RATING: GIVE ME A DOCUMENTARY ABOUT PANDORA
Release: 2022
Director: James Cameron
Cast: Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Britain Dalton
Avatar: The Way of Water is incredibly stunning. From beginning to end each frame is filled with immaculate detail and beauty. And I don’t believe there was any doubt that Cameron would be able to come through on that aspect of the film.
The only problem is that the visuals seem to come first and the storytelling second. And that isn’t necessarily a bad thing at all, just a different approach to filmmaking. It just means that the plot, characters and dialogue suffer as a result.
There are still some strong thematic elements that are interwoven throughout the film. But the plot is simple and still not done as effectively as it could. In my opinion, Cameron should have just thrown out plot completely and just focus on the visuals.
Which he does do in the middle third (which is my favourite part of the film) where it feels more like a documentary about Pandora rather than a fiction film. The dialogue is cringey and cliche a lot of the time, and this is not helped by some poor acting as well as some of the characters being painfully one dimensional.
I couldn’t help wondering what a silent film about Pandora would have been like. Communicating character and story through action, music and visuals (letting the visuals shine without any distractions.)
Despite all these imperfections the film is still a joy to watch. It makes you think and it makes you feel and I can’t wait to spend another three hours inside Pandora.
(End Credit Review Rules:
1. I watch a movie at the cinemas and start reviewing the film as soon as the end credits start. As soon as the end credits finish I have to stop writing.
2. I’m allowed to go over what I’ve written once just to make sure it makes sense. And that’s it.
3. I will rate the movie according to how likely I am to watch again.
DISCLAIMER: These reviews will be my unprocessed thoughts and are likely to change after due consideration.)
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