On Tuesday night I found myself back where I secretly love to be: a media preview queue, people-watching, popcorn-smelling, wrist-banding my way into a blockbuster world premiere. The new Avatar has arrived, and Pandora has been polished to a shine.
From the moment those opening frames rippled across the IMAX screen, something in my lizard brain purred. The 3D isn’t a gimmick this time, it’s the whole point. Depth, scale, shimmer. Floating spores drifting past your face. Forests unfurling into mist. Oceans pulsing with light. Cities breathing in neon. My eyeballs stopped blinking to increase screen time. Entirely unhealthy. Entirely worth it.
The film itself? Comfort food. A story you’ve tasted before, reheated with extra seasoning. Familiar beats, familiar stakes, familiar hero-journey arcs. I wasn’t shocked. I wasn’t wrong-footed. I wasn’t gasping at twists or whisper-yelling “no way!”. But the visuals carried me through. They’re lush enough to soften déjà vu into a pleasant hum. In a world increasingly built on CGI sameness, this lands as actual world-building – textured, layered, overflowing with detail.
What’s most impressive is scale. This is the kind of movie that laughs at the idea of “watching it later at home.” IMAX is the only correct answer. You want the screen to swallow you. You want the bass in your sternum. You want the lights going down and the world relighting itself in alien blues and greens.
A great film? Debatable. An excellent experience? Absolutely.
– Ruki
Avatar Fire & Ash opens nationally on 18 December 2025.
This venue is accessible.
