The Role of Artists in Shaping Societal Morals
The artists play a significant role in shaping societal morals while producing artistic works like films, movies, novels, and drawings. Movies make one of my beautiful form of arts which I spend most of the times appreciating the different stylistic devices producers and scriptwriters use to create a complete story. Some of the movies prove great minds while others score too low for me hence the conclusion that while there are great writers, others start too low but eventually make it after gaining experience. However, it is amazing that some of the great movies get Avatar adaptation into cartoons, change to poor quality, laughable, and elude much negative criticism.
Weaknesses of "The Last Airbender" Movie
Among the many movie shows I have ranked as low quality, the list in the category is a live-action adaptation of the universally beloved animated series, The Last Airbender directed by M. Night Shyamalan. The adaptation has a lot of whitewashed casts, wooden dialogue, and acting, and also on the spot is its elementary quality CG-effects.
The Original Movie's Strengths
The original movie provided a strong sense of connection between the characters, theme and the styles applied as they complimented each other on bringing a complete package. With the exposure to the original film, there was a sense of lighthearted humor, relatable characters and the fleshed out synopsis that gave the audience a reason to keep in touch with the series. I had admired the kindhearted, youthful outlook of Aang, the loving kindness of Katara, and the comic relief of Sokka. Additionally, the distinct personalities of these characters created a sort of unique camaraderie and balance. In short, everything just fell into place. The cartoon took me on a journey through the mishaps and struggles of the protagonists by showing it and immersing the viewer in it, and as such, I relaxed and cared about each greatly. The film lacked everything that made the show unique since the adapted version lost much of the unique aspects that made the original movie look great. There is no smooth relationship between the four elements of the world as captured in the initial series for example hence comparison for someone who has knowledge of the first film and even those seeing it for the first time can spot a big gap.
Criticisms of the Adaptation
Upon its release, the adaptation garnered a massive amount of backlash from tons of dedicated fans and newcomers alike. Many criticized the whitewashed casting, the wooden acting and dialogue, the elementary quality CG-effects, and the endless streams of painfully numbing exposition. For movie lovers and those who analyze every aspect could not mean that the adaptation had numerous shortcomings due to its compromised quality in diverse aspects as highlighted above. The standoff seems open, and when compared to its source material, these said flaws are quite hard to ignore, especially given the unforgettably well-crafted narrative of the original series, to which it pales in comparison. As such, since both mediums, undeniably, work with the same plot, premise, and narrative, it is perhaps vital to start from the source material, and what made it great, and, of course, what went wrong with its live-action counterpart. There is a lack of general grabbing of attention to the audience, and many can switch off after the first episode or few minutes after introduction especially those who do not have prior knowledge of the original movie.
Suggested Adjustments to Improve the Film
There are several areas which the movie producers could have adjusted to make the artworks catchy and entertaining. For example, my scorching distaste for the film doesn't stem from how much it differs from its source material, but rather, its ineptitude for visual storytelling and its utter lack of creativity. Therefore, there is a need to improve on the visuals first since they make a considerable impact in the reception of any work before one internalizes the content and makes the second decision. A lot of creativity also needs inclusion to avoid an old piece since animations can prove annoying if the aspect of creativity lacks. It is quite evident that Shyamalan struggled to cram around 20 episodes of in-depth plot development, character arcs, etc. into one feature-length film. Of course, corners had to be cut. But, whereas the original engrossed me in its quick-paced fighting scenes and storytelling, the movie did the exact opposite. Instead of showing its audience the lore, action, and depth behind each of the characters and plot, the video explains and narrates it. It did absolutely nothing to ensure that the characters were fleshed-out and multi-faceted. It had no personality or character if you will. Much of the movie is instead spent explaining endless streams of exposition meant to fill the void of action. The characters are reduced to talking heads.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the adaptation of The Last Airbender into an animated film is one of the mediocre films I have met during different appreciation movies. Contrary to the original piece, the series lacks strong visuals of storytelling and correlation between the main actors and the propagated theme. The production crew needs to work out on these weak points to win back the attention of the audience.
Work cited
Shyamalan, M. Night, and Aasif Mandvi. The Last Airbender. Paramount Pictures, 2010.
