Avatar: The Way of Water

Marveling in someone’s technique doesn’t last as long as being moved by a hero’s plight. As technically trailblazing as this is, it takes a LONG time for the heroes to dive into the conflict, and there’s a lot of swimming with sci-fi whales in the meantime. The burden of world-building yields amazing visuals, but beyond that it’s really hard to distinguish all the different blue people, except the one that looks like Sigourney Weaver. And to dust off the old villain is just lazy. I always say this, but I admire the love of movies. I admire the desire to entertain and dazzle. So it’s an A+ for dazzle. But I hunger for the hero’s journey.