James Cameron made his mark early with astoundingly realistic visual effects and sci fi stories that felt fresh and exciting. From terrifying cyborgs in The Terminator, to his nearly life-size recreation of the Titanic, Cameron blended groundbreaking visual design with stories and characters that, even if not new or original, were entertaining. Whether by land, sky or sea, his films explore the precarious relationships between humans and their environments.

His latest effort, Avatar: The Way of Water, is a very pretty but thin spectacle. This return to Pandora offers a beautiful world and uses high frame rate 3D technology to mimic an immersive experience without ever making it truly feel like a place we can inhabit. Many have referred to the film’s video game quality, though it is more akin to the switch between film and video. A jarring transition that tries to make the world look more real, but only ends up making it look more fake.

It has been 13 years since we last visited this world, but for Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) it has been a bit longer. He now lives fully as a Na’vi, leading his adopted tribe, married to Neytiri (Zoe Saldaña), and raising their kids. In voiceover, Sully shrugs past the mysteries of biology rather than attempting to explain how or why his avatar is able to reproduce, and glosses over a prickly issue of the paternity of a child he and Neytiri have basically adopted. In the time since we last saw the Sullys they lived in relative peace. Until the Sky People returned to mine more precious resources from Pandora. Jake now finds himself an enemy combatant, leading an insurgency against the military and their reckless destruction of the moon world.

The reintroduction to life on Pandora starts out brief and to the point before grinding to a halt with the arrival of a familiar enemy. In the grand tradition of not being able to let things go, Cameron brings back Quaritch (Stephen Lang), the colonel who did not survive the events of the first film. This time, his consciousness has been transferred into a Na’vi avatar and he goes through a somewhat similar journey to the one Jake did years ago, learning how to use his body, his new language, and to understand Pandora.

Quaritch (Stephen Lang) in 20th Century Studios’ AVATAR: THE WAY OF WATER. Photo courtesy of 20th Century Studios. © 2022 20th Century Studios. All Rights Reserved.

The problem is that Quaritch was always a cartoon villain and his previous death was a fitting end. It was a good way to move past that character into something new and more interesting. Cameron chose the easy route, bringing him back with super strength and setting him on a boring path that will either become more cartoonish or a ridiculous redemption arc by the time the planned five-film series concludes. It will probably be both.

The story starts to really take shape some thirty minutes in when Jake learns Quaritch is back and hunting him. As much as the forest is their home, Jake convinces his wife they must take their family somewhere safe. They leave in search of a hiding place on the coast, taking refuge with a water tribe of Na’vi led by Tonowari (Cliff Curtis) and Ronal (Kate Winslet). The Sullys are forest folk, not built for the water and they must learn the way. The way of water, if you will. While they struggle to fit into their new home, there is always a looming threat on the horizon.

Tuk (Trinity Bliss) in 20th Century Studios’ AVATAR: THE WAY OF WATER. Photo courtesy of 20th Century Studios. © 2022 20th Century Studios. All Rights Reserved.

As with the 2009 film, the visuals are the selling point of Avatar: The Way of Water. The difference is that this isn’t 2009 and what was innovative more than a decade ago is what studio movies are these days. They may not all look as polished or pretty, but there is precious little done in The Way of Water that looks different enough to say this movie deserves any more praise or celebration than a Marvel movie or Dune or RRR. VFX master and senior visual effects supervisor Joe Letteri leads a team of extremely talented artists. There’s no question that their work here is impeccable. Sadly, the story they are tasked with bringing to life is a tired rehashing of countless other films, including some of Cameron’s own previous work. In 2022, the visuals just aren’t enough.

Avatar: The Way of Water will make its money in sold out movie houses across the world. People will oo and ah at the artistry. And then some will scratch their heads at 60-something Sigourney Weaver voicing a teenager. Or at the white savior narrative that refuses to die. Or at unintentionally hilarious moments involving interspecies communication. It is a pretty movie. It is a bad movie. There will be 3-5 more of them and none will achieve the cultural importance a series like this should be able to reach. For a director whose last great film was a quarter century ago, we shouldn’t be surprised, but we can still be disappointed.

Avatar: The Way of Water is distributed by 20th Century Studios. It is now playing in theaters nationwide.