Weekend films

'Avatar - Fire and Ashes', the show is still great

At the cinema, the third chapter of James Cameron's saga. Among the new releases is Jim Jarmusch's 'Father Mother Sister Brother'

by Andrea Chimento

3' min read

Translated by AI
Versione italiana

3' min read

Translated by AI
Versione italiana

Good (also) third for James Cameron: the 'Avatar' saga continues to fully convince, its new chapter being the absolute star of the weekend in theatres.

"Avatar - Fire and Ashes" picks up where the previous "The Way of the Water" left off: Jake Sully and his family are still guests of the Metkayina aquatic clan, but the death of Neteyam weighs heavy on everyone's hearts.

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Spider, meanwhile, despite having repudiated humans and feeling part of the family, continues to be pursued by his natural father, Colonel Quaritch: the latter's avatar is back in form, still hunting the revolutionary deserter Jake but also in his own way fond of Spider, whom he would like back, driven by an ambiguous impulse.

In an attempt to protect his family (as well as Spider and the hospitable Metkayna) from further incursions, Jake decides to leave with them. The journey, however, reserves a traumatic setback: the impact with the ruthless Fire Clan, known for cruelty and iron discipline.

“Avatar – Fuoco e cenere” e gli altri film della settimana

Photogallery4 foto

The third chapter of the blockbuster saga continues in a coherent manner with what had been seen in the previous feature films: the first film had shown us a grandiose metaphor of the planet Pandora as a gigantic network in which everyone is connected (a perfect representation of the internet and the concept of Avatar, precisely); the second had dedicated itself to the element of water, an area that Cameron loves madly as demonstrated by his passion for diving and for titles such as 'Abyss' or 'Titanic'.

In this case, it is of course the element of fire that dominates and with it a vision that becomes more incendiary, particularly in the telling of the relationships between rival clans, brutal against each other within a script full of references to current events.

 Perspectives of gaze

  'Avatar - Fire and Ashes' really brilliantly reasoned about the viewer's gaze, through numerous subjectives and first-person sequences in which we feel completely immersed in this great audiovisual spectacle.

There is also no shortage of biblical references and the mythology of parent-child relationships, but it is above all the form - once again for Cameron - that is the primary source of extremely profound and thought-provoking content.

Indeed, the story has great universal value and the direction contributes to conveying its greatness, both with the images and the sound apparatus.

One more precious piece in the great mosaic that is James Cameron's cinema.

Father Mother Sister Brother

Another great director arriving in our cinemas this week with his latest film is Jim Jarmusch.

The author of masterpieces such as 'Dead Man' and 'Ghost Dog' returned to episodic cinema with 'Father Mother Sister Brother', a film divided into three parts and winner of the Golden Lion at the last Venice Film Festival.

North-eastern USA: two grown-up sons visit their father who is now elderly and seemingly unable to look after himself. Dublin: a woman has packed everything for her daughters' annual visit for afternoon tea. Paris: twins try to process the recent disappearance of their parents.

These are the three episodes, intersected with each other through a series of references and internal rhymes, that make up this very essential film, in which irony is mixed with melancholy.

It is by no means the best title directed by Jarmusch, and the Golden Lion was generous (many of the ideas were already present in his previous works), but in this funeral song of family relationships in today's world there are many elements to be emphasised positively, starting with the excellent dialogue writing and the construction of the characters on stage, effectively played by the likes of Charlotte Rampling, Cate Blanchett, Adam Driver and Tom Waits (to name but a few).

Today, Jarmusch's cinema is no longer as topical and urgent as it once was, but the touch of the extraordinary American auteur has not been lost and the film is undoubtedly worth seeing.

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