30 Day Movie Challenge: Day 2

Well, yesterday is history, and tomorrow is a mystery. But today is a gift. That's why the call it the present. Thank you Kung Fu Panda for one of the best quotes ever. But today isn't about Kung Fu Panda because the topic of today's challenge is...

THE MOVIE THAT WAS MY BIGGEST DISAPPOINTMENT

This is without any question The Last Airbender. I am a huge fan of Avatar: The Last Airbender on Nickelodeon and the show is actually one of the best made shows on television. It mixes great action sequences with witty dialogue and a spell-binding story. There are lovable characters, truly dastardly villains, and heart-breaking moments for the casual fan. But for more hardcore fans (kinda like myself), there are Easter eggs like the cabbage man. But the movie was atrocious. I have nothing against the casting of this film other than the fact that they all sucked. Seriously, M. Night Shyamalan? You considered Nicola Peltz (Katara) your most surefire casting decision since Haley Joel Osment? She was wooden and lost instead of strong-willed. Sokka wasn't the same sarcastic, meat-loving character, but an extra. He had no use in the film. Aang and Zukko, though both were exaggerated, were well acted. But overall, the casting sucked.

That's not my only beef. As a fan of the series, I was saddened that Shyamalan did not stick closer to the story. There are so many plot-holes that it would require an entire website to describe it. But the biggest one is the fact that fire-benders cannot create their own fire. That was the entire basis of the fire-benders. Their strength derived from their ability to create fire from within. Now they needed some sort of source. Sure this makes more sense when juxtaposed with water-benders who also have to use their surroundings, but water is everywhere, but fire has to be made. Where was Suki? Why did they narrate almost every single episode? These plot holes aren't just affecting fans of the show, but also viewers of the movie. These plot holes created a discontinuity in the film, making it feel chopped and stiff.

So this was my biggest disappointment because the series is such a great basis for a movie. The story is enthralling. A young kid frozen in an iceberg for 100 years all of sudden has to save the world from the Fire Nation with his rag tag team of fellow benders and warriors. A disgraced prince has to find this child in order to restore his honor, but he undergoes an even bigger journey during this quest. It's a love story between our adolescent heroes Aang and Katara, Sokka and Suki, Zuko and Mai. In the 17th episode of the 3rd season, this team watched a play that depicts their journey, but it was their review that really sticks.

Zuko: "That wasn't a good play."
Aang: "I'll say."
Katara: "No kidding."
Suki: "Horrible."
Toph: "You said it."
Sokka: "But the effects were decent."

It was a spectacle. It looked pretty, but unless you couldn't hear anything, this movie was horrendous. A disappointment because it should have been amazing, an iconic piece of work, the first part of this decade's next great trilogy. But now, we're limping into the expected second movie, hoping either Shyamalan steps up his game or Shyamalan steps out.