The Last Airbender

[Rishathra]

I can't say I'm surprised that the film is bad, but I wasn't expecting to see so much criticism of the special effects.  The vibe I got from the trailers was "hey, at least it will look good."

[Surlyboi]

io9's review

This is the part where I would insert a quick plot synopsis of the film, but it's really unnecessary - Shyamalan has boiled every epic heroic story of the past 20 years down to its most basic, primal soup-y essence, so he can spray it all over the audience, in a kind of Hero's-Journey bukkake. You will be finding chunks of Joseph Campbell's calcified spooge behind your ears for three days after watching this film, no matter how many times you bathe.

Fucking golden.

[naum]

First, fuck video game loathing Roger Ebert and the rest of the clattering critic class.

Just came back from seeing this, and while it's not a great movie by any stretch, was entertained for the duration.

Yes, buckets of cheese replete with inane dialog. The visuals were over the top too, but I thought they were stunning enough. But I can cut a movie made from a cartoon where the Water Nation is warring with the Fire Nation some slack here (more so than a movie like Robin Hood where the dialog was just as ridiculous or worse).

M. Night doesn't adhere to the Hollywood template, and while it strikes some as amateurish, I believe it refreshing. And I state this as someone, while I liked Unbreakable and thought Sixth Sense was OK, who deemed his last couple of movies (Lady in the Water, Happenings or whatever that monstrosity was titled) completely unwatchable and bereft any redeeming bits.

Final note — 3D was a waste of money, as there didn't seem to be much 3D about it, other than cutout backgrounds.

[Samprimary]

yup just got back from watching it. Cleared my mind of all bias. Emptied my pre-emptive bias. Disassociated the film, mentally, from my knowledge of the director's tendencies. Went in with neutrality.

Movie was absolutely hideous. Worse than the happening? And they said it could not be done! hurp durp.

This needs to be the end of m. night fartbender's career. he done.

[Samprimary]

I can't say I'm surprised that the film is bad, but I wasn't expecting to see so much criticism of the special effects.  The vibe I got from the trailers was "hey, at least it will look good."

Special effects were meh at best. When you see a fight scene approaching, flip a coin. One of two things will happen.

heads: extras will stand around and wait to get knocked over by a soggy bending effect.

tails: someone will do something dramatic, then everyone will leave before the scene can go anywhere.

the fx are dull and mostly constrained to beautiful vistas in various setpieces that the film careens through at a rapid pace. The entire movie is exposition. Like the entire movie. The movie is actually a ridiculously huge montage that is so massive that it has smaller, clumsier montages orbiting it.

[Khaldun]

I love the line in the io9 review that the kid who played Aang manages to convince you he's standing in front of a greenscreen even when he's on location somewhere.