4k-UHD/Movie Review: Avatar: Fire and Ash (Steelbook)

 

Fire and Ash, released in 2025, is the third in what will now be at least five films in James Cameron's epic story of humans versus aliens set on the fictional moon, Pandora. For this installment, Cameron returns both as a co-writer, co-producer, and director. Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Sigourney Weaver, and Stephen Lang all return from the first two films, as do Joel David Moore, Giovanni Ribisi, and CCH Pounder (although their roles are much smaller in this film). Kate Winslet, Cliff Curtis, Edie Falco, Brendan Cowell, Jermine Clement, Jamie Flatters, Bailey Bass, and Filip Geljo all reprise their roles from the second film. The primary additions to the cast for this movie include Oona Chaplin and David Thewlis, who play leaders of two newly introduced Na'vi clans. 

This film expands the plot of the second movie. In the bonus material, Cameron indicates that he originally envisioned a trilogy of films, but as the story evolved and expanded, they needed to split the second and third movies into two films, so (at least as of now, there will be five films. While the first two films focused on the RDA and the Na'vi, this film introduces a new warring Na'vi tribe, the Mangkwan, who also fight the Omaticaya and Metkayina clans. This movie has more character development and focuses a bit less on the symbiotic nature of the Na'vi with other life on the moon and on the moon itself (although that theme is still present). Much of this movie deals with the fallout from the events that ended the second film, and many of the relationships among the characters are fractured (at least to some extent). 

The steelbook release is a 4-disc set, including a UHD disc and two standard Blu-Ray discs. The UHD disc and the first standard Blu-Ray just contain the movie. The second standard Blu-Ray disc contains all the bonus content. Each disc has its own tab inside the case, so no discs need to be stacked on top of each other. The A/V quality of the UHD disc is outstanding (basically reference-quality for both audio and video), as you would expect with these films. The franchise continues to be on the cutting edge of motion-capture animation and computer-generated effects, so the Na'vi look less and less like animated characters, and the live-action and CGI blends pretty seamlessly. It is especially good if you have a large screen and a Dolby Atmos surround system. The bonus content includes a 13-part making-of documentary, which can be played all at once (and runs just under three hours) or individually by chapter. It features interviews with various members of the cast and crew, and walks through all aspects of the movie's production. Then, there is a 20-minute tribute to producer Jon Landau, who passed away in 2024, both theatrical trailers, the music video for the film's theme song, Dream as One, sung by Miley Cyrus, and RDA orientation videos that are supposedly shown to RDA personnel before they are sent to Pandora. The set also comes with a code to redeem a digital copy of the movie. Chances are, if the studio follows the same trend as with the first two films, there will be an expanded edition released later in the year with more bonus content and a longer runtime. So, you will have to decide whether you want to get this now or wait for a subsequent release. 

The movie is entertaining, but it is a bit long, and some of the content feels duplicative of the first two movies. You again get a huge final battle between the RDA and the Na'vi, and another huge fight between Jake and Quaritch (this time both as Na'vi). This one does not end on a cliffhanger, and there is no mid- or end-credits scene setting anything up for the next film. It definitely feels like the middle portion of a larger story, and you definitely need to see the first two films to follow what is going on in this one. You really have to look at these movies in a similar way to The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings films: not everything will be told until the final movie. Ultimately, if you liked the first two films, you will probably enjoy this one.