First reactions praise ‘Avatar: Fire And Ash’ as “a staggering achievement of moviemaking”
“James Cameron can and will always deliver the ultimate cinematic spectacle, redefining what a true blockbuster feels like”
by Liberty Dunworth · NMEAvatar: Fire And Ash has been shown to critics ahead of its arrival in cinemas, and celebrated as “a staggering achievement of moviemaking”.
The movie is the follow-up to James Cameron’s 2009 box office hit, and the 2022 sequel Avatar: The Way Of Water.
It sees the Oscar-winning director pick up where The Way Of Water left off, following characters Sully and Neytiri as they mourn the death of their son. They soon find themselves under threat from the Fire tribe, a group of Na’vi led by the vengeful Varang (played by Oona Chaplin).
It sees Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldaña return to their roles, alongside Sigourney Weaver, Kate Winslet, Stephen Lang and more.
Following advanced screenings, members of the film press have been quick to praise the third instalment and celebrate it for its impressive visuals.
Perri Nemiroff, who is a correspondent for Collider took to X/Twitter after watching Fire And Ash and said that she “still can’t get over how magical” it was. “[It] truly feels like a ride. I couldn’t believe how quickly I was pulled back into the world of Pandora and swept up in the situation,” she added. “And once that happens, there’s a noticeable increase in complexity in quite a few aspects of the production.”
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Journalist Jazz Tangcay, who writes for Variety, agreed, describing it as “a staggering achievement of moviemaking, and an all round phenomenal film”.
“James Cameron raises the stakes,” she continued. “It’s bigger, better and more emotional than ever before. It has gorgeous visuals, thrilling new characters and is a technical marvel.”
Elsewhere, Inverse’s Lyvie Scott said that while the new film doesn’t see James Cameron “demonstrating many new tricks” it still felt like a “jaw dropping spectacle and darker, strife-rich storytelling.”
Film journalist Michael Lee shared a similar view, saying that while the “story may be lacking” the “visual spectacle” captured is something that “pushes technical boundaries in unimaginable ways”.
Fellow critic Sean Tajipour echoed these comments as well, and wrote: “I may not be the biggest Avatar superfan, but [Fire and Ash] proves once again that James Cameron can and will always deliver the ultimate cinematic spectacle, pushing visuals and emotion to new heights and redefining what a true blockbuster feels like.
“It’s bold, immersive, unforgettable and driven by sheer ambition.”
Find more responses below.
Avatar: Fire And Ash opens in cinemas from December 19.
The first Avatar film was released in 2009, and followed indigenous beings, The Na’vi, as they rose up against humans invading their land for resources. It remains the highest grossing movie of all time at over $2.9billion (£2.1billion), and Avatar: The Way Of Water sits in third place with $2.3billion (£1.7billion).
While Cameron has previously said that he planned for there to be five films in the Avatar franchise, he admitted recently that he is willing to end the series with Fire And Ash, depending on the response at the box office.
“People tend to dismiss sequels. Unless it’s the third Lord of the Rings film and you want to see what happens to everybody,” he said. “This is the culmination of a story arc, but that may not be how the public sees it.”
“If this is where it ends, cool,” the filmmaker continued. “There is one open thread. I’ll write a book.”
In October, Miley Cyrus announced that she had written an original song for the movie, inspired by the devastating L.A. fires in January.