Jeff Scott
July 2nd, 2010, 08:45 AM
My son and I have been looking forward to M. Knight Shamalan's The Last Airbender since we found out it was being made into a film several months ago. Fans of the Nickelodeon cartoon will recognize that it should have rightly been entitled Avatar: The Last Airbender, the title of the cartoon, but couldn't for obvious reasons. (You can find a plot synopsis here (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Airbender#Season_One_.28Book_One:_Water.29)if you're unfamiliar with the story. This movie is based on the 1st book.) The movie has received some of the worst reviews I've ever read. Mine will not be so harsh. I enjoyed it.
I'm guessing that most of the movie critics are forgetting 1 important thing- the movie was made for 6-12 year old boys not movie critics. If you are going to the movie to judge the quality of the acting you'll be disappointed. Mark Hamill would have fit in well in this film. BUT, if you were simply a fan of the cartoon, I don't think you left too disappointed- particularly if you are 8.
The cartoon series is comprised of several "books" which each have several chapters. Going in, I was concerned that the producers were going to try to cram all 3 books into 1 movie. I didn't see any way this could be possible and stay true to the story line. Fortunately, they did not, and the movie was simply based on the first book and it followed the plot well. It is clear that the plan is to make 2 sequels based on the second and third book. I hope they do, because I think it's a cute story, and my son LOVES it. It's a little thing we did together that I think he'll always remember.
So, if you are unfamiliar with the cartoon (available for online viewing on netflix) don't waste your money. Not only will you not like the acting or production value, you'll likely think the plot is dumb too. However, if you are a fan of the cartoon, it is likely that you'll leave satisfied, but not blown away. I'd give it 2.5 out of 5 stars.
(Disclaimer: I only saw the 2D version. Critics were particularly harsh about the quality of the 3D version, so I wouldn't bother with it. Save a buck.)
I'm guessing that most of the movie critics are forgetting 1 important thing- the movie was made for 6-12 year old boys not movie critics. If you are going to the movie to judge the quality of the acting you'll be disappointed. Mark Hamill would have fit in well in this film. BUT, if you were simply a fan of the cartoon, I don't think you left too disappointed- particularly if you are 8.
The cartoon series is comprised of several "books" which each have several chapters. Going in, I was concerned that the producers were going to try to cram all 3 books into 1 movie. I didn't see any way this could be possible and stay true to the story line. Fortunately, they did not, and the movie was simply based on the first book and it followed the plot well. It is clear that the plan is to make 2 sequels based on the second and third book. I hope they do, because I think it's a cute story, and my son LOVES it. It's a little thing we did together that I think he'll always remember.
So, if you are unfamiliar with the cartoon (available for online viewing on netflix) don't waste your money. Not only will you not like the acting or production value, you'll likely think the plot is dumb too. However, if you are a fan of the cartoon, it is likely that you'll leave satisfied, but not blown away. I'd give it 2.5 out of 5 stars.
(Disclaimer: I only saw the 2D version. Critics were particularly harsh about the quality of the 3D version, so I wouldn't bother with it. Save a buck.)