No matter what you think of James Cameron’s Avatar movies, their technical ambitions are undeniable. Cameron developed his own camera system to shoot the first Avatar in 3D, but since most of the actors were digitally captured, he also had the freedom to construct scenes with a virtual camera after they were physically shot. For Avatar: The Way of Water, which arrived a whopping 13 years after the first film, Cameron also leaned into high frame rate footage and new ways of modeling natural fluid dynamics.
Even though the third entry, Avatar: Fire and Ash, is coming just a few years after the last sequel, I still expected Cameron to deliver some sort of new feat to wow audiences. He could have found a smoother way to employ high frame rate footage, so the film wasn’t jarringly shifting between traditional 24 fps scenes and smoother 48 fps action shots. Maybe we’d see more natural interactions between live actors and virtual characters and environments (it sure is hard to beat Edie Falco suited up in a wicked exoskeleton in the last film, though).
Instead, Avatar: Fire and Ash is just another Avatar film — it doesn’t push any boundaries, narratively or technically. And without any technical achievements to lean on, the narrative issues inherent with Avatar become all the more glaring.
It’s still basically a story that places a clueless white dude in the middle of a fight between indigenous and colonialist powers. (Improbably, he’s crowned one of the Na’vi’s best warriors!). The script from Cameron and his co-writers (Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver, continuing their work from The Way of Water) often hits identical beats to a low-rent CW show. And perhaps worst of all, the stakes of the story haven’t really changed much. Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) and his family are still fighting off the militarized Resource Development Association (RDA), Col. Quaritch still holds a grudge from being killed (twice now!) and from the Sullies raising his Tarzan-like son, Spider (Jack Champion).
There’s an attempt to cast the Na’vi in a new light with the villainous Ash People, who spend their days attacking and stealing from other tribes. While most Na’vi people work cooperatively with other clans and share their reverence for Eywa, the collective consciousness of Pandora, the Ash People resent it for not saving their villages from natural disasters. Despite a deliciously evil performance by Oona Chaplin (Charlie Chaplin’s grandaughter!) as Varang, the Ash People don’t amount to much more than “evil Na’vi.” When they inevitably work together with humans to attack other Na’vi, it doesn’t feel surprising in the least. Honestly, it’s a tad insulting.
Avatar: Fire and Ash (20th. Century Studios)
Perhaps we’ve been spoiled by Cameron’s last few films, but Avatar: Fire and Ash ultimately feels like more of the same. Even its massive final battle feels like a retread, since it’s set in the same ocean environment as The Way of Water and is once again focused on protecting psychic alien whales from humans. Cameron does let his action chops shine throughout the film, but after a certain point, trying to enjoy those sequences is like trying to eat a family-sized carton of ice cream by yourself. You’ll enjoy it for a little while, but eventually you’re left with a massive headache and sugar hangover.
It’s clear that James Cameron has built the Avatar franchise to explore everything he loves: Stories about protecting the environment, fighting against capitalist excess and kicking tons of ass. Parts of Avatar 4 have already been shot, and that film is expected to arrive in 2029. But I’m hoping the 71-year-old filmmaker eventually finds his way out of Pandora. He’s co-directing the Billie Eilish concert film, Hit Me Hard and Soft: The Tour, so that’s a start. But I’m eager to see what other new worlds he can dream up.
