Welcome to a special holiday edition of Born to Watch as we kick off 2026 with our first episode of the year, diving headfirst into James Cameron's latest visual behemoth, Avatar: Fire and Ash. Released during the peak Christmas blockbuster window, this third chapter continues Cameron's decades-long obsession with Pandora, spectacle, and pushing cinematic technology to its absolute limits. In this Avatar Fire and Ash Review, Whitey and Damo reunite for what has now become a strange but sacred tradition, reviewing each Avatar film together as it hits cinemas. Sixteen years after the original Avatar changed blockbuster filmmaking forever, Fire and Ash arrives with enormous expectations, a massive runtime, and the promise of something darker, angrier, and more volatile than anything we've seen on Pandora before.

Picking up shortly after the events of The Way of Water, the Sully family are still dealing with grief, fractured relationships, and the relentless pursuit of humanity's returning forces. This time, however, the danger doesn't just come from sky people and recombinants. We're introduced to the Ash People, a fire-driven Na'vi tribe led by the ferocious and unforgettable Varang. Their volcanic environment, brutal ideology, and complete rejection of Eywa mark the franchise's most radical departure to date.

Visually, Fire and Ash is everything you expect from Cameron. The world-building is astonishing, with volcanic landscapes, new creatures, and large-scale action sequences that exist purely to remind you why Avatar films demand the biggest screen possible. Whether it's underwater chaos, airborne combat, or creatures that feel ripped straight from Cameron's sketchbooks, the film is an undeniable technical achievement.

But Born to Watch isn't here to admire pretty pixels. Whitey and Damo dig into the film's biggest talking points, including the now-familiar Avatar formula, the film's staggering three-hour-plus runtime, and whether this chapter actually moves the story forward or simply spins its wheels. Is this Avatar 3, or Avatar 2.5? Does the franchise still have emotional weight, or has it become a tech demo in search of a story?

There's plenty of discussion around returning villain Quaritch, whose moral tug-of-war continues to be one of the franchise's more compelling arcs, and Spider's expanding role as the human caught between two worlds. The episode also tackles the darker tone of Fire and Ash, its surprisingly violent moments, and the question of whether Cameron is setting up a satisfying endgame or stretching Pandora beyond breaking point.

As always, the episode starts spoiler-light before diving fully into spoilers, dissecting character arcs, repetitive beats, and the growing sense that Avatar may be more about visual wonder than narrative payoff. There's praise where it's due, criticism where it's earned, and a lot of laughs along the way.

If you loved the first two Avatar films, this one will feel familiar, immersive, and impressive. If you've ever questioned where this franchise is heading, Fire and Ash may give you just as many questions as answers.

JOIN THE CONVERSATION

Is Avatar still cinema's ultimate big-screen spectacle?
Is this chapter bold evolution or safe repetition?
Can James Cameron realistically deliver two more Avatar films?

Listen now on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or at BornToWatch.com.au

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In our Ghostbusters 2 (1989) Review, Whitey and Damo strap the proton packs back on and head to New York City for a sequel that arrived five years too late and never quite captured the lightning in a bottle of the original. After seeing Ghostbusters (1984) an almost unhealthy number of times, expectations for the follow-up were sky high. What we got instead was a softer, louder, more kid-friendly sequel that trades sharp satire and genuine menace for slime, singing and some very questionable creative choices.

Set against a New Year’s Eve backdrop, Ghostbusters II reunites Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Harold Ramis and Ernie Hudson as the once-celebrated paranormal heroes, now sidelined, sued and reduced to performing at children’s birthday parties. When Dana Barrett’s baby becomes the target of an ancient Carpathian villain named Vigo, the boys are forced back into action to stop an underground river of pink slime, fueled by negative emotions, from swallowing New York whole.

On paper, it sounds like a solid premise. In execution, it feels like a sequel constantly fighting itself. The episode breaks down how Ghostbusters II leans heavily on repeating beats from the original, courtroom chaos, montages, and paranormal mayhem, without ever understanding why those moments worked the first time. The result is a film that feels over-lit, over-explained and strangely toothless.

Whitey and Damo dig into the tonal confusion at the heart of the movie. Is this meant to be for kids, adults, or fans of the original? The answer seems to be “all of the above”, which unfortunately means it never fully commits to any of them. The darker elements, Vigo, the possessed nanny, the skull-filled subway, hint at something more sinister, but they are quickly undercut by jokes that miss the mark and a finale that relies on good vibes and sing-alongs to save the day.

There is still fun to be had. Rick Moranis is once again the MVP, delivering genuine laughs as Lewis Tully, especially in the courtroom scenes and his chemistry with Annie Potts' Janine. Their relationship is one of the few elements that actually evolves from the first film and provides some heart amid the chaos. The Ecto-1 makeover also earns praise, because if you are going to revisit this universe, you may as well do it in style.

