Shyamalan's 'Last Airbender' Kicks Off Filming in PA

its actually THE Reading Eagle. Reading is a place. It's pronounced in the past tense, not the present tense. Think "I read the book 8 weeks ago" and add the ing at the end.

and yes those pics are super boring

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mmm, M. Night Shyamalan's career should have been over after the 6th Sense, imo.

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Eugene, most people think the Nick show was just for kids but it was a fantastic television series for all ages and much, much better than anything M. Night has done including 6th Sense.

The bright side is he is not writing the movie. The original writers from the series are doing it. Hopefully he can stick to direction and make sure he doesn't put his own sorry ass in for a cameo.

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The cartoon was pretty spiritual. I still not sure about the choices made, but I'm not scared about his comments based on recently watching the series. I has the potential for being good, and calling it Shakespearean might be reaching a bit, but then I don't think anything ever reaches that high of a standard.

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I think I'm one of the last few, true M. Night defenders–I've even liked (to an extent) his last two works, especially The Happening. The thing that makes an M. Night Shyamalan movie an M. Night Shyamalan movie is it's theology and symbolism–the things that are happening underneath the surface. I, too, have not seen the show, but have heard and read nothing but positive things about it, in terms of its storytelling and ideas. For the M. Night haters, their biggest criticisms lie in the fact that he writes all of his projects, and while I agree to a point that this is what led to his 'downfall', Conspiracy Brother made a good point–he's not writing it. The original writers of the show are writing it. Hopefully this will be just the break that M. Night needs–not only to get back into audience's good graces, but also to take some time off from writing. I know he has more than a few good stories left in him–maybe he just needs to take some time off. Only time will tell, but we'll know for sure come July of '10.

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I gave up on M. Night a long time ago.

http://blog.ParcEntertainment.com
http://www.twitter.com/ParcHDVideo

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He can hype up his white washed uncle tom movie all he wants, but he took one of the few properties out there that show asians as something other than whores, criminals or geeks and turned it into yet another great white hope movie.

He can fuck off.

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I've caught most of the Airbender episodes when they screened here in Australia, and it's not a bad show... a little silly sometimes (obviously) and it has that "we're on a journey but every week we stop and get involved with random people and get delayed instead of just travelling to where we need to go" thing common to that kind of series, but it's cute. Yeah, it does have some operatic elements (or could if they're overdramatised enough)... Evil king, rejected son bent on revenge/retribution, hero who needs to conquer his fears and take his rightful place, blah blah blah...

But as far as I was aware the series hadn't finished, so is this going to be a companion piece, something that is kind of Airbender, but kind of not... or are we going for that most hated of buzzwords, a "reimagining"?

My main gripe about a movie version is more general than specifically a comment about M Night Shamalamdingdong directing (although, really, does he have to?). Why oh why do they feel compelled to take something that works wonderfully well as a cartoon/anime/non reality based medium and turn it into live action?

Can anybody name me a movie in recent memory that started out as a cartoon and got turned into a live action movie that didn't suck in one way or another? Aeon Flux was a disaster (don't even get me started... beyond the names of some characters and places that was NOT Aeon Flux!), the two Scooby Doo movies were woeful, Speed Racer (which I will admit I haven't seen) looked appalling, Dragonball Z looks like it's going to be a total train wreck... and I'm not even going to mention Alvin and the Chipmunks (damn, I just did).

Just because something works in animation, doesn't mean it needs to be remade. You want to make a movie, fine... go nuts... just make it an ANIMATED movie!

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I've seen the entire series and loved it. I hope the movie can live up to it.

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All the cool kids hate M. Night Shyamalan.

Thanks for contributing to Yet Another Internet Cliche!

I have only seen a few episodes of Avatar: The Last Airbender, and didn't like it. (I'm wondering if this got greenlit specifically because of the obvious title similarity to Cameron's massive Avatar film.) It is good to see Shyamalan breaking form. He can certainly create some very intense scenes, and I think that will play well in this type of movie.

In answer to the question about Animated shows turned into good movies. Think Batman, Spiderman, Superman. While all originally comic books, they were all cartoons prior to becoming live action films. And let's face it, comic books have more stylistic similarity to animation than live action.

And if that isn't good enough for you... One word: Transformers!

-Pie

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@Eating Pie - First, only Spider-man was an animated show before the was a live action version both Superman and Batman had live action versions prior. There were serials in the 40's, TV shows in the 50's and more movies in the 70's and 80's. There was even a live action Spider-man TV show.All prior to the recent round of movies.
Comics and animation don't really share a common style. While animated adaption of comics tend to not stray as far from the source material as movies almost always do, the don't follow source too closely either and have a different tone in storytelling. And while movies generally do not follow the comic, the don't follow the animated version either so I think your comic book choices are a poor comparison.

As for the show, I was a fan of the show for its entire three year run. After a lengthy delay the show completed last summer for those who didn't know. The overall story of the series, the Avatar's mission, is a more serious one but not every episode focuses on that part of the story. The are several episodes meant just to be fun and are a lot sillier but even some of those have a serious moment in them. If you just chime in for an episode or two you won't necessarily get a good grasp of what the show is like.

The movie was announced after the second season of the show and is discussed by the show's creators and M. Night on the DVD extras of that season. From what I can remember they are going to tell the same story just in live action. This have a potential of a being a special effects driven movie, the problem will be the same as any adaption of a serial story to a single movie, time. The series was 61 half hour episode/chapters. The movie will likely drop almost all the lighter parts especially later in the series which is probably a third but even if they drop half the episode that still a lot to get into a movie. You get to see the growth of several characters during the series, plus the history of the characters and the world sounds like a lot for a movie. This show has a wide appeal. It's definitely kid friendly but adults enjoyed it too, but because of the kid draw I can't see this being a long movie. So the questions are how much can be cut without hurting the core story and if all the lighter moments are cut does the story become too heavy?


