Avatar: The Way of Water (James Cameron, December 16, 2022) Movie • Page 18

Triple post but just saw there are screenings after 11 pm. Imagine seeing this and walking out to the sunrise. Wild.

 

the reunion with jake and ikran is pretty stunning

 

The HFR complaints are real to me. Made the action sequences look really bad, but man I could have watched the nature documentary stuff for so long. Wasn't as high on the 3rd act as everyone else was.

 

Man this was nuts

Some dialogue was cringe though.

Shit predictable story

But goddamn absolutely insane visuals. I liked the higher frame rate stuff but switching back and forth was distracting.

Sigourney Weaver's voice was also not the best choice.


her "father" is totally the mother tree, right?

 

Just saw it. Quick thoughts.

1. Disagree on any story issues, but im a firm believer that its fine to retread on familiar themes if done well, and this was just that. Nothing groundbreaking, but solidly told. Havent digested too much, but just walked out feeling fine with it. Even if i develop issues with it, definitely not 'shit'.
2. Anyone going to see it, do 3D. Spectacular visuals that im sure were enhanced compared to 2D. Really immersive and engrossing.
3. End credits and song choice was uh... yea.. something... real change in mood with that.
4. Anyone that says that either visually or narratively, that its not a major step up from the first, is being disingenuous.

 

I've had a theater employee come in to wake me because I was snoring so loud.

 

I thought Sigourney was great

 

I guess she was fine but being a teenager with a 70 year old's voice is eh

 

So I walked out after 10mins

seeing in Dolby 3D, whole row is confused. Doesn’t appear 3D. You can quite comfortably watch this without glasses. Zero difference. Asked an attendant and they said there is a known issue with the non HFR versions, but this was correctly being show.

I was blown away by the remaster original and the preview scene. This was nothing like that. It was all flat. Is that right? Does it get better as it goes on? There was zero depth, no 3D-ness. Certainly not expecting that old gimmicks of 3D but I may as well have been watching the 2D version.

I was so hyped for the movie that I decided to leave and see what others say.m, but over half the theatre weren’t bothering with the glasses as I left

 

I want to live underwater tbh

 

From what I’ve heard, Dolby 3D is not as good as RealD 3D.

 

I just thought she sounded normal lol

This was not my experience, but I also saw it in RealD 3D

 

Got my IMAX 3D tickets for Tuesday.

Don't expect to get much more than just the visual spectacle from it. Most of what I'm reading suggests the characters and story are just as hollow as the first, and the dialogue is just as cringey/cheesy, but we'll see.

In a nutshell the plot is just that the bad guys strike back right? I mean Stephen Lang's character is back (how??) lol I wonder how unintentionally hilarious he is this time around

 

The story is definitely not as hollow as the first. I also didn’t have any issues with the way they brought Lang’s character back

 

Really would not categorize either film as hollow or cringe. It's also not technically Lang.

 

The dialogue is still cheesy, but I'd say that's probably 90% of dialogue in Cameron films. The story is much deeper in this compared to the first though.

He has hinted that Avatar 4 will take place back on Earth, anyone get the feeling we may see them do a situation where the Navi use a human looking avatar while on Earth?

 

I won't spoil it for you, but it is pretty campy as far as the 'threat' to Pandora goes, but I definitely think that's intentional. The bad guys are meant to be buffoons, and just over the top stereotypes of military personal or scientists abusing their craft for personal gain (just as it was in the first). And as far as cheesey/cringey goes, it'll vary by person to person. Its themes of family/fighting for your home/sticking together etc. are all nothing new, and delivered rather simplistically, but I enjoyed all of it, as I really like the characters and I felt the connections between them. I think we forget how corny and cheesey real life actually is sometimes and hold movies to too high of a standard.

I do disagree with it being hollow and think that's unfair. Not everything has to tread new ground and if the overall package is fresh, that's all that matters. Sure, you may walk out saying I've heard that story before, but when you take everything together, the world building, the pacing, the 3D, the action, it was an experience unlike any I've had at the movies before.

The more I think about it, the more I absolutely loved it and I 100% will go experience it in 3D again before its run is over.

 

I would definitely like to see it again in theaters.

 

I thought RealD 3D was supposed to be the “worst” of the 3D choices, no? Have some friends seeing it in imax 3D today, see what they say, and I’ll try and catch an early morning showing next week.

 

Yeah Dolby 3D is the better 3D format. RealD is the cheaper of the two systems.

 

I think I'm okay with the themes being simple and relatable, and I agree stories don't always need to tread new ground to be effective. I've seen this being compared to Maverick on how the story is simple yet it's still mesmerizing. I loved Maverick and didn't really even notice how simple the story was because I was so invested in the characters - maybe it was Tom Cruise's and the rest of the cast's charisma and liveliness? It's hard to find that in Sam Worthington. I think Giovanni Ribisi was the most fun to see in the first one at least.

I also don't have this problem with James Cameron's other movies and how campy they can be. Titanic is timeless for me, I rarely cringe at any of the dialogue and can watch it a million times, same with T2.

I think what I have gripes with here is how much the technology and craftsmanship overshadow all of the other elements. It's jarring to me that the story and characters are just a vehicle for the 3D and graphics, which really don't drive me crazy anyway because I feel like I'm looking at a video game. But hey that's me - and my opinion may change. I'm doing IMAX 3D so at the minimum I know I'm going to enjoy the action sequences, and I'm sure I'll understand why they call it a cinematic experience.

 

Kind of funny in a movie with multiple suspect actors Edie Falco is somehow the worst

 

We are watching the first one in class right now. The reclamation project over the last two months was definitely over-the-top. It is still as broad and cookie-cutter plotting as ever.