new the last airbender theatrical trailer

Here's the new trailer for M. Night Shymalan's The Last Airbender, based on the popular Nickelodeon animated series. As can you see, it's an epic, fantastical adventure, with a bald little Caucasian kid waving around a big stick and looking very, very serious.

By now, you know about the controversy surrounding the casting in this film. The thing is, aside from the pesky fact that most of the original cartoon's Asian-inspired heroes are now played by white actors, this looks awesome. It really does.

But that's what makes the whole thing that much more frustrating -- knowing what could have been. I wasn't too familiar with the cartoon, but I know for a fact that the look and feel of the series' fantasy world -- characters and all -- was heavily influenced by Chinese and Inuit cultures. Knowing that, this movie is ridiculous.