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Screw airbender! They should do Naruto, then again the dub completely sucks. Still vote for a Naruto movie!

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The series is very good—better than a "kiddie" show really ought to be, because the writers manage to finesse around the limitations of kiddie-showism rather than taking the lazy "G.I. Joe parachute" way out. Characters may get killed off "just off-screen" but they do die.

Here's my overall review of the show:

http://www.kungfucinema.com/forums/showthread.php?t=5667

In short, I highly recommend it, and am terribly worried that the Night movie won't manage to live up to the show.

Yani: the show *is* finished, with a total of 61 episodes. It left some questions unanswered and fans hope there will eventually be a sequel, but whether or not there is is really up in the air and might depend on how successful the live-action movie is.

Also, here's my take on the racism-in-casting controversy:

http://www.terrania.us/journal/2009/04/bent-out-of-shape.html

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I have been a fan of the show for over two years, and it has come to be my favorite TV show of all time. I was pleasantly surprised by every feature of the show, and found myself addicted after just a single episode. The original target audience was boys ages 6-11, but you'll find that the fandom is mainly comprised of the 15-24 demographic.

Avatar: The Last Airbender draws from many cultures and religions, with references to historical events and works of fiction. It is based around the ancient Chinese belief that there are four elements: water, earth, fire, and air. In the show, the Earth’s population inhabits four nations: one for each element. Each nation is based upon a different culture and is greatly influenced by its respective element. On top of this, certain people within each nation (the exception being the Air Nomads, of whom all members have this ability, due to their superiorly spiritual culture) have the power to manipulate the element of their nation.

In this world, the Hindi belief of the Avatar is an accepted reality. The Spirit of the Earth (called the Avatar Spirit) chooses a host, giving that person the power to bend not only their own element, but all four. Furthermore, it is that individual’s responsibility to keep peace among the nations, and between the nations and the Spirit World. When the Avatar dies, the Spirit of the Earth moves on to an unborn child from the next nation in the cycle (water, earth, fire, air).

Here’s a quick introduction:
Though the Avatar is normally told of his or her identity at the age of 16, Aang, and Air Nomad, is told at the age of 12 because his elders fear a war is on the horizon, and therefore he should being training. Aang runs away, but is caught in a storm. When the Avatar is in danger, he can activate the Avatar State, which basically enhances his powers. However, in an Avatar who has not mastered this, the Avatar State may become involuntarily activated when he or she is in danger. This is what happens, and when Aang begins drowning, the Avatar State freezes him in ice, creating a state of suspended animation. 100 years later, the Fire Nation has nearly won the war. Katara, a 14-year-old member of the Southern Water Tribe, is fishing with her 15-year-old brother Sokka when she loses control of her waterbending and brings the block of ice to the surface. They manage to break it open, releasing Aang. After bringing him up-to-date, they agree to travel with him so that he can master the other three elements, working towards the ultimate goal of defeating the Fire Lord and creating peace among the nations. Meanwhile, the Fire Lord’s banished 16-year-old son, Prince Zuko, is trying to capture the Avatar to restore his honor and restore his title as heir to the throne, but that’s a whole other story. You’ll just have to watch the show. But beware; it’s much more complex than it sounds.

The show featured an impressive cast, including individuals such as Jason Isaacs, Grey DeLisle, and Mark Hamill.

One of the best things I liked about it was that, unlike most TV shows, especially children’s shows, it had a determined plot. The creators had the story planned out with a beginning, middle, and end, and though they were asked for a fourth season, they declined. It had one continuous plot. Each season was called a “book,” and each episode was a “chapter” out of the book. There were three “books.”

Even the animation style astounded me. It's quite innovative and unique. Basically, it takes the best traits of Japanese anime and applies them to a relatively realistic form of American animation.

I’ve never spent so much money on DVDs and merchandise for one show. Now, it’s being brought to the big screen, and I couldn’t be happier!

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They have ignored concerns by fans to make it as authentic as possible. Lord of the Rings was based upon European Myths and Last Airbender is based upon Asian Pacific Myths.

This is an Asian based mythology and all the main characters are identified as:
Aang: based on Shaolin and Tibetan Monks.
Katara and Sokka: Inuit/Yupik society.
Zuko : Imperial Chinese/Japanese Mythos.

Paramount Studios decided to make it “Diverse” and cast all main leads with White Caucasian Actors. The extras were cast with Asians.

The controversy in the casting decisions for Main leads: Caucasian and Other Ethnicity.
Then for Extras. ''NEAR EASTERN, MIDDLE EASTERN, FAR EASTERN,ASIAN, MEDITERRANEAN & LATINO Ethnic groups.''

When fans complained, they re-cast the role of Zuko, the palest character, with Dev Patel, a British Indian who will now play the role of the villain.

We have ended up with the unfortunate situation of the Heroes all being Caucasian and the main Villains played by Actors who are either Indian or look Middle-Eastern.

Asian American groups such MANAA and East West Players have now joined with the protests over the White washing and what we have now termed, Racebending, of the film.

Please visit these sites to learn more concerning the racist casting of this film.

http://aang-aint-white.livejournal.com/646.html

http://www.youtube.com/user/racebending

http://racebending.com/

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