"PRINCE OF PERSIA: THE SANDS OF TIME" (2010) Review
"PRINCE OF PERSIA: SANDS OF TIME" (2010) Review
When the Disney movie, "PRINCE OF PERSIA", was first released in theaters some six years ago, I had heard a movie reviewer on radio talk show compare the Disney film to the 1962 Oscar winning film, "LAWRENCE OF ARABIA". Much to the detriment of the Disney film. And as I sat there and listened to this guy bash "PRINCE OF PERSIA: THE SANDS OF TIME", it occurred to me that there were still plenty of idiots in this world . . . including radio disc jockeys.
Directed by Mike Newell and based upon the 2003 video game, "PRINCE OF PERSIA: THE SANDS OF TIME" is about an orphaned street urchin in sixth century Persia named Dastan, whose gallant and courageous act at a marketplace attracts the attention of King Sharaman of the Persian Empire. This leads to his adoption into the Persian Royal Family. Fifteen years later, Dastan, his royal-blooded foster brothers, Prince Tus and Prince Garsiv, and his uncle, Prince Nizam; are planning an attack on the sacred city of Alamut, which is believed to be selling weapons to their enemies (hmmm, this sounds familiar). However, Persia’s successful invasion of Alamut eventually leads to a great deal of trouble for Dastan, when he is framed for the assassination of King Sharaman. With the help of Tamina, Princess of Alamut, Dastan eventually discovers that the invasion was nothing more than a means for the real assassin to search for a magical dagger that Dastan has already managed to get his hands on. The dagger enables the bearer to travel back in time. And the assassin wants to use the dagger to overthrow the Persian Royal Family and seize the throne.
Originally, I had mixed feelings about watching "PRINCE OF PERSIA: THE SANDS OF TIME". A part of me was attracted to the idea of viewing another Disney live-action movie with a fantasy setting. Another part of me recalled my disappointment with Tim Burton’s rather flaccid movie that was released during the same year, "ALICE IN WONDERLAND". Attraction and curiosity won out and I went to see the movie . . . despite my low expectations. Needless to say, I ended up enjoying the movie a lot. And my feelings for "PRINCE OF PERSIA: THE SANDS OF TIME" have not changed after this recent viewing.
Granted, the movie had its share of flaws. First of all, one had to endure some of the over-the-top dialogue that has plagued movies like 2002's "SPIDER-MAN"; and the "STAR WARS", "FAST AND FURIOUS", "THE MUMMY" and the Tolkien/Jackson movie franchises. Some of the action sequences that featured actor Jake Gyllenhaal jumping all over the place struck me as a tad too frantic. It almost seemed as if Mike Newell and cinematographer John Seale had channeled Paul Greengrass and photographer Oliver Wood from two of the "BOURNE" movies. I love actor Alfred Molina. I have been a fan of his for years. But I must admit that I found his performance as an ostrich racing-organizer named Sheik Ama waaaay a bit over-the-top at times. And then there were the ostrich races held by Molina's character. My initial reaction was . . . WHAT THE HELL? I had never seen anything so ludicrous in my life. I mean . . . I could understand camel racing or even horse racing. But ostrich racing? Six years later, I am a little more tolerant of this sequence from the movie. I now realize that this was Newell and the screenwriters' way of conveying the ridiculous levels that entrepreneurs would sink for profit. However, I am still not that fond of the scene.
Yes, I do have some quibbles about "PRINCE OF PERSIA: THE SANDS OF TIME". And yes, I realize that it is not an example of artistic Hollywood movie making at its height. It certainly was not the best movies from the summer of 2010. But dammit! I liked it a lot. One, screenwriters Jordan Mechner, Boaz Yakin, Doug Miro and Carlo Bernard wrote a very entertaining adaptation of the video game. I am certainly not familiar with it, but I did like the story. Not only was it filled with plenty of action and fantasy, it featured a good, solid mystery over the identity of King Sharaman’s assassin. This mystery also served as the background for a well-written family drama involving Dastan and the Persian Royal Family. Most importantly, the movie’s script featured a funny and spirited romance between Dastan and Princess Tamina.
Speaking of the cast, I never thought I would see the day when I actually enjoy a sword-and-sand fantasy that featured Jake Gyllenhaal in the lead. He is not the type of actor I would associate with a costume movie from the Disney Studios. I must admit that for the movie’s first ten to twenty minutes, I found it difficult to accept Gyllenhaal in the role of a street urchin-turned-adopted member of the Persian Royal Family. But he seemed to be doing such a good job and I was becoming so engrossed in the movie that I eventually overcame any mental obstacles I had with him in the role. Most importantly, Gyllenhaal had great chemistry with Gemma Arterton, who portrayed Tamina. When I first saw Arterton in was the 2008 James Bond movie, "QUANTUM OF SOLACE", I had not been that impressed by her performance in that movie. But I was impressed by her performance as Princess Tamina in this film. And she has been impressing me ever since. Arterton gave the character a strength and drive rarely seen in leading female roles from the past summers. She also seemed to have better chemistry with actors that are from her generation . . . actors like Gyllenhaal.
Ben Kingsley gave a very subtle performance as Dastan’s adopted uncle, Prince Nizam. He did a great job in portraying the one character that acted as the Persian Royal Family’s backbone. Both Richard Coyle and Toby Kebbell gave solid performances as Dastan’s two royal brothers. However, I must admit that I did not find them particularly memorable. Steve Toussaint did a good job in portraying the dependable, yet intimidating Ngbaka knife thrower Seso. Although Alfred Molina's character had originally annoyed, I must admit that he had grown on me over the years. I also have to commend Gísli Örn Garðarsson, who portrayed the leader of the Hassansins, hired to kill Dastan and recover the dagger. For a character that did not say much, I found his performance particularly intimidating.
I have another confession. I was not that particularly enamored of Mike Newell’s direction of the 2005 movie, ”HARRY POTTER AND THE GOBLET OF FIRE”. And when I first heard that he was the director of "PRINCE OF PERSIA: THE SANDS OF TIME" . . . well, I was not expecting to be impressed by his work in this movie. "THE GOBLET OF FIRE" had convinced me that Newell should avoid the science-fiction/fantasy genre. However, his direction of "PRINCE OF PERSIA" proved me wrong. Sure, I could have done without some of the frantic action sequences. And I would never consider the movie to be on the same level as the "PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN" movies. But I thought it was a pretty damn entertaining film.
Which brings me back to the radio disc jockey. Why did I consider him an idiot for comparing "PRINCE OF PERSIA: THE SANDS OF TIME" to "LAWRENCE OF ARABIA"? Who, in their right mind, would compare a summer Disney movie based upon a video game with an Oscar winning film about a World War I hero? Who would be stupid enough to do this? Apparently that radio disc jockey was stupid enough to do so six years ago. And why did he do this? Perhaps he did this because both movies were set in the Middle East. Go figure.