That's a very good observation, and the Aang in the movie is more in line with that type of behavior, as opposed to the Aang in the animated series.
One thing I read somewhere is that the movie bends over backwards in emphasizing non violent reactions; Zuko is prohibited from dueling Zhao; Aang, although he drives away the Fire Nation warships, does not sink the ships (thereby enabling them to be prepared to fight another day, when the Avatar is not assisting the Water Tribe).
Is this accurate? What are your thoughts?