Text/Ziyi
"The aroma of wine is not afraid of the deep alley" is used to describe the movie "Avatar: The Way of Water", which is too apt.
The movie was released on December 12, 2022, during the peak period of the epidemic, so the box office of "Avatar 2", which was originally optimistic, was far less than expected, so many people sang down.
However, after January, the market picked up, and the box office rose against the market, not only announcing the extension of the release to February 14, but also making a number of breakthroughs.
As of January 17, the mainland box office exceeded 1.5 billion yuan, not only surpassing the final box office result of "Avatar" when it was first released in the mainland in 2010, but also the global cumulative box office exceeded the $1.9 billion mark, jumping to the seventh place in global film history, and about to surpass the sixth-ranked "Spider-Man: Homeless" ($1.916 billion).
I believe that this movie will still become the first choice for many people during the Spring Festival.
In 2009, a film "Avatar 1" standing at the peak of science fiction was born, becoming a masterpiece that mentions that 3D movies cannot be bypassed. More than a decade later, its superb special effects and imaginative Pandora world are still fresh in people's minds.
"Avatar 2" has once again refreshed the box office myth, what are the highlights of this movie, is it worth watching?
(1) In addition to the forest and water in the world of Pandora, "Avatar 2" restores the real underwater world
"Avatar 1" is centered around the forest background of "The Way of Wood", and in "Avatar 2", in order to escape the Earth Legion, save the Na'vi people and protect the safety of his family, Sully decided to migrate at home, and finally joined the Ocean Tribe, so the whole movie gradually shifted from the forest chapter to the ocean chapter, that is, the "Way of Water".
Why introduce the theme of water?
It is clear that for both Eastern and Western civilizations, the sea once represented a mysterious forbidden place that had not been touched, but it was also the mother of life.
When the Sally family first arrived on the island, Tsreya, the daughter of the leader of the island and reef tribe, taught her youngest son Louac to hold his breath underwater, saying, "Water contains all things, everywhere, it is the beginning of everything, and it is also the return of all things, if you want to stay underwater longer, you must lower your heart rate, let go of yourself, keep the same frequency with everything under the sea, and integrate yourself into it." ”
This passage has the effect of carrying on the past and enlightening the future.
The way of water lies in gentle compliance, which is naturally contrary to the wild and active ethnic character of the forest tribe, and also lays the groundwork for the subsequent adaptation of children to this water world faster than Sally; For the final escape, Sully was able to escape from the wreck with the help of his youngest son, who taught the way of water.
Since all living things are tied to the sea, the relationship between marine creatures and tribal groups is closer, and the creatures here are friendly and advocate peace.
The way of wood, the way of water, one movement and one still, is a collision of ideas of Kashen on his Pandora philosophical metaverse.
If the forest world of the first part amazes us, then the underwater world of the second part opens the door to a new world.
The director moved part of the live-action shooting to a depth of 11,000 meters under the sea, the Mariana Trench, and also did a lot of research on the marine environment, creatures and indigenous tribes, and even regarded "Avatar 2" as "a love letter to the deep sea".
After wearing 3D glasses, you can feel that the whole picture is silky as if flying underwater, and the Na'vi people jump down, diving and swimming in the seabed, and on one side are translucent aquatic plants glowing under the sun, which swaying as if they have independent life and touch.
A movie of this quality really makes people want to repaint it a second time.
(2) Environmentalism and family philosophy are the main theme of "Avatar 2"
The film continues the theme of "Avatar 1" and continues to explore the themes of "man and nature" and "humanity and divinity".
When man ceases to be the "creator" of the planet, only as a link in the biological chain, the high-tech camouflage and the sanctimonious armor of civilization are removed, and all that remains is unrestrained desire, ambition and violence.
Pandora is the opposite ecological model of the earth, and the Na'vi can establish spiritual connections with other animals and plants
More importantly, there is a visible "god" Eva brought about by the belief that human existence is not a conqueror of nature, but a devout inheritor - all energy is temporary and will eventually return to heaven and earth, and death is not the end of everything, but eternity.
It is precisely because of these characteristics of Pandora that its group seems to be backward in tribal culture, but it treats people sincerely and openly, selflessly and bravely.
Drawing strength from the mutual watch between companions and the bond of mutual recognition between people and mounts, compared with the deceit and selfishness of the earthlings, the mysterious and beautiful Pandora attracts the protagonist Sally to resolutely devote himself to the action against the invasion of the earth in the previous film, and also attracts everyone in front of the screen who yearns for Pandora.
