Warning, spoilers to follow for “Avatar – Leave for Pandora” and “Avatar 2: The way of the water“.
True to tradition, audiences flock to the cinemas for the latest film by blockbuster specialist James Cameron, to immerse themselves again in the world of Pandora after 13 years. A lot of people have now seen the sci-fi fantasy blockbuster and have already washed over two billion dollars into the treasury. And, as is the case with movies that make such waves, there aren’t only hymns to be found on the internet, of course. So there is certainly a headwind online from people expressing themselves critically. But rightly so?
It is understandable that some moments in “Avatar 2” are topics for discussion, but to speak directly of “logical holes” is not always entirely correct. We take a look at some elements that are often discussed on Reddit, Twitter & Co. and immediately after a visit to the cinema:
Jake Sully and the Preserved Memories
Colonel Quaritch (Stephen Lang) dies in “Avatar”, but still returns as a villain in the sequel – more or less. For his stored memories were transferred to a Na’vi body. The users and are now wondering on Twitter: Why did Jake become Sully’s (Sam Worthington) dead brother Tom not kept alive in the same way as Quaritch?
There are two possible explanations for this: It is conceivable, for example that the technology for this was only developed later, on Pandora. However, Tom Sully died unexpectedly on Earthbefore his deployment even began and his memories could even be saved.
In addition, the question arises whether Tom Sully’s memories would have been preserved at all. After all, he’s not a high-ranking RDA officer like Quaritch, but “just” a scientist – and one who wouldn’t have been particularly sympathetic to the RDA’s machinations.
So it’s doubtful that an expensive backup of a scientist like Tom Sully would have been made – where he would have supported the sinister machinations of the RDA any more than his superior Grace Augustine (Sigourney Weaver).
Spider saves Quaritch – but why on earth?
It’s a scene that infuriated some people: At least the author of this article heard collective sighs and groans during each of his three movie visits when Spider (Jack Champion), his father Colonel Quaritch’s Na’vi clone, didn’t die at the bottom of the sea leaves – but saves the bully from certain death. This scene caused a stir for several reasons.
On the one hand, many Spiders just couldn’t understand Spider’s decision to save the Na’vi Quaritch. On the other hand, the bailout doesn’t actually change anything – or at least nothing about the fate of Quaritch 2.0. And yet all this is not in vain, as becomes especially clear if you also know the companion comic “Avatar: The High Ground”:
* / “Vol. 2”* / “Vol. 3”* / complete edition*
Spider is one of the good guys. The adolescent may still be searching for the person he wants in life and feel inspired by it – and yes, sometimes he even risks following his father’s dark path. In the end, however, the values that the Na’vi instilled in him from an early age win over him.
If he had let Quaritch’s Na’vi die, he wouldn’t be any better than his father in the end. In addition, he saved his life shortly before in a confrontation with Neytiri (Zoe Saldana). To let him die in return would have been particularly cold-blooded – and would have made Spider a completely different character. Lo’ak (Britain Dalton) saved his father, so why not Spider? Quaritch may have done some wrong things in his life, but at the end of the day, he’s still Spider’s father – as well as his only surviving parent.
Actor Jack Champion said it in person, explaining in a simple and understandable way that the bully is still Spider’s quasi-father:
Above all, the rescue of the Na’vi Quaritch has great symbolic value. Because one thing is clear: as long as the Colonel’s stored memories are still lying around on some hard drive, it doesn’t matter if the Na’vi body he’s in now dies. Because even though it’s hard to grow a new body, it’s possible.
However, given the fate of Spider’s mother, which is revealed in “The High Ground”, it seems quite conceivable that the Spider, née Miles, is trying to break his father from the dark side with this good deed.
If anyone knows how to pull off such a transformation, it’s “Terminator” creator James Cameron. And Twitter users I guess I’m not the only one who sees a parallel here…
Where are the Metkayina in the final battle?
But what seems to bother users the most on the web is the development of the final battle. When Jake Sully and the Metkayina entourage set out to free his children from the clutches of Quaritch and company, all signs point to war – a mammoth spectacle that eclipses even the first film’s epic finale. But this does not happen.
On social media, many users like it criticizes that the Na’vi sea people are also part of the confrontation on the water, but suddenly seem to make the dust again. Among other things, it is believed that Tonowari (Cliff Curtis) and Co. will abandon the Sully family once their own people are safe. And yes, they actually disappear quite unexpectedly from the scene.
The question arises whether the Na’vi really heartlessly turn their backs on their brothers and sisters or whether this has to do with the solar eclipse that took place during the battle (i.e. at night, so to speak), as discussed on Reddit and then the Twitter user as well indicates.
Or is it ultimately just a somewhat clumsy solution by James Cameron to follow his overarching plan? Cameron has emphasized several times in the past that he wants to focus on the Sully family in “Avatar 2”. Emotion instead of spectacle. This is probably one of the reasons why he decided not to let “The Way Of Water” turn into a real war – especially since the climax of the five-film saga is still a long way off.
That it actually looks a bit like the Metkayina have all but disappeared from the face of the earth was certainly not Cameron’s intention. However, he never risked losing sight of individual destinies in the turmoil of an epic battle – giving them needed emotional impact. The Canadian simply sets clear priorities here: wonder less, feel more.
In keeping with this, the filmmaker cut a full “ten minutes of gun violence” from the final film. Anyway, all of this is due to Cameron rejecting his first draft of the script, which was eventually adapted in the form of The High Ground. This still worked on the usual follow-up scheme, meaning compared to its predecessor it would have been even better – even faster, even louder, even more blatant.
Nevertheless, it is of course a pity that for this reason there is no room in the film for one of the most spectacular battles, which many fans would have liked to see on the big screen…
Author: Daniel Fabian
Source : Film Starts
I am Dawid Malan, a news reporter for 24 Instant News. I specialize in celebrity and entertainment news, writing stories that capture the attention of readers from all walks of life. My work has been featured in some of the world’s leading publications and I am passionate about delivering quality content to my readers.
