The Last Airbender Superbowl TV Spot: New Footage, And A Feast For Blue/Orange Conspiracy Theorists

We haven't seen any new footage of M. Night Shyamalan's The Last Airbender (aka the original Avatar) since last June when the teaser premiered. The film has been test screening this week, with two very mixed reader reviews showing up on AICN.

Not being all that familiar with the animated series on which the film is based, I'm just curious to see how Shyamalan fares with a film that isn't based on his own story, and where he's in thrall to action and effects in a way that is new to his work. And based only on this spot, the action and effects look pretty damn good. Check it out after the break.

UGO relaunched recently, and they've got the exclusive first look at the spot. (Embedded below.) I'm not a fan of Shyamalan's by any means but this looks like it could be impressive. More important, it looks as if it could actually be fun, which is a quality his films rarely manage to capture. Or: he rarely captures fun intentionally; his last three films make up an amazing trilogy of unintentional comedy.The Last Airbender is based on the animated series Avatar, which airs on Nickelodeon. We should see a full trailer soon that will show off a lot more of the characters and set up the story. In the meantime, here's the synopsis:

The film is set in a world where human civilization is divided into four nations: Water, Earth, Air and Fire. The Fire Nation is waging a ruthless, oppressive war against the other three nations. The film's hero, the reluctant young Aang (Noah Ringer), is the "Last Airbender" — the Avatar who, according to prophecy, has the ability to manipulate all of the elements and bring all the nations together. Aided by a protective teenage Waterbender named Katara (Nicola Peltz) and her bull-headed brother Sokka, Aang proceeds on a perilous journey to restore balance to their war-torn world. Dev Patel plays the Fire Nation's evil prince Zuko. Exiled from the Fire Nation by his father, Zuko is sent to capture the Avatar in order to restore his honor and right to the throne.