Last Airbender, the - An "Elemental" Mess  
| I haven't seen the original show that The Last Airbender is based on. I actually saw about 5 minutes of one just the other day to sort of get a feel for what the show was like. In those minutes, I felt cheesiness and a sense of urgency. I thought to myself, "Ok, so I should expect some cheese and a rushed feeling." Then, I read some reviews and they complained about how cheesy the film was and that it felt rushed. A perfect match, no? Well, I definitely got what I expected and then some.
The story couldn't be any more of a melting pot of cliches (but I can't fault M. Night for that because it's an adaptation). Hell, just watch the trailer and it mentions about 4 cliches in a 2 minute gap - "the last of his kind," "all that remains of a once powerful nation," the chosen one," bring balance to a world at war." The story seems complex but it really isn't. There is this kid, Aang, and he can bend air. There are also these nations of people that can bend water, Earth and fire. But Aang, he is an Avatar, and he can bend all of the elements. Like the trailer said, "he is the last of his kind." He must stop the Fire nation (of course it's the fire nation) from destroying the world and taking it over (another cliche?). I think the story could have been interesting, but it should have been taken more seriously and made more PG-13 - more mature.
The film was down right aggravating to watch. From the acting to the dialog they had to spew, the film fails on so many levels and it pains me to say it, but The Last Airbender is M. Night Shyamalan's worst movie to date (and I've liked all his other ones - yes, even Lady in the Water and The Happening). Back to the cheesy thing. I guess the difference is that the show knew it was cheesy and was meant to be, and the film felt very serious and came off as cheesy. I don't know if was the actors themselves, or the dialog (perhaps it was a combination of the two), but almost everything that came out of anyone's mouth was so laughable the film almost became a comedy. Either way though, the acting was terrible by all involved.
I hate it when there is "explanatory" dialog. It annoys me to no end. I realize the show is meant for kids, but the movie didn't have to treat its audience like a bunch of them. Also, the show has time to develop the characters and explain things; the movie doesn't. I'm pretty sure we could pick up on stuff as the film progresses. The narration was stupid and pointless as well. I'm positive that the film left out pieces of the show, but you have to realize that they couldn't include everything. I understand that, but like I said, I haven't seen the show so it doesn't matter to me.
I can't go on. This is killing me. My love for M. Night has finally been taken down a notch. The film is bad, like really bad but I am still looking forward to M. Night's future projects whether they be writing, directing or producing - he will rise again! The film looked good, with some decent effects, but overall, this is one that you should avoid. It was one giant mess of a film. Oh, and as for the ending, if they do make another one then hopefully they serious it up some because this was just a joke.
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