They are back, Neytiri and Jack, the blue lovers. The latter was once a man living by proxy in the skin of an avatar designed in the image of the Na’vis, a people living on the planet Pandora, exploited by humans for a precious ore. It was in 2154, when the Earth had been emptied of its resources. Ten years have passed since the revolt led by Neytiri and Jack, who is now and forever a Na’vi. Despite yesterday’s victory, the threat hangs over Pandora again: damned humans! Here are the spouses and their numerous offspring welcomed, far from the forest, by Na’vis living in harmony with the ocean. Thirteen years after the megasuccess ofAvatar, Has James Cameron succeeded in surpassing himself?
Visually, certainly: in IMAX 3D, Avatar: The Way of Water (Avatar. The way of the water) deploys a universe worth some US$400 million that is even more immersive than in 2009.
Essentially, this second part obeys the tacit rule of sequels, namely: more of everything. Thus we are entitled to more action, more characters, more sub-plots, more locations and, of course, more special effects, effects surpassing those, already innovative, of the first feature. footage.
At the heart of the film is the same environmental message as before. In this regard, James Cameron has been a convinced activist for years, like one of his idols, the brilliant animation filmmaker Hayao Miyazaki (Princess Mononoke, The castle in the Sky), whose influence was very — too much for the taste of many — noticeable in the first Avatar.
Already in terminatorhe addressed the question of the end of humanity through these visions of a devastated future dominated by war robots once created by man. Terminator 2 is for the account an eloquent example of a suite offering the public “more of everything”. One could even add to the lot, although Cameron had not directed the first, Alienswhich multiplies monsters, trepidations and explosions in a context of intergalactic colonization that has gone wrong – a bit like in Avatarhere.
Here again in a recurring motif, the director, who in the majority of his films has designed or contributed to many technical advances, presents technology as a double-edged sword capable of losing as much as saving people. The sequel toAvatar continues in this line, but suggests a rejection of the science of humans in favor of a science of the elements: according to the scientist Grace Augustine (Sigourney Weaver), whom we briefly review, the planet Pandora would form a “whole” which think, feel and act in concert.
It’s a safe bet that this hypothesis will be explored further in later sections.
Spectacular special effects
As in 2009, the spectacular special effects are the main reason to see the film. Omnipresent, they nevertheless seem invisible: the vast panoramas in the background, the vegetal and underwater textures (the aquatic scenes are really magnificent), the grain of the skin of the Na’vi… Everything is of a palpable reality.
Regarding the Na’vis, the performers once again lent themselves with ease to the exercise of capturing movements in order to confer a hyperauthentic fluidity of gestures and expressions.
The story in all this? After being criticized for the somewhat simplistic (and borrowed) plot of his first opus, it’s as if James Cameron had wanted to go in the opposite direction by increasing secondary stories and stakes, hence this impression of scattering . Soldiers on the warpath, Na’vi parents, children and teenagers (very archetypal): everyone seems to be playing in their own film. One of the sons seems to be playing in a remake na’vi from Free Willy (My friend Willy)!
Finally, belatedly, there will be convergence in the outcome. The worst part is that, despite the catch-all side of the scenario, it turns out to be very predictable.
Cameron also borrows plenty of narrative elements from his past films, Aliens and to titanic in particular (in the end, it’s embarrassing). Huge coincidences, like those two occasions where the children of Neytiri and Jack end up in the wrong place at the wrong time, just as the vile Colonel Miles Quaritch (back, and still as cartoonish) is there to capture them, make your eyes roll. to the sky. Oh, and there is this character whose identity we will keep silent who, without warning, develops and masters providential superpowers.
More talkative, more corny
The film is also more talkative than usual for Cameron who, here and there, succumbs to preaching. He insists, highlights, overexplains the message through the mouths of his characters, narrates in voice-over through Jack… There is a lot of talk and redundant episodes: the conflict between the perfect eldest son and the rebellious youngest , the tension between the latter and his father, Jack (Sam Worthington): already seen, agreed.
And what about the fearsome Neytiri (Zoe Saldaña)? Her prodigious archery skills are called upon at the beginning and at the end, period. In the meantime, she has turned into a good mother and wife who listens to her man — the film gives a lot of themes like family honor, dad is right and chief (not chief) of clan: disconcerting, and old-fashioned, coming from a filmmaker champion of emancipated and badass female characters. In order to make sure that we have understood correctly, Cameron makes Jack declare, in conclusion: “The role of a father is to protect his family. What does it matter if, in this case, it is the mother who is the best warrior.
As for the longer than three hours, seriously, once all is said, a two hour movie would have sufficed.
Since James Cameron had announced that there would be four sequels to Avatar, we could have feared a fishtail ending. However, the director offers an opus that closes satisfactorily.