Directed by: M. Night Shyamalan
Starring: Noah Ringer, Nicola Peltz, Dev Patel, Jackson Rathbone
Distributed by: Paramount Pictures
Rating: PG
Running time: 103 minutes
Our Score: 1 out of 5 stars
After watching “Signs”, I said “Boy, this guy is good”. Then from there it was all downhill. After watching “The Village”, I said “Ouch, bad choice”, Couldn’t even finish “Lady in the Water” and “The Happening” was boring and repetitive after the first 25 minutes and had one terrible ending. “The Last Airbender” already has a built in audience from its Nickelodeon animation TV show but it could be his worst attempt yet. Shyamalan should definitely consider early retirement.
I do not remember the last time I was so uninterested in a movie. The story tells about a lost legend, known as “Avatar” (no relation to James Cameron’s film). Katara (Nicola Peltz) and her older warrior brother, Sokka (Twilight’s Jackson Rathbone) find Aang frozen under water while hunting. It turns out he was frozen or something (it isn’t explained well) for 100 years while running away from his village. Zuko, the Prince of the Fire Nation (Dev Patel), finds out the “Avatar” lives and sets out to capture him to bring back to him father to reverse his banishment due to disobeying orders. Aang reveals he doesn’t known the other elements besides air bending. So Aang and his new friends attempt to teach him the skills he lacks while trying to avoid the baddies.
I know sorry I was just as bored writing that paragraph. The film never really takes off at all. It relies on voice-over to fill in the story gaps and it still doesn’t explain much. The other characters besides Aang (Noah Ringer) are uninteresting and feel unnecessary. Jackson Rathbone from the “Twilight Saga” after shinning in “Eclipse” and gets pushed aside in the story and is pretty much useless. It is too bad because Sokka could have been a cool character. Dev Patel who was so great in “Slumdog Millionaire” feels lost and under appreciated. His character isn’t really sure if he is bad or not, just wasted talent. The special effects in the film are honestly not phenomenal and you wonder where the $150 million dollar budget went to. James Newton Howard’s score is the film’s only really good aspect.
Save the best part for last. No, I did not see the film in 3D. “The Last Airbender” was converted post-production and we all know what happened with “Clash of the Titans”. The film is very dark and leaves no room for added 3D depth. Stay home and watch the Nickelodeon cartoon, you will be more entertained in one episode of the show than this whole movie.
Check out the my first attempt of the best times to go pee during the movie at RunPee.com, according to Movie Mikes.
