Reviews Film / The Last Airbender

Poor Adaptation, but Narmtastic Acting makes it worth a Viewing!

Not much can be said about M. Night Shyamalan's "The Last Airbender" that hasn't already been said. The "pragmatic changes" were poorly done, the characterization was shallow, and it ultimately felt like an "In Name Only" adaptation. Some of the changes I found perfectly understandable such as the Firebenders needing a source to use their abilities or playing up more on Aang's pacifism. The problem however is the changes left much to be desired. Fire Benders hardly ever actually use their abilities, even when a fire source is present and the Avatar's required pacifism goes against the major conflict Aang faced in the finale of the Cartoon Series.

The acting was rather hit or miss. Noah Ringer as Aang is often the source of most the movie's mocking. As opposed to the cheerful child in the show, Noah portrays Aang as a sullen and depressed, and really doesn't feel like a kid who could inspire hope in the people in the world. Nicola Peltz as Katara doesn't fair much better. Katara and Sokka both essentially play the roles as Satellite Characters, but in the case of Katara, Peltz seems completely unable to express any form of emotions, and as a result, Katara always appears with a blank stare. On the positive side, I actually did like Dev Patel as Zuko. True, most of Zuko's more defining moments were dropped from the film, but at the same time Zuko comes off as an actual conflicted character. Unlike his animated counterpart, he's more restraint and shows reluctance for the actions he must take. I'd go as far to say that Dev Patel was the best actor in the movie.

As my title show, I didn't completely write off the film. I'll be the first to admit, as far as Adaptations go, the film was utter hogwash. Despite this though, the acting and fight scenes were so melodramatic I couldn't help but find the film to fall in the "So Bad It's Good" territory. It's a shame the such a great series had to be stuck with an adaptation like this, but the hilarious narm it provides reaches the level of Dragon Ball Z Evolution and The Room. To the very least, film is worth watching just because it provides a good laugh.