NOTE:1st and foremost, motherfuck James Cameron for taking the Avatar name for his last film! THIS is the real Avatar, The Last Airbender! And now on the business of reviewing... 
The Last Airbender is a good example of how well animation can be translated into live-action...IF you're a fan!
by
Rocky Miavia
Year ago I found myself hooked on an animated TV series on Nickelodeon. Yes, that channel for kids. Avatar: The Last Airbender grew to become one of the most popular animated series on American TV across a range of age groups. It's a no-brainer that said series would eventually get the Hollywood live-action treatment. Controversial, hit-or-miss director, M. Night Shyamalan's name on the product became a quick source of dismay and woe amongst Avatar fans. Rest assured fanboys, Shymalan has delivered a faithful, yet heavily condensed, translation of the Book One: Water chapter to the big screen. When you see a movie like this begin with the same intro sequence as the cartoon it's usually a good sign that it wasn't Hollyweirded (not a real word) up too bad. And yes, Appa the flying bison is also in the film as is the Monkeybat named Momo. You can put those pitchforks and torches down now.
For those who never saw the animated series, The Last Airbender is about a powerful young boy named Aang that has been found frozen in ice for 100 years and just so happens to be the Avatar. The Avatar is a constantly reincarnated being who has control over the world's four elements: air, water, earth, and fire. His or her purpose is to keep the world and it's four elemental based nations in balance. But since Aang's 100 year slumber the fire nation has incited a war on all other nations and killed or enslaved anyone who bends the other 3 elements. And though the fire nation is running things, they are searching for the whereabouts of the long lost Avatar. Especially the obsessive Fire Lord's scarred son, banished Prince Zuuko. Aang and his discoverers turned companions, Sokka and Katara, flee from the fire nation in a quest to teach their Avatar the art of bending the water element. To say that this movie compresses a lot of the animated show's first season is an understatement.
One of the points of contention I've seen frequently up to the release of The Last Airbender is regarding the casting. There have been complaints about their being too many white actors in a film based on a cartoon that embranced multiple ethnicities. The live-action film is no different as the cast is very multi-racial. Dev Patel, formerly of Slumdog Millionaire, is cast as Prince Zuuko. Noa Ringer plays Aang, Damon Gupton portrays Monk Gyatsu, and the rest of the cast is a variation of other races with only a handful of caucasians. Given Hollywood's usual, total white-washing of movies this should please most here.
As previously stated, this movie translates the animated show to live-action and heavily condenses the 1st season of the show into a one hour and forty-three minute movie. This is the one thing that might have been a mistake. In today's world of two and a half to three hour movies why not just extend the running time and flesh out the story a bit better. For those not familiar with the show and its plot, this movie may be very confusing at times. The pacing is good, but honestly a lot just seems to happen way too fast and the moviegoer is expected to fill in some of the gaps from the TV show's content. Yes, the movie is that accurate to the show's plot with a few minor tweaks here and there to keep things moving and condense the plot more.
The Last Airbender is either going to make you happy to be a fan of the show or make you hate M. Night Shyamalan even more. If you're a fan of the show you probably will be okay with this movie. If not a fan, this might be a pass for you. As a fan, I liked it and can't wait to see Book Two: Earth get translated to live-action. Granted, Noah Ringer needs to work on his acting a bit more the next time around as should Jackson Rathbone who played Sokka. Dev Patel as Zuuko was perfect and easily the best casting choice of the whole film. Honestly, everyone who played a major fire nation character was great in their role. Once again, this movie should've been at least another thirty minutes longer to help flesh it out better. But if you're a big fan of the Avatar cartoon then give The Last Airbender a peek. Non-fans, take in a cheap matinee showing.
FINAL NOTE: Seychelle Gabriel (Princess Yue) is fine as hell and I wants some of that Mexican/Italian pussy!
The Last Airbender is a good example of how well animation can be translated into live-action...IF you're a fan!
by
Rocky Miavia
Year ago I found myself hooked on an animated TV series on Nickelodeon. Yes, that channel for kids. Avatar: The Last Airbender grew to become one of the most popular animated series on American TV across a range of age groups. It's a no-brainer that said series would eventually get the Hollywood live-action treatment. Controversial, hit-or-miss director, M. Night Shyamalan's name on the product became a quick source of dismay and woe amongst Avatar fans. Rest assured fanboys, Shymalan has delivered a faithful, yet heavily condensed, translation of the Book One: Water chapter to the big screen. When you see a movie like this begin with the same intro sequence as the cartoon it's usually a good sign that it wasn't Hollyweirded (not a real word) up too bad. And yes, Appa the flying bison is also in the film as is the Monkeybat named Momo. You can put those pitchforks and torches down now.
For those who never saw the animated series, The Last Airbender is about a powerful young boy named Aang that has been found frozen in ice for 100 years and just so happens to be the Avatar. The Avatar is a constantly reincarnated being who has control over the world's four elements: air, water, earth, and fire. His or her purpose is to keep the world and it's four elemental based nations in balance. But since Aang's 100 year slumber the fire nation has incited a war on all other nations and killed or enslaved anyone who bends the other 3 elements. And though the fire nation is running things, they are searching for the whereabouts of the long lost Avatar. Especially the obsessive Fire Lord's scarred son, banished Prince Zuuko. Aang and his discoverers turned companions, Sokka and Katara, flee from the fire nation in a quest to teach their Avatar the art of bending the water element. To say that this movie compresses a lot of the animated show's first season is an understatement.
One of the points of contention I've seen frequently up to the release of The Last Airbender is regarding the casting. There have been complaints about their being too many white actors in a film based on a cartoon that embranced multiple ethnicities. The live-action film is no different as the cast is very multi-racial. Dev Patel, formerly of Slumdog Millionaire, is cast as Prince Zuuko. Noa Ringer plays Aang, Damon Gupton portrays Monk Gyatsu, and the rest of the cast is a variation of other races with only a handful of caucasians. Given Hollywood's usual, total white-washing of movies this should please most here.
As previously stated, this movie translates the animated show to live-action and heavily condenses the 1st season of the show into a one hour and forty-three minute movie. This is the one thing that might have been a mistake. In today's world of two and a half to three hour movies why not just extend the running time and flesh out the story a bit better. For those not familiar with the show and its plot, this movie may be very confusing at times. The pacing is good, but honestly a lot just seems to happen way too fast and the moviegoer is expected to fill in some of the gaps from the TV show's content. Yes, the movie is that accurate to the show's plot with a few minor tweaks here and there to keep things moving and condense the plot more.
The Last Airbender is either going to make you happy to be a fan of the show or make you hate M. Night Shyamalan even more. If you're a fan of the show you probably will be okay with this movie. If not a fan, this might be a pass for you. As a fan, I liked it and can't wait to see Book Two: Earth get translated to live-action. Granted, Noah Ringer needs to work on his acting a bit more the next time around as should Jackson Rathbone who played Sokka. Dev Patel as Zuuko was perfect and easily the best casting choice of the whole film. Honestly, everyone who played a major fire nation character was great in their role. Once again, this movie should've been at least another thirty minutes longer to help flesh it out better. But if you're a big fan of the Avatar cartoon then give The Last Airbender a peek. Non-fans, take in a cheap matinee showing.
FINAL NOTE: Seychelle Gabriel (Princess Yue) is fine as hell and I wants some of that Mexican/Italian pussy!
Truth. Cartoons back in the day were made for adults. They were used to make adults feel happy during the great depression and WWII.
