The Last Airbender
In a mystical land where cultures follow spirit guides and have the abilities to control the four elements of nature, earth, air, water, and fire, what was once peaceful now appears to be out of balance. In a struggle for power the Fire Nation wrought with technology is searching for a way to conquer the other nations and destroy the spirits of the old world. Now Aang (Noah Ringer), an Avatar and the last descendant of the Air Nation, and his friends Katara (Nicola Peltz) and Sokka (Jackson Rathbone) of the Water Nation must team up to restore balance to the world. But what of Prince Zuko (Dev Patel) and his father the evil fire lord Ozai (Cliff Curtis), will they actually be swayed to give in on their hunger for power and honor?
Based on the wildly popular kids anime cartoon, there’s good news and bad news on this one. Unfortunately both sides of the news boil down to M. Night Shyamalan who has taken the honors of writing and directing this latest adaptation. In short I’m sorry to report Shyamalan has been diagnosed with the tragic disorder known as George Lucas Syndrome; a creative disorder that renders one incapable of writing a screenplay worth two cents. There is however an upside to this malady, it leaves a director still capable of producing a very impressive and pretty looking film. Sadly pretty pictures can’t overpower the disastrously poor writing and half baked direction of the child actors in this otherwise potentially great concept of a film. Bottom line, if you have young-ish kids that follow the cartoon, this might be okay, but anyone over 12 will probably walk away feeling a little cheated. The Last Airbender is rated PG.