Cliff Curtis in The Last Airbender. Photo / Supplied
Rating: 3/5
Verdict: Great story, but the execution is on the clunky side.
M. Night Shyamalan has previously tackled dead people (The Sixth Sense), otherworldly spirits (Lady in the Water) and extraterrestrials (The Signs). It's this fondness for supernatural plots that make him a logical choice to adapt and direct this fantasy adventure based on the Nickelodeon anime series Avatar: The Last Airbender.
However, in taking on his first big-scale action film, which plays in 3D and 2D, he may have become a little over-excited. There is a lot for Shyamalan to fit in: a fantasy world to create, a back story to explain, a variety of characters to introduce, and large scale effects and action sequences to pull off. He has certainly thrown everything at it, but has got a little lost in the process.
The story, which centres around an Avatar, a 12-year-old boy called Aang (Ringer), is imaginative and engaging, especially if you've ever wondered what Lucas, Tolkein and Philip Pullman would come up with together if they had the chance. Aang is the only being who can "bend" or manipulate natural elements with kung-fu and ta'i chi-like moves, speak to the spirit world and bring peace to a world made up of four nations known by the water, earth, air and fire elements. Shyamalan makes this plot much more complicated than it needs to be, and when the action kicks in he struggles to balance it with the unfolding story. As a result, the film's climax just passes us by.
The cast, including Cliff Curtis and Slumdog Millionaire's Dev Patel, do their best with the wooden dialogue, and Shyamalan has created a visually wonderful world. In fact, this is probably one film worth seeing in 2D so you can really enjoy the fantasy world in detail, without the hindrance of 3D glasses.
Much like the film adaptation of Pullman's novel The Golden Compass, The Last Airbender suffers from being an introduction to an ongoing series; it stops abruptly, but with the promise of more to come. So though it's not Shyamalan's most solid work there is enough here to get you interested in where he might take this story next.
Cast: Noah Ringer, Cliff Curtis
Director: M. Night Shyamalan
Running time: 105 mins
Rating: PG, low level violence
-TimeOut
