Although I don’t love the fact that every major movie release these days seems to be a part of some existing franchise, and I don’t necessarily think these new Avatar movies need to be made, that didn’t stop me from going to the theater to watch this movie. And I was not disappointed. There were some things that I didn’t like about the movie, but for the most part it was an enjoyable experience.
For me the highlights of the movie were the visuals. The effects, the CGI, the meticulous way that the world of the Naavi were built, were all top notch. This is the sort of movie that you will want to watch on the big screen. I didn’t see the 3D version, so I’m not sure if that would have enhanced the experience or not. The plot and characters were also better than the original movie. It’s been a while since I last saw it, so that is not as fresh in my mind, but this was a more compelling story.
On the downside, not having seen the original in a while, the beginning of the movie was quite confusing and I thought they could have done a better job of bringing the viewer up to speed in the world of Avatar. I also thought the movie was too long. Three plus hours is just too much for a movie. Specifically, the part I felt that could have been cut down was the part when Jake and his family arrive at the water tribes and integrate themselves into the tribes. They could have slashed a half hour from that part without missing too much.
The good in this movie outweighed the bad and I think this will be an enjoyable experience if you choose to venture into a theater to watch it.