The second part of James Cameron's fantastic film "Avatar", which has already earned more than $ 1.7 billion in a month, continues its triumphant march around the world.
The director has already confirmed that the box office of the film is in line with Disney's expectations, so the studio does not abandon plans to shoot at least three more sequels to the blue-skinned alien saga.
At the moment, "Avatar: The Way of Water" is ranked seventh in the ranking of the highest grossing films of all time, and the first part of the picture is in the lead in it.
Cameron's new work did not officially get into Russian hire: after the start of a special military operation, most of the major Western players in the industry stopped their work in the country.
Disney was no exception: in the spring of 2022, the company froze its activities in Russia, and in November it announced the closure of the office.
Nevertheless, "Avatar: The Way of Water" did appear on the big screens.
The first fantastic blockbuster began showing small non-network cinemas in Moscow and the regions - at the end of last year.
At the same time, in Yekaterinburg, for example, the tape is shown as "Avatar", and in Tatarstan, in some halls, the name was completely changed to "Supermen".
Avatar: The Path of Water will premiere on most major networks on January 12th.
On the screens will be a copy of the film in good quality and with professional Russian dubbing, made for one of the CIS countries.
In Moscow, St. Petersburg, Rostov-on-Don, Ryazan, Chelyabinsk and other cities, the film will be shown by Mirage Cinema and Kinomax.
Some theaters show the tape as part of a "free pre-screening service" - that is, viewers buy tickets for a short film, and Cameron's three-hour epic will receive a "bonus" to it.
Others rent the halls to a third-party company that shows the movie.
Shot from the film "Avatar: The Way of the Water"
Legion Media
© 20th Century Studios / Avalon
Thus, the situation is ambiguous: on the one hand, cinemas need to survive in the changed conditions, on the other hand, we must not forget about the legal component.
According to a member of the Association of Cinema Owners Alexei Vasyasin, now the industry needs the state to determine its own position on this issue.
“Because if it thinks it's illegal, it should stop it.
If it thinks it's legal, then it should legalize it.
And now - no fish, no meat.
And this is not because Mirage, or Kinomax, or someone else is doing something.
This all comes from the indistinct position of the state, ”Vasyasin said in an interview with RT.
He also clarified that for the period from February 24, 2022 to the present, cinemas were able to cope with the turbulence that arose in business only in January 2023 - thanks to one of the novelties of domestic distribution.
“The cinemas did well in January.
At the moment, fortunately, or unfortunately, "Cheburashka" ... Eared saved everyone.
Why "Unfortunately?
Because one "Cheburashka" you will not be full all year," Vasyasin added.
Anton Gorelkin, deputy head of the State Duma Committee on Information Policy, believes that the necessary mechanisms for regulating the market under the current conditions will be built as early as this year and will allow stopping the “semi-legal practice of “pre-session service”.
“The first attempts to submit such a bill to the State Duma were last year, but they provoked criticism from the industry.
Experts, first of all, saw a risk for Russian online cinemas.
I think that with the new approach, these concerns will be taken into account and compulsory licensing will only apply to film distribution,” Gorelkin wrote in his Telegram channel.
While movie theater chains are showing unlicensed Hollywood movies in a "pre-show" format and legislators are working out mechanisms to regulate legal issues, some viewers prefer to use pirated services.
"Avatar: The Way of Water" in the form of a "screen" has already been watched by hundreds of thousands of viewers.
The opinions of users of Russian social networks about Cameron's new film turned out to be mostly negative.
The longest and predictability of the plot is most actively criticized, but the picture is praised.
“It is very delayed.
No plot.
Children's war... The effects are cool, in 3D it will probably be beautiful.
But everything is so long and stupid.
I don’t know if I can master a dumb movie again for the sake of effects, ”writes one of the users of social networks.
"Bad movie.
Everything is very stretched and not interesting, ”another commentator echoes him.
Some considered in the new work of James Cameron references to film classics.
“The graphics are amazing, the acting, but the story itself is very secondary.
I looked and caught myself thinking that it had already happened.
If you remove the special effects, then this is an extended and computerized version of the film Dances with Wolves.
Moreover, even the departure of a stranger from the tribe is also shown there.
In addition, if the first part was captivating, then this story is drawn out and further developments can be predicted, ”said one of the bloggers.
And even those commentators, whose sympathies the film nevertheless won, tend to argue that, despite all the advantages, the new Avatar loses the first part.
“I liked the film, the graphics are gorgeous, but the first one was more interesting,” the viewer says.
“The first part is better,” writes another commentator, “the second part is colorful, of course, but the essence is weak.”
The release of the continuation of the fantastic saga - the third film, which has not yet received an official title - is scheduled for 2024.
Shooting the fourth and fifth parts, James Cameron can entrust another director.
The director noted that projects of the scale of "Avatar" are "all-consuming", and he still has a lot of unrealized plans, which he intends to do.