Avatar: The Way of Water has made its way to theatres as the sequel to the highest-grossing film of all time: Avatar (2009).

However, mixed reviews have been given for the movie, raising the important question: is it worth watching?

Way of Water is a visually stunning film, providing a lifelike presentation despite being almost entirely computer generated. It follows and builds on the story introduced in the first movie: the story of Jake Sully. In this sequel, 13 years have passed and Jake Sully now has a family, which includes his wife, Neytiri, and his four children, Neteyam, Lo’ak, Kiri, and Tuktirey (Tuk).

The movie details the family’s struggles and the lengths that Jake Sully will go through to protect his family. It also explains how Jake Sully and his wife have to rise up against humans that threaten them.

Overall, the movie is good, as it provides a strong sequel to its predecessor and tries to develop every character. It was a visually beautiful and artful movie; the computer-generated visuals seemed like they could be real, being better than the video-game-looking visuals that the first movie provided.

If I had to rate it, I would give it a solid 6.5/10. It lost points on my end because of its plot and its runtime. Its plot was mediocre, but it could have been better, as the director mainly focused on visuals more than character development, which is essential to giving the movie life. It felt like some characters were not developed nearly enough, and some main characters even went unused.

Additionally, it had a runtime of 3 hours and 12 minutes, which I felt was a little too long. More than a few times, I found some parts of the film pretty tedious in some areas when it focused on visuals too much. In my opinion, looking at amazing visuals in the film is a great experience, but when it is overused, it can get a bit boring. 

Other than that, Avatar: The Way of Water is an amazing film, providing a sequel that stands out among other movies today. Some characters are very captivating; in particular, Lo’ak was a character that held the film up and kept it very interesting to watch. The film currently holds a 77 percent  Rotten Tomatoes rating, which is very good. 

Despite its flaws, Avatar: The Way of Water is a must-watch, even though it may not be for everyone.