The Last Airbender

I'd like to say it's not fair to blame M. Night Shymalan for The Last Airbender's many problems. Of all his films, this is likely the least personal, being more of a studio effort than anything else. I'd like to say it's not his fault that the script is lousy, opting for mindless recitation of each character's motivations rather than effective storytelling. I'd like to say that it's not his fault that a whopping $280M was spent on production and marketing. I'd like to say that it's not his fault that the casting is heavily skewed against the cartoon's clear Asian influence. I consider myself a big fan of Shymalan's, despite some of his most recent failures. I'd like to say none of this was his fault. But since he directed the project from start to finish, wrote the script and greenlit the major casting decisions I can't absolve him of anything. In The Last Airbender he's created his most perplexing film yet, and not in a good way. One that shuts out die hard fans but leaves the door barely cracked for any newcomers looking for a new, kid friendly adventure series to invest in.

The Last Airbender's themes revolve around racial harmony and finding balance with nature, but you'll have to dig pretty deep to find it. In this world Earth, Air, Fire and Water are tied into four very distinct nations. Each nation is in tune with the spirt of their respective element, giving them the ability to control or "bend" them to their will.  The Fire Nation is by far the most aggressive and brutal. Getting a little hot headed, the Fire Nation launches a devastating attack against the rest of the world, banning any other nation from using their powers openly.

Only one thing can restore the proper balance to the world, and that's the arrival of the Avatar, a powerful messiah-type being capable of bending all of the earth's elements, but he hasn't been seen in over a century. Discovered trapped in some mystical dome by Katara(Nicola Peltz) and her brother Sokka(Jackson Rathbone, who I didn't even recognize) of the Southern Water Tribe, a young airbender named Aang(Noah Ringer) claims to be him. Over a hundred years before, it was discovered that he was the next incarnation of the Avatar, but in fear of the terrible burden he would have to bear, Aang fled before his training could be completed. His people long dead at the hands of the Fire Nation, Aang must accept his fate and return peace to the world.

Aang's quest draws the attention of a number of folks looking to cut his new life short and send him back into reincarnation mode. The Fire Nation has been searching for Aang for years, knowing his arrival could be their downfall. Prince Zuko(Slumdog Millionaire's Dev Patel), shamed and banished son of the Fire Nation's king(Cliff Curtis), has been hunting Aang as a means of getting back in his father's good graces.

There's some mumbo jumbo about spirit dragons or something, but Shymalan's script never makes it clear what exactly their purpose is. In another shining example of why film trilogies should never be planned out ahead of time, The Last Airbender plays like a setup film, with glaring informational omissions that I can only assume will be cleared up in movies 2 & 3. As a standalone, you'll be hard pressed to find a story more confusing and incomplete, which is even more confounding since all any of the characters seem to do is stand around and explain the plot. They do it so often, they even explain the story to those who are in comas, unconscious, or in deep meditation. Maybe they talk so much to keep themselves awake? That I could understand.

Don't even get me started on the 3-D, which again adds nothing of value and was clearly tacked on at the end to increase box office returns. All it does is render the film dark and lifeless, which is a shame because for the most part the effects are simple and effective. This being an adventure featuring common elements like fire and water, huge spectacles aren't exactly necessary. The benders use a combination of martial arts andTai-Chi like movements to channel their powers. It doesn't look like it should've cost $150M, but it does the job well enough.

I wish I could say the same thing about the casting, which besides scrubbing out much of the cartoon's ethnicity then went out of it's way to cast the most boring assemblage this side of Narnia.  No offense to Noah Ringer, but I've got more lively gymwear. If this is what Shymalan's white-washing offers us, then bring me Jaden Smith. STAT. Not even Dev Patel, so beloved after Slumdog Millionaire, could make heads or tails out of it.

Any glimmer of hope that subsequent flicks will improve are snuffed out by the fact that Shymalan has signed on for two more movies as writer and director. Airbender should have an epic feel to it. This is a massive story being undertaken here, but Shyamalan gives it all the spectacle of an NBC disaster movie. I can't speak as to whether the production was rushed, but the scene editing is downright atrocious at times, mostly during the film's quieter moments. I'm sure he paid plenty of attention to his own "blink and you'll miss him" appearance as an enemy guard.

The more that I write, the more bones I find to pick. Probably best that I stop here. If only Airbender would do the same, but it's all but assured a $300M worldwide take and at least one sequel. I refuse to accept that M. Night Shyamalan is a hack who peaked after his first three movies and has been phoning it in ever since, but movies like this back my argument into a corner. There's still a pretty darn good idea buried under all the ice and snow, but maybe Shyamalan should consider handing the reigns over to somebody else next time. Just an idea.