Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time
(2010)From the team behind Pirates of the Caribbean comes this epic action-adventure set in mystical Persia. A rogue prince (the great Jake Gyllenhaal, Donnie Darko) reluctantly joins forces with a mysterious princess (Bond girl Gemma Arterton) and together, they race against dark forces to safeguard an ancient dagger capable of releasing the Sands of Time - a gift from the gods that can reverse time and allow its possessor to rule the world.
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Directed by Mike Newell
Starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Gemma Arterton, Ben Kingsley, Alfred Molina, Toby Kebbell, Reece Ritchie
Written by Doug Miro, Carlo Bernard
Produced by Jerry Bruckheimer
On Demand, DVD & Blu-Ray
Available from 3 providers
Flicks Review
BY Andrew Hedley Flicks Writer
There’s family-friendly fun to be had in the Persian desert with this latest action-adventure from producer Jerry Bruckheimer. Director Mike Newell (who cut his blockbuster teeth on Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire) gives the proceedings a light, warm touch. The pace keeps up, there’s always something happening, and the leads are very appealing.
Presented in various shades of Bruckheimer-orange, this Persia (now Iran and eastwards) is a fictionalised, romantic version, where the cities are full of parapets, marketplaces, fountains and treasure. Everyone speaks in a British accent, even Jake Gyllenhaal (who is a welcome choice as an action hero even though his head looks strangely disproportionate here).
It’s all a bit of fantasy and so the storyline takes huge liberties with believability. The treasure everyone wants to get their hands on is a magical dagger that can control the passing of time. Sometimes you’ll wonder why they don’t use it a bit more often (a couple of characters cark it – why not give the dagger a shake to go back and save them?).
But Prince of Persia is not for the seasoned, probing viewer. It’s a family-oriented vehicle, probably more suited to a younger audience. I left the cinema feeling happy anyway. This is one of the better movie adaptations of a computer game, and a good bit of swashbuckling, sun-drenched fun for these colder months.
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Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time
Great to see the talented Jake Gyllenhaal in something other than serious and romping his way through this action romantic adventure! (albeit with Brit accent...LOL)
Always loved the game and this was not a bad version of it! Great fun it was indeed!
"We make our own destiny." - Dastan
But the real surprise was that I enjoyed the... More heroic antics of "buffed" Jake Gyllenhaal swaggering, running, "parkour-ing", swordfighting and bantering his way through this adventure romp thereby saving the world, his family, friends as well as fighting off evil relatives, ostriches, nasties & snakes and still finds time along the way to fall head over heels for a Princess whose first inclination was to kill him and then love him for all eternity.
His chemistry with Gemma Arterton was amazing and no wonder it spinned off it`s own legion of Dastan & Tamina followers on the web;)
But Jake G, better known for more "serious roles", vows the audience as the handsome Prince Dastan, a truly believable action hero. (Orlando Bloom who was considered for the role ....could not have carried it off although as much as we loved him as Will Turner in POTC, he did not do toO well in a similar type of role as Bailan in the Kingdom of Heaven.)
Gemma was feisty & fascinicating to watch as the Guardian of the Dagger and her chemistry with Jake will always be subject to collective "oohs & aahs" from fans of their relatiosnhip. Though all the adventure was thrilling enough, my favourite bit was the intriguing interaction between Dastan & Tamina at end of the movie. I`m sure that some viewers expected something else....but the undercurrent and innuendo between them was beautifully set up for a sequel but most importantly for all the fanfic writers of the realm. (Take a bow Mr Scriptwriter)
Overall it was not Osar winning stuff, it was never meant to be (ggrrrr * points* finger at all the so-called critics of entertainment). It is a Disney movie meant for the young at heart.....Also for a gamer spin-off it was well scripted and it delivered on what it was meant for... pure entertainment!
I do hope the colourful cast had signed up for a sequel because it is largely through them that the movie has acquired a huge global following and it has done better outside of US ... According to the number crunchers, the global audiences loved it! I did too .. that`s why I `m sneaking away for my second viewing this coming weekend
Overall, Prince of Persia : Sands of Time gets a huge "thumbs-up" for sheer entertainment value and I can`t wait for the DVD. Who knows..perhaps we `ll get some extra yummy scenes of Mr Gyllenhaal .......without his tunic;)Hide
BY Tyle lister
i liked how they kept the story close to the video game and I thought it was visually stunning.........just too long!!
I really enjoyed this movie. I thought Jake Gyllenhaal did an excellent job in this action role. I am a bit surprised with the mixed reviews. It had humour, action, fast paced and a good storyline. Well worth bringing the kids to. A good family movie. I would definately watch it again and buy the DVD.
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The Press Reviews
35%
of critics recommend.
Rotten Tomatoes Score. More reviews on Rotten Tomatoes
Its restraint might put off thrill-seekers, but if you can endure the wooden dialogue and sloppy exposition, it musters the entertainment quotient of a middle-order Harry Potter. Full Review
A handsome, fast-paced and innocuous adventure that's easy to take but lacks epic scale. Full Review
It's full-on fun, but hardly epic, as feisty heroes and heroines flirt while battling evil villains to save the world. Full Review
Slick Bruck-buster dynamics anchored by Jake ‘n’ Gemma’s sparring and sex appeal. But the scripting needs to take another leap if they want this Prince to produce some heirs. Full Review
I have a feeling this could be the start of franchise - and I'd be willing to give another film a go because there's plenty of potential in these characters - but Prince of Persia aims for family blockbuster fu Full Review
Bruckheimer's passably enjoyable, antiquity-themed epic should satisfy its young male core demographic well enough, but won't connect with other auds on the level of Bruckheimer's "Pirates of the Caribbean" franchise. Full Review
Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time just about redeems itself with a combination of impressive special effects and likeable performances, but it's also overlong, poorly paced, shockingly badly edited and disappointingly light on action. Full Review
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