Avatar: Fire and Ash

“This world goes deeper than you think.”

Minor Spoilers

The prodigal sci-fi/fantasy franchise returns.

James Cameron has claimed that if Fire and Ash performed poorly, he would call it quits on these Avatar movies and finish the story in the form of novels. Unsurprisingly, he produced another enthralling hit that exploded at the box office in its first weekend alone. Another global billion dollar success. Another grace period in which fans of this franchise can be loud and proud, that will inevitably dissipate until all we can hear is the dedicated collection of detractors who insist that these movies are worthless and empty, and that becomes the dominating perspective. Until the next one rolls around, and the cycle starts all over again.

Jokes aside, though, I quite enjoyed this movie. Not to quite the same extent as the other two, perhaps. As with all the Avatar films, though, the good parts largely outweigh the bad.

Fire and Ash opens right on the heels of The Way of Water. Jake and Neytiri are grieving the loss of their son while still hiding out among the Metkayina with the rest of their children. And with Spider, the oddball son of the main antagonist, Miles Quaritch. Having narrowly survived his last encounter with the Sullys and the Na’vi, Quaritch — now as big and blue as the heroes — is eager to regain the advantage.

The action kicks off this time when Jake and his family are attacked by a new threat. Whereas the Avatar films thus far have mostly portrayed the Na'vi as being a sort of pure and virtuous species, this one reveals their uglier side with the introduction of the Mangkwan clan. These Na'vi are insanely aggressive, nihilistic raiders who viciously prey on others. Their leader is Varang, a fierce and deranged shaman with a penchant for pyromania. The Sully kids fall into danger once again, but in doing so discover something that could change everything, for the people of Pandora and their human invaders.

This is a franchise that's often accused of being all flash and no substance. Personally, I think the lack of a deep plot full of nuances tends to work in the case of these films. The first one, in particular, is meant to be an immersive sensory experience more than anything else. We're meant to hyperfixate on the sights and sounds, the nuances of action and the joys of observation. The archetypal characters in the cheesy sci-fi plot acts as our vehicle, but it's the ride that we're taken on that truly matters. With this third movie, Cameron and company do a lot more to flesh out the world and the ways in which the characters fit into it.

It's a double-edged sword, though. This one is heavier on plot, characterization and worldbuilding, but I imagine a lot of people won't be patient enough to humor or engage with lore in a story they're already conditioned to view as shallow.

And that's putting aside other more substantive problems the film has. There's several moments or scenes that could have either been cut, reshot or re-edited to be less awkward; the "I am also outcast" scene comes to mind. James Cameron's dialogue for the kids is still pretty weak. As with The Way of Water, many characters just sort of disappear and pop back in wherever they're needed during the climatic battle. Between Quaritch, Varang and the Mangkwan, General Ardmore and other returning RDA punks like Wainfleet, Mick Scoresby from the last movie and Parker Selfridge from the first, there's an overabundance of villains and most of them don't have a lot of screentime. And as with last time, this movie recycles a lot of the same shots, the same dialogue and the same plot beats from the previous films. Though, I do wonder if this is just how Cameron makes sequels to his own movies, because Terminator 2 followed a lot of the same beats as the first Terminator.

I'm willing to admit these movies have flaws. Overall, though, I dig it. I dig the world, the mechanics of it, and the characters and themes. How all are developed in small but very significant ways across each film while still retaining the same general essence that first movie was going for. The gorgeous and vibrant imagery, the distinct and impactful sound effects. The photorealistic look and texture of the creatures, and the superbly detailed performance capture work. And there's a lot of individual things that I enjoy about Fire and Ash, specifically.

I like how the Sullys are portrayed as this family of beautiful misfits. Jake, the human soldier gone very native. Neytiri, the Na'vi princess who mated with one of the "Sky People." Their children, Lo'ak and Tuk, who have a mix of Na'vi and human DNA thanks to their Avatar father. Kiri, the adopted daughter, whose difference puts her on a level beyond any of the other characters. Spider, the adopted son, who is human and related to the family's arch nemesis. There's even Payakan, the outcast Tulkun who became Lo'ak's spirit brother.

I like the way both Kiri and Spider's characters are developed. Not their personalities so much as their role in the story and what it means for the big picture. There's a pretty wild alien messiah arc building for Kiri, who is revealed to be a living embodiment of Eywa. This ties into Spider's storyline when Kiri uses her power to save his life early on, miraculously allowing him to breathe Pandora's air... and making him the RDA's number one target for their colonization agenda. And, of course, Kiri and Spider have a cutesy teen romance.

Romance is a recurring thing with James Cameron films and with Avatar, but it's usually between the heroes. For me, the best part of this movie was the romance that sparks between the two main villains, Quaritch and Varang. These are two very different flavors of bad guy, and their conflict turned connection was beautifully written and executed. Varang inviting the colonel into her hut, with them basically taking turns seducing each other, might be my favorite scene in the franchise so far. Doesn't hurt that Stephen Lang and Oona Chaplin's expressive performances combined with their colorful characters makes it hard to take your eyes off them when they're onscreen. They're a dark power couple to match the noble Jake and Neytiri, and it's awesome.

