reviews for Avatar: The Way of Water are out, and critics seem to be a bit split among themselves. While many are blown away by the experience of it, many think that the sequel has extremely similar issues to the first film as well with the movie not having a dramatic depth. However, the one constant thing is that those who saw it can't get enough of the visuals. Lets take a look at what they are saying. Avatar The Way of Water Review: Early Reactions Call James Cameron's Sci-Fi Sequel a 'Visual Spectacle', Say its 'Bigger' and 'Better' Than the First One.

Watch the Trailer:

The Hollywood Reporter: I missed the heart-pounding suspense and tribal themes of James Horner’s score for the 2009 film, but composer Simon Franglen capably maintains the tension where it counts. Even more than its predecessor, this is a work that successfully marries technology with imagination and meticulous contributions from every craft department. But ultimately, it’s the sincerity of Cameron’s belief in this fantastical world he’s created that makes it memorable.

The Verge: It’s both funny and cringe-inducing to watch Jake Sully unironically pontificate about the dangers of the invading “sky people” with a straight face while his alien dreadlocks are blowing ever so slightly in the wind. It’s the sort of visual that perfectly encapsulates everything that was wild (read: exhausting) about the original Avatar and feels reflective of how uninterested Cameron is in elevating the franchise beyond a rather base and fetishistic power fantasy.

Variety: Cameron, a four-decade veteran of bravura action logistics, has lost none of his mojo. His combat sequences are miraculously sustained, and he brings off a real coup in the relationship that Lo’ak (Britain Dalton), Jake and Neytiri’s second son, forms with one of the whales, who becomes, in a great scene, the centerpiece of a surprise attack. On the other hand, where the culminating sequence of the original “Avatar” was that astounding spectacle of the Na’vi swooping this way and that on their flying psychedelic griffins, the climax of “The Way of Water” is more heavy-duty, with bullets, apocalyptic fire and a collapsing ship that makes several of the characters look like they got trapped in one of the disaster sequences of Cameron’s “Titanic.”

IndieWire: Does it matter if “The Way of Water” doesn’t elicit the same response when I watch it at home? Not really — I know that it won’t. Does it matter that Cameron is continuing to “save” the movies by rendering them almost unrecognizable from the rest of the medium? His latest sequel would suggest that even the most alien bodies can serve as proper vessels for the spirits we hold sacred. For now, the only thing that matters is that after 13 years of being a punchline, “going back to Pandora” just became the best deal on Earth for the price of a movie ticket.

The Wrap: After some pacing issues in the first act and some odd story decisions in the second, the film’s breathtaking climax completely sneaks up on you. You might think the film has a lot more twists and turns to go, since there’s lot of running time left, but Cameron stages the finale of “Avatar: The Way of Water” like an incredible, ever-evolving action sequence where locations, dangers and imminent threats shift dramatically, sometimes on a dime. It’s like watching a tidal wave start miles in the distance as a tiny bump in the ocean. By the time it crests, whatever the film’s many other flaws may be, we are invested, and we are ultimately rewarded with a truly spectacular, awe-inspiring finale.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Dec 14, 2022 10:36 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).