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| Photo of the protagonists from the original Avatar (2009) film. Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) and Neytiri (Zoë Saldaña) are a fortress. Photo courtesy of 20th Century Studios. |
Having finished streaming the original Avatar on
Disney+ and watching the sequel today, I am a lot mixed on the two films, and
it’s not just because they’re both practically three hours. The bad side is
that the first film shows hostility to indigenous people with military gold
digging for their powerful resources. On a side note, another form of hostility
for the 2009 film came towards protagonist Jake Sully, played by Sam
Worthington, for his paraplegia and human nature. As for the sequel, it was
like Aquaman and Black Panther in showing phobias against people
of different races, colored or not.
However, the film and its sequel made up for it with
beautiful portrayals of Pandora and other worlds, from scintillating lights at
night on Pandora to the breathtaking sea world in The Way of Water. And
differences and stubbornness aside, Jake and a few of the humans, Neytiri (played by Passaic-born Zoë Saldaña), and
beyond come together when it matters most. And killing of good family members
aside, as well, in the end, the films show the importance of family. And in
both films, there was great musical scoring by James Horner and tributes to his
score in the sequel to highlight the might of the alien worlds and the people.
Avatar seemed like a video game to me, but given how Hollywood
is too computer-based lately, there didn’t seem to be much groundbreaking stuff
in The Way of Water. Though the lacking in radical visuals and
similarities to other James Cameron or 20th Century Studios films, The
Way of Water did have some fun moments in kid adventures, alien powers, and
family pride in the midst of darkness. We can’t overlook the racial prejudice
issues and whatnot, but we can at least see that different races can come
together when they see they have common issues that can be resolved.
Overall, I give Avatar (2009) and The Way of Water
a “C”. The timing and indigenous mistreatments need to be changed, but I
give points for good exotic locations, colors, and music. If you’re reading
this, I hope you understand I’m recommending you see the film for both its good and bad parts, then see its worth for yourself.
