Resplendent visuals that are, as everyone will say, truly technical marvels. Cameron and his crew have really made a world of 90% CGI and human-esque characters that feel engrossing, expressive, and never questioned for their weight, tangibility, or believability. With his expansion of the Pandora world, he has topped the original as a cinematic craftsman.
But, as with the first one, it isn’t the visual spectacle that is questioned but the content of the film’s character and that is where this one is found lacking again. Part of the problem is that these films are sooo long and story sooo simplistic that the dazzle wears off and you can’t not see all of the cracks & conundrums. Having just seen the original again before this one, I would probably have to say that I think that story, warts and all, is a richer one. There are a few reasons for that. One of those is that it is a “welcome to the world” hero’s journey - it is simple but effective. In this one we are given a similar retread, this time being taught about the sea and replacing the lone hero with a fairly nondescript familial ensemble. It hits similar beats to the first but with the kids experiencing those moments in a seen-it-before tropey way.
We also get our new special substance brain juice that clumsily highlights another environmental raping, that of whaling. It’s an easy enemy that they accentuate well, but it is just as dumb and almost as unexplained as the Unobtanium of before (also, they don’t care about that anymore soooo I guess it never really mattered. Sky Peoples’ bad.).This is just one of a dozen glaring holes that light fire in your brain as you watch. Here are a few:
Why did none of the Na'vi plan for the humans eventual return? They return and catch them just as off guard as the last time.
Why are the human’s not attacked when they arrive? You know you need to nip that in the bud.
The need to terraform the planet to make the air breathable is completely unexplored. 1. Why? And 2. Apparently that doesn’t matter because there are multiple times that people are out in the open and don’t have air masks on, causing no problems. Huh?
How did someone find Amrita originally, especially if they seemed to be gone for many years? And if it is being harvested as much as it seems, why do none of the Na'vi know or care?
I don’t understand the Tukun, their anatomy, their tattoos, or their ability to speak. It is all cool, but why wouldn’t there be more symbiotic activity if they were as advanced as is shown?
Maybe the biggest question is the injection of another messianic figure. Last time it was Jake, the chosen one, highlighted & protected by the planet/spirit tree/deity, but this time we have a new one, complete with virgin birth, ecstatic visions, and magic powers. But, nobody seems to care or really question any of it. It is obvious that this is a likely set up for the next sequel or 3, but this is big stuff that needed some exploration.
There is so much of recycling and re-dabbling in his fascinations here. What doesn’t need any more exploration is Cameron’s twisted fascination with the military industrial complex. Though positioned as the enemy, there is a clear affinity for their tech, their culture, and their action fodder potential. Similarly is his necessity to imitate *coughEXPLOITcough* indigenous cultures when constructing his fantasy peoples. In the last movie, the use of First Nations/Native American heritage was saturating the palette of the the forest people. This time they felt some compunction to blanket the water peoples with Maori *ahem* inspiration to fulfill his quota of Native otherness. Lastly, he keeps coming back to it and building on it, much like he came back to many of his movies here. There is plenty of Aliens again, quite a bit of The Abyss/his underwater docs at play here, some distinct scenes/action from Terminator 2, and a whole heaping helping of Titanic. I guess when you have some bangers before that represents loves of yours you might be drawn to them again, but I couldn’t help but keep recalling these films as I am being pulled out of Pandora.
All in all, its some riveting & resonant action enfolded in a wondrous on-screen dazzle, but like its predecessor is weighed down by a plot and story that misses the forest for the trees. There is a lot of effort and some ingenious world building/exploration here, but its simplistic and downright dumb at times. A special screening experience that might get a bit tedious with its length, stupefying with its plainness, and provide exactly what you would expect from an Avatar film.