Unfortunately, other characters fare far worse. Winston is once again sidelined and reduced to explaining the plot in plain English before disappearing for long stretches. Sigourney Weaver, fresh off Aliens and Gorillas in the Mist, is criminally underused. Bill Murray's Peter Venkman, once effortlessly charming, feels disengaged and oddly mean-spirited, lacking the spark that made him iconic.

The episode also takes aim at the film's baffling logic, from characters wandering into danger without proton packs to slime that magically stops affecting people once jackets come off. And then there is Vigo himself, a villain with an impressively grim backstory who somehow becomes one of the least threatening antagonists of the era.

By the time the Statue of Liberty moonwalks through Manhattan and New Yorkers save the day through collective positivity, Born to Watch has a verdict. Ghostbusters II is not unwatchable, but it is the definition of a sequel made by committee, one that misunderstands its own appeal and plays it far too safe.

It is a fascinating case study in how not to follow a classic.

JOIN THE CONVERSATION
Did Ghostbusters II deserve a reappraisal, or is it a nostalgia trap?
Was Vigo ever scary, or just underwritten?
Should this franchise have stopped after one film?

Listen now on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or at BornToWatch.com.au

#BornToWatch #Ghostbusters2 #Ghostbusters1990 #MoviePodcast #FilmReview #80sMovies #90sSequels #IvanReitman #BillMurray #MovieNostalgia

It's Die Hard 2 Review time, and because it's Christmas Eve, lightning has apparently decided to strike twice. After saving Nakatomi Plaza barefoot and bleeding in 1988, John McClane is back in 1990, this time trading skyscrapers for snowstorms, terrorists, and one very inconvenient airport. Die Hard 2: Die Harder had massive shoes to fill, and the big question is simple: Did it deliver, or did it just repeat the formula louder?

In this episode of Born to Watch, Whitey, Damo, and Dan reunite for a festive breakdown of one of the most debated action sequels of all time. Expectations were sky-high after the original Die Hard rewrote the action rulebook, and Die Hard 2 wastes no time reminding us of that pressure. Bigger explosions, more moving parts, and a whole airport at stake instead of one building. On paper, it should work perfectly.

What follows is a classic Born to Watch deep dive. From nude Tai Chi villains with suspiciously zero side-dick continuity to John McClane apparently teleporting between airport locations, nothing escapes scrutiny. The boys unpack the strange creative choices, including the baffling need for a full SWAT team that exists solely to be wiped out, the world's loudest baggage-area shootout that nobody hears, and the endless Basil Exposition dialogue that explains things we can already see happening on screen.

William Sadler's villain, Stuart, comes under the microscope, a tough gig when you're following one of cinema's all-time great bad guys. Is he intimidating, forgettable, or just unfairly compared to Hans Gruber? Meanwhile, William Atherton's return as Dick Thornburg raises serious questions about whether this character needed to exist at all, beyond being professionally annoying.

The conversation drifts exactly where you'd expect, into airport etiquette, old-school plane phones that cost more than the flight itself, snowmobiles that definitely don't work on water, and the absolute insanity of an airport runway having a convenient metal grate in the middle of it. There's also love for Renny Harlin's maximalist direction, acknowledging that while Die Hard 2 may not be subtle, it is relentlessly committed to spectacle.

As always, the episode isn't just about what doesn't work. The lads give Die Hard 2 its flowers where deserved, recognising the impossible task of following a cultural phenomenon and the genuine effort to recreate the tone, humour, and pacing of the original. There are discussions around box office success, audience expectations, and why some sequels are remembered more harshly than they deserve.

The episode rounds out with the full Born to Watch experience, sleepers, duds, snorbs reports, random 1990 nostalgia, and side tangents that spiral into Ford Fairlane, Chuck Norris, and the best movie years of all time. It's chaotic, opinionated, and exactly how Die Hard 2 should be discussed, loudly, critically, and with mates.

If Die Hard is a perfect Christmas miracle, Die Hard 2 is the messy, over-decorated sequel that still shows up to the party. Strap in, because this one absolutely earns the Die Harder title.

JOIN THE CONVERSATION

• Is Die Hard 2 unfairly judged because of the original?
• Is this still a Christmas movie, or just airport chaos?
• What’s the most ridiculous moment you'll always defend?

Listen now on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or at BornToWatch.com.au

#DieHard2Review #BornToWatch #DieHarder #BruceWillis #ActionMovies #90sAction #MoviePodcast #ChristmasMovies #ActionSequels #FilmReview