Avatar: The Way of Water Review: More of the same just longer with water

James Cameron‘s Avatar: The Way of Water is a breathtaking visual spectacle. From action set pieces that set new standards to sensational underwater sequences, Avatar: The Way of Water is easily the best-looking film of all time.

Unfortunately, The Way of Water struggles to deliver a story to match Cameron’s visual feast. The plot is simple but works well enough in comparison to the dialogue, characters and performances. Jake Sully and Neytiri’s romance has blossomed into a family. They have 5 children now. Two biological sons and a young daughter. They’ve also adopted a Navi-human hybrid, Kiri. She is essentially the reincarnated version of Sigourney Weaver’s Dr. Grace from the first film. There is also a human boy nicknamed Spider that lives among them.

General Quartich is reincarnated and resumes his quest to take out Jake and his family. In order to protect his family, Jake decides to leave the mountains and forest to start over.

The shallow waters of Avatar: The Way of Water

The biggest hindrance in Avatar: The Way of Water is Jake Sully. He is a terrible protagonist and Sam Worthington delivers an equally flat performance in the lead role. Throughout the film, Jake refuses to listen to his wife, he orders his sons around but shows little compassion and is a terrible strategist. There’s even a scene where Jake talks for Neytiri. She’s unwilling to give up a part of who she is just for the safety of a new tribe. Jake stops his wife from continuing to speak, apologizes for her to the village chief and literally says she’s tired from the long journey.

Zoe Saldaña delivers the best performance in The Way of Water by a mile. Unfortunately, she plays second fiddle throughout the film to Jake when she should be the lead of these films.

Jake and Neytiri’s children don’t fare much better. Neteyam is the oldest. He’s essentially the good brother who tries to set a good example for his brother and sisters. Lo’ak is the younger brother and he’s the family screwup. Kiri is actually Dr. Grace’s daughter reincarnated as Navi. She’s the outcast. Kiri actually has some compelling moments, but Weaver voicing a teenage girl simply doesn’t work. Tuktirey is the youngest child and she exists to be rescued and that’s it.

Stephen Lang is pretty fun as Quaritch but really doesn’t strike any new ground with the character.

The world of Pandora is full of creative elements, just not with any speaking characters. Even Academy Award winner Kate Winslet fails to deliver a compelling performance.

Rediscovering Pandora

Despite the character and dialogue issues, Pandora is a gorgeous setting. The Metkayina Clan introduces Sully’s family to the waters of Pandora. Sully’s family is adept with flying but must connect with sea creatures in order to travel underwater. These sequences are visually appealing although aren’t too different from when Jake was learning to fly in the first film.

The final act of Avatar: The Way of Water is tremendous. Great action sequences and an emotionally affecting performance by Saldaña allow the film to reach a stirring conclusion that sets up a more action-packed third film.

Avatar: The Way of Water Final Thoughts

Avatar: The Way of Water deserves a better story and dialogue to match the unprecedented visuals. Simon Franglen‘s score matches the late great James Horner‘s score in the first film. There’s enough greatness in the world to return to Pandora. Here’s hoping the story shifts focus toward Neytiri going forward.

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