The Last Airbender

Once every hundred years, the Avatar, who can control all four elements, is born. Its duty is to ensure peace between the Air, Water, Earth and Fire nations. However, for the last century the Fire nation had been waging war against the other nations, the Air nation is extinct and the saviour Avatar is considered to be gone forever.

Katara (Peltz), a water bender, and her brother, Sokka, (Rathbone) discover the body of a young boy in the ice. He reveals himself to be Aang (Ringer), the Avatar who fled from the Air nation one hundred years ago, and became frozen during his escape. Horrified and saddened that his mistake cost the world a century-long war, he joins with Katara and Sokka to stop the Fire Lord. However, there are those who wish to capture Aang for their own gain. Zuko (Patel), disgraced prince of the Fire nation, is hunting the Avatar so that he can regain his father’s respect and his own royalty.

You may be familiar with Avatar: The Last Airbender, the Emmy-award winning animated show, which finished a few years ago after three series. The Last Airbender is a live-action adaption and it will therefore come as no surprise that M. Night Shyamalan (The Sixth Sense, Signs) has announced plans for a trilogy, staying true to the original series. You don’t need to have seen the original series to enjoy The Last Airbender, just a love of martial arts and epic fight scenes.

The film draws on a lot of Chinese mythology and this is spectacularly done, as we see the characters ‘bending’ the elements at will. If you fondly remember watching Avatar: The Last Airbender on Nickelodeon or just enjoy a good, action-packed film, you won’t want to miss The Last Airbender.

Sophie Carroll