![]() ![]() But the main problem with Lady in the Water is that it doesn’t really make all that much sense. Maybe if this film had been a Twilight Zoneepisode instead-the last episode of the 1959 series, “The Bewitchin’ Pool,” absolutely comes to mind-it would have gone over better. But there’s no trace of the Shyamalan we know and love in this film. There really isn’t much to write home about in this instance. With the help of his best friend and the baseball-loving nun, played by O’Donnell, Josh examines his spirituality during fifth grade. Starring Denis Leary, child actor Joseph Cross, and Rosie O’Donnell, Wide Awake is about a ten-year-old boy named Josh, who’s looking for an answer to life and death after his beloved grandfather passes away. ![]() Night Shyamalan Turned Down Offers from DC and Marvel Still, this film is noteworthy for being Shyamalan’s first wide release.įurther Reading: M. If people don’t quite remember it nowadays, it’s because the director has made far better (and worse) movies in the years since. In other words, it’s not the underrated Shyamalan movie you need to watch. While Praying with Anger could be described as a spiritual drama, Wide Awake is the director’s only attempt at a dramedy. It’s strange to think that Shyamalan’s first two directorial efforts weren’t steeped in the supernatural or sci-fi genres. The poor acting and writing unfortunately put After Earthvery close to the bottom. Not a particularly great choice when you have Will Smith’s star power in your movie. ![]() This is further complicated by the fact that Will Smith is pretty much out of the action for most of the film, while Jaden, a much weaker actor, has to carry most of the scenes. That’s all good and well except the script, which Shyamalan wrote with Gary Whitta ( Rogue One: A Star Wars Story), is full of inconsistencies and plot holes. Since Cypher has been injured in the crash, Kitai must venture out into the wilderness alone to find a beacon with which to signal a rescue ship. In the film, Will (Cypher) and Jaden (Kitai) are also a father and son duo that crash land on a quarantined Earth many years into the future. That said, it is currently Nickelodeon’s third highest-grossing film of all time after earning almost $320 million worldwide, easily making back its $150 million budget. But even its box office isn’t enough to save this unfortunate movie. The Last Airbenderwas universally panned by critics as well as Shyamalan and Avatar fans. Later credits do include Cowboys & Aliens, Transformers, and The Twilight Saga. The casting is pretty terrible as well, largely made up of unknown child actors whom you probably haven’t seen in many other things. That said, the lighting in the film is inexcusable by any standard. Maybe The Last Airbender is a victim of the times, coming only a few months after the graphically superb Avatar from James Cameron. Spreading the plot a bit more or omitting some things entirely might have helped the first (and only) film in this trilogy along.Īlthough Shyamalan worked closely with Industrial Light and Magic, this film suffers greatly in the visual effects department. Interestingly enough, the project was originally envisioned as a trilogy of films. There’s a lot of backstory and plot in the anime series and Shyamalan makes the mistake of trying to distill all that into one movie. The Last Airbender‘s story is a bit complicated, but here’s a short summary: Aang, the titular last airbender, is a twelve-year-old boy who must stop the Fire Nation from conquering the other nations and bring peace to the land. The result could be called an insult to the source material, Nickelodeon’s popular anime series Avatar: The Last Airbender, but Shyamalan’s intention with this project was clearly to challenge himself. Shyamalan is clearly out of his comfort zone here, directing a film for a much younger audience that is expecting an epic fantasy adventure. One day, perhaps Shyamalan’s The Last Airbender may become a cult classic, but right now, it’s pretty much the worst movie the director has ever made. The reason we’ve not included the film on the list is simple: Praying with Anger never got a wide release and was mostly shown at festivals. In the film, a young Indian American (played by Shyamalan) visits India as a foreign exchange college student to rediscover his faith and culture. Hardcore Shyamalan fans will undoubtedly notice that we’ve omitted the director’s first film, Praying with Anger, from 1992. ![]()
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