In addition to continuing the mapping of man and nature and environmentalism in the first film, "Avatar 2" also tries to jump out of the standard Hollywood-style US military invasion of the first film and explore the "national integration" under anti-colonialism.
For example, because the Sally family is a "five-fingered family", neither the standard Na'vi nor the former human race, how to integrate into the new race?
The colonel's son "Little Spider", as a new generation, is physically human, and spirit and faith belong to the representative of the planet Pandora, and are also in the entanglement of identity;
On the contrary, he is a colonel who reappears in a new identity, whose body belongs to the Na'vi clan, but whose mission is to be loyal to Earth, and who also shows the dilemma of human fatherhood and mother planet mission in treating his former son.
"Family line" is the dark line that distinguishes "Avatar 2" from "Avatar 1", whether it is the Sully family or the colonel's parent-child line, it is obvious that Cameron depicts the conflict of authority and rebellion in the family in more space in this film.
In the last part, Sully's love line as a dark line, the protagonist changed from an invader to a rebel, and under the guidance of Natalie, he rode a dragon warrior step by step to the leader of the group, and the plot had more "explosive" scenes.
In this part, Sully's identity is transformed into the guardian of the family, and the focus shifts to protecting the safety of the family, and there are more weaknesses that make Sully's behavior passive.
Excessive concern for his family and his sense of responsibility made Sally seem a little unkind, and the younger son's rebellion, straightforwardness, and courage became a new "rebellion".
In the end, the youngest son rescued Sally under the sinking ship, which finally made Sally realize that the child had his own growth and no longer needed shelter under the greenhouse.
The protagonist is no longer personal heroism, but also reveals the warm side of the family, and the child is the biggest weakness and the biggest armor.
(3) The flaws are not hidden, and the plot line is still worth scrutinizing
Because "Avatar 1" is too amazing, "Avatar 2" inevitably has to be compared with the first part, after all, preconceived notions, expectations are too high.
First of all, from the plot aspect, the plot of "Avatar 2" seems to be a simple repetition of "Avatar 1".
Although the ending is nested with values, it is difficult to arouse the audience's emotions, especially without the ignition point similar to the one in which Sally tames the phantom in the first part, leading all kinds of birds and beasts to violently pound the human legion, and lacks the climax of the film.
Moreover, the villain's behavior lacks logic, and the colonel does not stand on the ground and use advanced weapons to chase the Na'vi in the forest with victory, nor does he compete for resources for mankind;
Instead, he blindly pursued the Sally family, and even when he caught Sally's children as hostages, he did not make good use of them, a little forcibly reduced his wisdom, and villains for the sake of villains.
Because the villain's behavior lacks a fulcrum, the conflict of the main plot is somewhat abrupt, and even falls into collective sensationalism and self-touching.
On the other hand, the film does not continue and deepen the discussion of "colonialism" in the first part, especially the three attitudes shown by human civilization with scientific and technological wings when it invades the seemingly primitive Pandora tribal civilization: violent invasion (colonel), cultural implantation (female doctor), and respect for learning (Sally).
In "Avatar 2", the colonel tries to integrate into the tribe by taming the mount, but only to better invade and capture, and lacks deep thinking.
In addition, the newly added characters are not well foreshadowed, resulting in the characters not fully standing, so that the audience cannot fully bring in at key emotional flashpoints.
The eldest son is second only to the father's protector role in the family, and the brotherhood and power gap have not been more fully depicted, resulting in the death of the eldest son, which has not aroused the emotional resonance it should have.
Of course, I also cried glasses in this clip.
Including the newly emerged underwater crusu, the awakened adopted daughter and the combat power of the islanders, and the Na'vi ethnic group depicted in the upper part are not reflected, making "Avatar 2" as a whole reflect the feeling of "only digging a pit without burying a pit".
epilogue
Although the advantages and disadvantages of this film are relatively obvious, after all, Kashen said that Avatar has been written to the 5th part in one breath for more than ten years, when the Na'vi will even directly reach the earth, and only "Avatar 2" has invested 2 billion to shoot as scheduled.
"Avatar 2" plays a role in the entire IP, and its mission is not only to continue to present the planet Pandora, a corner of the gorgeous and curious new world; It also broadens the background of the entire story line and includes a wider Pandora group, paving the way for the subsequent more macroscopic Pandora universe.
So on the whole, fans are still looking forward to the follow-up development of this series, let's wait and see.