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As the 2009 film Avatar<\/b> concluded, there was a distinct sense of finality. The heroes had won the day, and a new era had dawned over the world of Pandora. It certainly made the 13 year-wait for its sequel much more bearable. Avatar: The Way of Water<\/b>, however, ends with several plot threads loosely strung about, so it\u2019s a mercy that the wait was only three years.<\/p>\n
The time since the last journey to Pandora may still have been too long for some audiences, something the film acknowledges in its first few moments with one character literally asking another to remind them of how the last movie ended. Once caught up, the help ends there. Avatar: Fire and Ash<\/b> has a lot of story to tell, and it can\u2019t hold your hand through all of it.<\/p>\n
If the first two films are about the escalation of a conflict, this is an all-out war movie. Losses have been felt and there\u2019s no talk of peace. In a world where films push the narrative of violence never being the answer, Fire and Ash<\/b> dares to fight. With that clear sense of purpose, its characters find themselves in one moral quandary after another. The Sully family is challenged more than they\u2019ve ever been, deciding how far is too far in a fight against oppression.<\/p>\n
The returning characters are going through turmoil, especially when faced against the femme fatale foe Varang, who thinks herself a deity reborn through flame. Her role in the film is infinitely compelling, especially when paired with Stephen Laing\u2019s Quaritch who gets more interesting with every film. What\u2019s perhaps most impressive is how Avatar: Fire and Ash<\/b> has so many dishes spinning in the air, and yet still manages to hold space for a legal drama for its whale-like warrior Payakan, with full sincerity and relevance to the overall plot.<\/p>\n
The hard-hitting moments land like gut punches, providing a stark contrast to the unbridled beauty of the world. It feels almost obligatory to say\u2014and yet it bears repeating\u2014 Fire and Ash<\/b> delivers the most impressive film landscapes, setting the bar for visual effects, with its only real competition being other Avatar<\/b> films. Nothing else comes close to this level of fidelity, with every frame inspiring awe.<\/p>\n
The characters are more complex, and the visuals are astonishingly improved, but familiar trappings remain. Avatar: Fire and Ash<\/b> includes moments of plot contrivance, cheesy dialogue, and a lack of nuance, once again delivering anti-colonial, anti-military, and environmentally conscious messages. If these aspects bothered you in the past, it\u2019s unlikely the film will convert you into a fan.<\/p>\n
With Avatar: Fire and Ash<\/b> even its constraints entertain. You\u2019ll be challenged to find another movie that can make three hours feel like 90 minutes without some convenient plotting. The pacing of the film is expertly done with its stupendous action sequences filled with stakes you didn\u2019t even realise you were invested in. If this is the final Avatar<\/b> film, cinema would be all the poorer for it.<\/p>\n
Rating: <\/b>Big Screen Watch<\/p>\n
Damian Levy is a film critic and podcaster for Damian Michael Movies. <\/i> <\/p>\n