Once again, I really appreciate that Cameron gets a little edgier and riskier with this universe. We get certain scenes you don’t see in a lot of major, crowd-pleasing, CGI-heavy blockbusters like this: There's the Sully family’s grief over Neteyam's death which runs throughout the film, Neytiri’s xenophobic feelings toward Spider, Lo’ak’s guilt and suicidal ideation, Quaritch’s mounting identity issues. I was not expecting an Abraham and Isaac type scenario in an Avatar movie, I can tell you that. Nor did I expect to see Quaritch tripping balls on otherworldly psychedelics; did I mention how much I loved that scene?

I enjoy these movies to, more or less, the same degree I enjoy Star Wars or any of the dozens of comic book movies that are regularly distributed to the masses. It's mostly all lighthearted entertainment, heavy on the action, often trying to convey something close to a positive message. I don't go into these movies expecting anything too innovative or groundbreaking, apart from the visuals. I go expecting to be dazzled, amused, possibly even moved. To be enraptured in a stunning cinematic experience for a few hours. And with Avatar, this marks the third time I left the theater satisfied.

Miscellaneous:

* With Kiri's role in the sequels, the title "Avatar" is a lot closer to the original meaning of the word now.

* Usually it's Jake doing the narrating in these movies. This time it's his son, Lo’ak.

* New creatures: Tsyong, the “Deep Ones,” freaky deep-sea creatures that are sort of like a shark, a manta ray and a squid rolled into one. These things would feel right at home in an H.P. Lovecraft tale. Gnarly as hell.

* Not enough Kate Winslet and David Thewlis as Na’vi. Or Oona Chaplin as Varang, for that matter.

* Speaking of David Thewlis, the Wind Trader Na’vi kind of just disappear after the Mangkwan clan shows up. Were they all killed?

* It's established that Spider's birth mother was one of the RDA soldiers working under OG Quaritch in the first film, implying that she died in that film's climatic battle. It adds some additional pathos to Spider and Recom-Quaritch, but it also tells us that Quaritch's relationship with a younger warrior like Varang is nothing new for him. Well, aside from the whole Na'vi aspect.

* I mentioned that there were a bunch of villains here, but, hilariously, this movie hints at a greater or more senior villain. Someone called "The Chairman," Parker Selfridge's boss. Probably someone very high up in The RDA back on Earth, but not so high up that they can't be brought down by a combination of the power of Eywa, classic Hollywood action movie tactics and their own hubris.

* A few sequences are indirect recreations of ones that were left out of the theatrical cut of the first Avatar (but were included in the extended cut). A disgruntled scientist rebelling against the RDA in a huge construction vehicle, for instance. Or Quaritch taking a Na'vi psychedelic, which was supposed to be a big part of Jake's final initiation into Neytiri's tribe.

* Like the previous film, the obvious sequel hooks that come in toward the end would have felt more egregious to me if I didn't already know years in advance that Cameron planned to make 4-5 installments of Avatar.

* One of my favorite things from this franchise was Toruk, the giant orange dragon that is legendary among the Na'vi. It was absent from The Way of Water but returns in this movie, allowing Jake to be the alien demigod, Toruk Makto, once again. So dope.

Quotes:

Jake Sully: “So what am I supposed to do? I can’t run, I can’t fight. Oh, that’s right, Eywa will provide. Yeah? So where was Eywa? Where was Eywa when our son—”
Neytiri: “Jake! I am in this place where I have nothing. Not my people, not my forest, even my father’s bow is gone. All I have is my faith that this is the great mother’s plan.”
Jake: “You have this family.”

Varang: “I AM THE FIRE!”

Varang: (to Spider) “How do you still live, air breather?”
Kiri: “Because it is the will of Eywa.”
Varang: “… Eywa?”
Kiri: “Yes.”
Varang: (holds a knife to Spider’s throat) If I cut now, do you think Eywa will come to save him? Do you think?”
Kiri: “… No.”
Varang: “Your goddess has no dominion here.”

Quaritch: “It doesn’t matter. Doesn’t matter what color I am. I’m still playing for the same team.”
Jake: “You’ve been given new eyes, colonel. It’s time you opened them.”

Quaritch: (tripping) “That’s some strong shit…”

Varang: “Why are you here?”
Quaritch: “I’m here for you.”
Varang: “You wish to serve me?”
Quaritch: “I don’t serve anybody. I need you.”

Quaritch: “You want to spread your fire across the world? Yeah? I’ll give you guns, I’ll give you comms, RPGS. Oh, that’s strong magic. Command from a distance. Strike like lightning. The clans, as far as you can fly, they’ll bow down before Varang. You wanna take on Eywa? You need me.”
Varang: “… I see you.”
Quaritch: “Damn right, you do.”

Quaritch: (to Spider) “Here, I brought ya a burger.”

Kiri: “Leave my mother alone, you witch!”
Just had to get that Aliens reference in there, didn't they?

Hell of a fun time, once again. Four and a half out of five human-alien hybrids.

• Movie Reviews home