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With the third film in the Avatar trilogy finally streaming on Disney+, fans of James Cameron's iconic space opera are revisiting the single greatest entry in the series so far, and the very best sci-fi sequel of the 21st century, Avatar: The Way of Water. A defining piece of modern movie spectacle, The Way of Water changed the way audiences perceive the Avatar franchise, allowing it to join the canon of some of sci-fi's all-time greatest.
The long-awaited second installment in director James Cameron's seminal sci-fi franchise changed everything for the world of Jake Sully and his family. It pushed the boundaries of special effects, action filmmaking, and blockbuster movies as a whole. While the future of the Avatar franchise looks bright, it's hard to imagine any new outings reaching the bombastic heights of The Way of Water.
Avatar: The Way of Water Improved On Every Aspect of The First Film
When James Cameron's Avatar was originally released in theaters in 2009, the world of blockbuster filmmaking changed forever. Avatar redefined what was possible in the sci-fi landscape, and it showcased the infinite possibilities of high-quality CGI effects and performance-capture technology. While many claimed that Avatar had no real cultural weight, it became the highest-grossing movie of all time, and fans waited with anticipation for what Cameron and company would do next.
Finally, after a 13-year wait, audiences were treated to 2022's Avatar: The Way of Water. Bringing viewers back to the breathtaking alien world of Pandora for the first time in over a decade, The Way of Water was more advanced, both technologically and narratively, than its predecessor. Thanks to this, fans were able to more readily connect with Sam Worthington's Jake Sully and his new family, even if Zoe Saldaña's Neytiri remained the fan-favorite character.
Visually, The Way of Water is unlike any movie that had come before. Like the first Avatar, the 2022 follow-up crafted some of the most utterly breathtaking effects of all time, and it was able to consistently do things that even the first film was incapable of. One such aspect was, of course, the water. Digital water effects are one of the most difficult tricks to pull off realistically, and Avatar: The Way of Water does so flawlessly.
Additionally, the new characters, new corners of Pandora, and new tribes of Na'vi all make The Way of Water feel fresh and unique in ways that audiences weren't expecting. Part of the brilliance of the Avatar films is the way in which they provide audiences with an in-depth look at a bold alien world, rendered with stunning realism. The films aren't just about telling a compelling story, but about transporting viewers into a world they've never experienced before. The details matter, and that's exactly what makes The Way of Water so impressive.
The Way of Water Is The Defining Sequel of The Modern Age
Sequels have one job: live up to their predecessor. If a sequel is made with the assumption that it won't at least be as good as what came before, then it is a complete waste of time. The greatest sequels of all time make bold choices, push characters in new directions that fans could've never seen coming, and extrapolate from what worked the first time around and adjust what didn't. There are plenty of strong sci-fi sequels that have been released since 2000, but arguably none of them live up to or surpass their predecessor like Avatar: The Way of Water did.
Even Avatar: Fire and Ash, the utterly staggering finale of the epic trilogy, doesn't reach the same heights as the second film in the saga. Part of that comes from the shorter amount of time between movies, and part of that could be that the wonder and impact of Pandora and its alien flora and fauna peaked during The Way of Water. Complaints that people had about the first Avatar were addressed with nuance and skill in The Way of Water, including the weak characterization of Jake Sully, the simple narrative, and the focus on human side characters.
A great sequel learns from its predecessor, and that is exactly what Avatar: The Way of Water displays in every frame. It's not just a simple follow-up to the world's biggest blockbuster; it's an essential evolution of one of the most imaginative sci-fi franchises of the modern age.
The Avatar movies are, whether some people want to admit it or not, an essential aspect of the contemporary pop culture landscape. The first film wasn't just some one-off fluke that coasted on cool visuals and new ideas. Even as an era ends, the Avatar universe is here to stay, and The Way of Water is the ultimate proof of that fact.
