SPLASH OF THE TITANS...
Visually-stunning sci-fi sequel pits the Na’vi against humans once more
OSCAR-WINNING writerdirector James Cameron is passionately dedicated to the adrenaline rush of the big screen experience and films don’t come much bigger – or more expensive – than Avatar: The Way Of Water.
His long-awaited follow up to 2009’s Avatar, the highest-grossing film of all time, sees a return to Pandora for the opening salvo of a series of sequels, which expand horizons from land and forest to water, immersing audiences in new vistas – especially in the eye-popping 3D and IMAX formats.
It’s a dizzying sensory overload that can’t be replicated at home on a streaming service; a jawdropping, photo-realistic spectacle that harnesses new software and technology to enable performance capture underwater for the first time.
Every rock, leaf and minuscule element of background detail feels exquisitely real and when characters venture beneath waves, Cameron and cinematographer Russell Carpenter play beautifully with shimmering light including a bombastic action set piece that revisits the swirling, water-logged terror of Titanic.
Marine veteran Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) permanently inhabits his Na’vi body as Toruk Makto, protector of the Omatikaya clan on Pandora. Peace has been restored after
the battle with the Resources Development Administration (RDA) for control of the precious mineral unobtainium.
Jake is settled with his wife Neytiri (Zoe Saldana), their three biological children and adopted daughter Kiri (Sigourney Weaver).
Orphaned human child Spider (Jack Champion) remained on Pandora in the aftermath of war and is an ally of the Sullys.
A flash in the sky announces the arrival of another raft of warlike earthlings – and this time, they’re not just after a mineral but the planet itself.
And a mission to kill or capture Sully is spearheaded by his old adversary, Colonel Miles Quaritch (Stephen Lang), whose mind has been implanted in a Na’vi avatar.
The Sullys seek sanctuary in a remote island realm inhabited by their amphibious cousins, the Metkayina, who are ruled by Kate Winslet’s matriarch.
The refugees learn diving skills from Tonowari and Ronal’s children Tsireya (Bailey Bass) and Aonung (Filip Geljo), forge spiritual bonds with sentient whalelike creatures called the tulkun, and prepare for the next battle with avaricious human invaders.
Avatar: The Way Of Water springs a few leaks in terms of plot and dialogue, however, it is an unabashedly splashy and bombastic survival thriller that lives up to the cacophonous hype. It surpasses the original, delivering a more satisfying experience for the heart to match bountiful delights for the ears and eyes.
I cried three times and was too engrossed to be troubled by a 192-minute running time.
In cinemas Friday