Avatar: Fire and Ash (2025)

There are many that have judged the third instalment of James Cameron's ground (and record) breaking franchise before they've seen it- or indeed without seeing it at all. But it must be said that the critical response to Fire and Ash has undoubtedly been the most lukewarm of the lot. Even Robbie Collin of The Telegraph, who gives five stars out left, right and centre (and who I also consider to be one of the greatest critics in the country) was scathing about the third Avatar film. Many of the people that hate Fire and Ash also hated The Way of Water, and there are those that have never been sold on Pandora from the start. So let's be quite clear. If you don't like Avatar, there is absolutely nothing for you in Fire and Ash. Do not go near it. For those of us who actively liked the first Avatar film- and even if you didn't you can't deny the impressive technical achievements at the very least- there is much to immerse yourself in, as usual. This is James Cameron's world, and he has the right to do with it what he likes. Where this differs from other blockbuster behemoths is that there's no studio telling Cameron what he must or must not do- every creative choice ultimately lies with him. The Marvel franchise and the Star Wars franchises- especially the latter- must curtail not just to studio decisions, but fan complaints. Indeed, the most recent Star Wars trilogy had the bizarre issue of the fans hating The Last Jedi (2017) so much they influenced the outcome of the follow up, The Rise of Skywalker (2019). Which was especially strange considering both films still managed to be indescribably dull. It makes no sense that Avatar has received such hate from certain critics that concomitantly champion the latter Star Wars and Marvel films. At the screening of Fire and Ash that I went to, I was deeply bored by a trailer that advertised what appeared to be yet another Thor film. Turns out it wasn't, it was for Avengers: Doomsday. Which would make it the fifth Avengers film (with a sixth also filming) and actually the 9th film (with a 10th filming) starring Thor as a main hero. And he's also in more Marvel films in smaller roles. This isn't an attack on Thor individually, more the Marvel franchise as a whole which was really good fun up until the very definitive endpoint of Avengers: Endgame (2019). Anyway, I digress. This is the third Avatar film in the space of sixteen years; in that time Marvel have released thirty-five. There's no doubting that we probably all want James Cameron to now do something original, but lets judge Fire and Ash on the film it is rather than the film we might want it to be. The film continues the story by following on shortly after the events of The Way of Water, with Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) his wife Neytiri (Zoe Saldana) and their family still mourning the death of their eldest son who is killed at the end of the previous film. There's seemingly no let up from Quaritch (Stephen Lang)- or should I say, his Avatar- in his relentless pursuit of Sully, hell bent on hunting him to the ends of Pandora to bring him in, or kill him. Fire and Ash is more or less the same film as The Way of Water, albeit one that once again introduces new creatures and characters (David Thewlis is a welcome addition for a brief cameo) and the main extra here being Verang (Oona Chaplin), leader of the Ash people who eventually join forces with Quaritch on his rampage to find Sully. The first hour of Fire and Ash is especially engaging, as the Sully's are forced to flee their new home made with the Water clans in the previous film- and Sigourney Weaver's Kiri becoming more and more central to proceedings and eventually fulfilling her destiny towards the end of the film. That's not really a spoiler- it would be hard to spoil something that's all fairly telegraphed from the outset, and yet Fire and Ash offers you exactly what you'd expect from an Avatar film. There's no surprises and not much jeopardy- but that doesn't mean there isn't plenty of thrills, especially visually. I've heard one or two critics claim that the special effects aren't that good, which is just plain stupid- they're superb, and even watching in the much (rightly) chastised format of 3D, there are scenes that genuinely look astonishing. The world of the Ash people is something only briefly glimpsed; they mainly operate outside their home during the film, but the small sighting we have is a joy to the eyes- just like the rest of the film. The water sequences remain incredible, not that you'd expect anything less from the man who gave us The Abyss (1989) and Titanic (1997). So to have a go at another Avatar film feels completely pointless. It will almost certainly rack up well over a billion dollars at the box office, and I'd much rather Avatar was doing it rather than yet another Star Wars or Marvel film, as I think I've made pretty clear. Avatar has probably run its course now, and this entry certainly feels too long at over three hours- although James Cameron seemingly disagrees. There's nothing here that you haven't seen before and nothing that will surprise you. But unlike previously mentioned franchises, Avatar remains visually stunning, frequently engrossing, and- despite an extraordinarily wooden script- thoroughly enjoyable. 7.4/10