The Last Airbender
July 1, 2010
Director: M. Night Shyamalan
Starring: Noah Ringer, Dev Patel
Release Date: July 1, 2010
The Last Movie M. Night Should Ever Write
The Last Airbender is horrible. It’s so bad, in fact, that I didn’t really mind the pair of chattering mommies that sat in the row directly behind me. Their otherwise inane complaints about babysitters and grocery stores afforded me a few moments of relief from the painfully simplistic dialogue that plagues M. Night’s most recent film.
At this point in my reviews, I typically try to provide a summary of what the movie is about—the “story,” as it were. 
I’ll do the same here, but forgive me if I seem like I’m wandering from one seemingly non-interrelated plot point to another. I’m only trying to mimic the pacing and structure of Shyamalan’s Nickelodeon-funded tale about a boy named Aang who has the power to “bend” (code here for manipulate) the elements (no, not tungsten or uranium). Here, it’s all about earth, wind, and fire (no, not the band). Water is a large part of the proceedings, too.
Anyway, this kid—who’s been mysteriously frozen inside a sphere with his magical pet that’s directly reminiscent of Falcor from The Neverending Story—is released by a sibling pair of hunters, taken back to their village, and then immediately captured by the estranged prince of the Fire Nation. Aang escapes via Falcor, inspires a rebellion among the people of the now shamed Earth kingdom, and eventually visits the land of the Water people so that he can learn how to make waves.
As you’ve likely noticed, the whole thing is akin to a bed time story made up on the fly. In this case, it sounds like something that’s come from an unimaginative and impatient parent who wants nothing more than for their child to drift off into la-la land so they can crack open a cold one and zone out in front of the boob tube. The dialogue in The Last Airbender reflects this sentiment, with lines like “This isn’t good! We must do something.” popping up far more often than they should. The acting is atrocious, too. It’s been quite a while since I’ve seen actors deliver performances in such an unnatural and forced manner. I’m not an eye-roller, but here I found myself doing just that; I also sighed loudly and shifted in my seat in a vain effort to shake the tangible sense of doom I felt surrounding the once mighty creator of The Sixth Sense. Shyamalan also tried to work a little humor into the script, but when it emerges it’s stilted and embarrassingly unfunny. The same goes for a tawdry romance that appears between two lead characters, both of whom we have absolutely zero emotion invested in. The thing also ends in an episodic manner, suggesting that our ill-fated writer/director assumes a sequel (or perhaps a trilogy) is guaranteed.
Before I predict the end of the world, there is one thing in The Last Airbender that could possibly be viewed as positive. There are two—yes, I counted them—fight sequences that threaten to be at least mildly engaging, but they end up being far too brief to leave a lasting impression. Really, they’re all the more disappointing because of the squandered potential they ultimately represent.
Okay, so that was more of a negative observation. But it’s not my fault.
I’ve really been hoping Shyamalan would be able to find a project that garners him at least an iota of the credibility he once had, but as the years have gone by it’s become apparent that it likely isn’t going to happen. This is a real shame, because I still believe he’s a talented director (his continued ability to wring any semblance of emotion out of his actors is certainly becoming questionable, though). After this debacle, I’ll be shocked if he’s ever again given the sort of free reign he’s enjoyed thus far in his movie-making career.
out of 5
–Chris Flowers
Rated PG.
Check out (if you dare) a trailer for The Last Airbender:
