Avatar: Feu et cendre

Far from perfect and far too long, the flaws in James Cameron's third Avatar outing, Fire and Ash are there for all to see and in reality, far from surprising but as per his first two multi-billion dollar outings Cameron's latest visual feast is still a fun and entertaining blockbuster that deserves to put bums on cinema seats.

Arriving 16 years after Cameron's original Dances with Wolves courtesy of the Blue Man Group box office behemoth dropped into the big screen world, Ash continues on with the pattern the legendary filmmaker set in place with his 3D extravaganza and if anyone is expecting Ash to deliver in the unexpected, they should temper expectations in a major way and learn to just enjoy the ride.

In a world that seems to find things easier to hate rather than like, Ash could become a bit of a punching bag for those wanting to bemoan the fact Cameron hasn't tried to rewrite the rulebook here but the same naysayers are probably just as likely to have enjoyed the likes of Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, Star Wars or Marvel's plethora of big screen outings, all franchises and brands that have stuck to what works for better and worse and managed to enthral millions of cinemagoers across the decades.

Kicking off right where The Way of Water finished, Ash finds Sam Worthington's Jake Sully and Zoe Saldaña's Neytiri struggling to maintain their edge and freedom in the face of growing adversity, adversity that includes their continued battle with Stephen Lang's Quaritch and new adversary Varang, solid new addition Oona Chaplin who brings a fierceness to her fire queen.

To call Ash's narrative barebones basic would be perfectly acceptable, even kind in many facets and it's a shame that Cameron and his fellow screenwriters Amanda Silver and Rick Jaffa haven't managed to fix the series weakish script work but if people can move past the fact it's always likely the original Avatar was an outlier in regards to it's all round winning ways, Ash much like its predecessor provides much in the way of cinematic joys and spectacle.

While failing to maximise the addition of the new fire clan led by Varang, who appears set to become the films secondary focus only to be overshadowed by the presence of Quaritch and the impressive performance of Chaplin, Ash still does a lot of things very well including a great opening stretch featuring wind traders and the increasingly stunning special effects work that brings Pandora to life in mesmerising ways, especially in the intended 3D format.

Releasing at a time and place in movie history where many big-scale films have failed to reach the audience they had hoped for, there's much lying on the shoulders of Cameron and his Na'vi friends to bring joy to the Hollywood universe and cinema chains around the globe, while it's very unlikely that Ash will reach the highs of Avatar or Way of Water, there's enough here to suggest audiences will be happy with what they see and spread the word, encouraging others to make the effort to get back out and partake in the big-screen experience.

Having listened to Cameron's recent commentary regarding his future plans for the Avatar cinematic space there's a high chance we may have seen the last of a Cameron lead Avatar feature and if that's the case, we can be thankful Cameron did so much for the medium he loves even if he never managed to recapture the lightning in a bottle magic he did with his 2009 launch.

Final Say -

Walking a familiar path and dancing to the same beat that's been danced too before, Avatar: Fire and Ash isn't able to reach grand heights but as a fun and visually outstanding big screen spectacle, Cameron proves he is still king.

3 1/2 helpful vines out of 5.

I had a good time with this, but make no mistake: this is just the same movie as the sequel with some slight variation. Again, we have Quaritch as the bad guy playing cat and mouse with Jake. Again, we spend a majority of the movie following a subplot about harvesting a precious liquid from whales (or whatever you call them), which seems like it's tacked on to bring the movie to the 3 hour runtime for no good reason (an Avatar tradition at this point). Again, the finale involves the same characters battling it out in the same circumstances with a frustrating lack of resolution. The first two acts introduced some more darkness and stronger emotional beats than either of the first two movies, and the addition of the Ash people was an interesting take to finally see the bad side of Navi. But the third act just phones it in and goes for the familiar route.

I'm probably being generous with a 7. The visuals are stunning, as expected, and the action isn't necessarily bad - it's just nothing we haven't seen before.

The movie dazzles with breathtaking action sequences and visuals that are truly a joy to watch - every battle and landscape feels alive on the big screen. Yet, the story leans too heavily into melodrama. Nyetri seems caught in tears almost every time, which makes the emotional beats feel repetitive rather than powerful. Sully, once decisive and commanding, now comes across softer and overly dramatic in his choices, which slows the momentum. Tashik of the Ash Clan, who looked so promising in the trailer, doesn't deliver the same impact in the actual film, leaving his presence underwhelming.

Compared to the earlier parts of the saga, this installment feels weaker and may earn lower ratings. Still, as a cinematic experience, it had its moments - the visuals and action carried the weight, and sharing the first movie date with my wife made it memorable. Overall, I enjoyed it, but my expectations were set much higher than what the film delivered.

I've always had a soft spot for the first *Avatar*. When it came out, I was a kid, and it genuinely felt like something special. The world of Pandora was stunning, the creatures and environments felt alive, and the movie delivered a sense of scale and immersion that very few films had managed at the time. Even though many people criticized the story for borrowing familiar ideas, I never really minded. The execution was strong enough that it still felt fresh and memorable.

The problem started with the sequel. Waiting 11 years for *The Way of Water* set expectations extremely high, and while the visuals were undeniably impressive, the story felt far too familiar. It was essentially the same conflict, just relocated to a new environment and wrapped around a stronger family-focused narrative. The film looked incredible, but once the initial visual awe wore off, it became clear that the plot wasn't really going anywhere new.

That's why *Avatar 3* doesn't inspire much confidence for me. From what it seems, the franchise is stuck in a loop: new region of Pandora, new tribe, the same villains, the same themes, and the same structure playing out again. The action scenes are well made, and the CGI is still among the best in the industry, but visuals alone can only carry a movie so far. A great film needs a story that evolves, raises the stakes, and pushes the characters into new territory.

At this point, the *Avatar* series feels like it's relying too heavily on spectacle while neglecting meaningful narrative progression. If the third movie follows the same pattern as the second, it's hard not to expect the same repetition in the fourth and fifth films as well. The world of Pandora is rich and full of potential, but without a stronger, more daring storyline, the franchise risks becoming visually stunning but emotionally and narratively stagnant.

If you've seen the first two installments, the third is unlikely to surprise you. What we get once again is flawless, mesmerizing visuals stretched across nearly three hours of screen time, accompanied by familiar characters, predictable dramaturgy, and a storyline reduced to almost primitive straightforwardness.

Yes, the film still boasts a strong, star-studded cast. And yes, the director remains one of the most influential visionaries in the history of cinema. However, there is a lingering sense that Cameron is operating on inertia here: there is little genuine novelty, no truly unexpected midpoint turn, and no tightly constructed narrative twist. The story unfolds along tracks that are easy to anticipate.

As a result, the film becomes an attraction of visual perfection rather than a true dramatic breakthrough. One can't shake the feeling that the franchise is being deliberately stretched indefinitely, relying almost exclusively on technological superiority.

Conclusion: I would recommend this film primarily to devoted Avatar fans and lovers of visually driven cinema who are content to spend three hours simply admiring Pandora and the sheer scale of Cameron's craftsmanship. For everyone else, unfortunately, it's something they've already seen in the previous two films.