2025 | PG-13 | 197 mins. | Directed by James Cameron
In 2009, the first Avatar was released and was met with much acclaim. From the critics to general audiences everyone had Avatar fever. The movie stands as the highest grossing movie of all time and was one of the biggest pioneers for 3D technology in theaters.
Jump thirteen years later to 2022 and Avatar: The Way of Water is released. The sequel manages to stay true to what the original set forth and it even improves upon the first movie making for an even more entertaining movie. Despite not quite reaching the same box office numbers, The Way of Water still managed to become the third highest grossing movie of all time and is currently the highest grossing movie of the decade.
Now enters the third movie in the franchise, Avatar: Fire and Ash. Picking up right where the second movie left off, Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) and Neytiri (Zoe Saldana) are dealing with the effects of losing their son Neteyam. Their son Lo'ak is most affected as he feels Neteyam's death is on his hands. Colonel Quaritch (Stephen Lang) is still on the hunt for Jake and will do anything in his power to catch him.
A new tribe, the Ash People, led by the fierce Varang (Oona Chaplin) becomes a new threat against Jake and his family. The Ash People are a brutal tribe that have a shoot first ask questions later mentality. As the conflicts on Pandora continue to rise Jake, Neytiri and their family must band together to protect their tribe.
Being the third movie in such a large franchise, Fire and Ash has a lot to live up to. In many ways, Fire and Ash stacks up well with the other two movies. Right off the bat the visuals are still top notch. They may even be better than the previous movies. From the first frame the movie transports the audience right into Pandora. The world of Pandora is nothing short of amazing to see. Seeing this in 3D makes the world come to life even more. Add in a brilliant sound design and you really feel engulfed sitting in the theater.
James Cameron is behind the camera once again and continues to prove why he is one of the all-time best directors. He makes this world feel real and puts so much detail into each aspect of the setting. The cast here are all still playing their characters well. This series has never been known for having great acting, but everyone is doing a serviceable job.
Sam Worthington and Zoe Saldana continue their great chemistry together. Both perform well in these roles and here it is no different. Stephen Lang once again steals every scene he's in as Colonel Quaritch. The biggest addition to the cast is Oona Chaplin who plays Varang, the leader of the Ash People. She is downright nasty throughout the movie and is a welcome addition to the lineup of villains.
The movie does a good job at bringing back some characters who had larger roles in the first movie but were shortchanged in the second. While still not anything significant, it is nice to see Giovanni Ribisi, Joel David Moore, Dileep Rao and CCH Pounder get more screen time than the last time around.
With all the good there is here, the movie isn't without its faults. One of the biggest faults comes in the character of Spider. He was introduced in the previous movie and went on to become one of the most disliked characters of the franchise. This time around a large portion of the movie is dedicated to his character. While the character himself makes for a somewhat interesting dynamic to the plot, the actor playing him just doesn't seem to do the character justice.
Clocking in at three hours and seventeen minutes this is the longest movie in the series so far. While the movie is entertaining for a large majority of the time it does get to a point where it starts to feel like it's overstaying its welcome. There are some filler scenes that could be trimmed or cut out and it would make things feel just a bit tighter.
At its worst, there are one too many moments that feel a little too been there done that. A lot of the story tends to hit similar beats of the previous movie right down to characters ending up in almost the exact same situations. A lot of the action, while entertaining and visually stunning, feels all too familiar. By the end of everything it's easy to figure out how things are going to go.
Despite the issues it has, Avatar: Fire and Ash is still a treat to behold. The visual effects alone are worth the price of admission. While it does come up short of the first two movies this is still a solid addition to the franchise. It is one that should be seen on the big screen and one of the few instances where seeing it in 3D is also a must.
Grade: B+
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