Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time (2010)

Director:

Mike Newell

Writers (WGA):

Boaz Yakin (screenplay) and
Doug Miro (screenplay) &
Carlo Bernard (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

28 May 2010 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Fantasy | Romance

Tagline:

Defy the Future

Plot:

A young fugitive prince and princess must stop a villain who unknowingly threatens to destroy the world with a special dagger that enables the magic sand inside to reverse time.

Plot Keywords:

Princess | Alamut | Dagger | Persia | Prince

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Jake Gyllenhaal	...	Dastan
Gemma Arterton	...	Tamina
Ben Kingsley	...	Nizam
Alfred Molina	...	Sheik Amar
Steve Toussaint	...	Seso
Toby Kebbell	...	Garsiv
Richard Coyle	...	Tus
Ronald Pickup	...	King Sharaman
Reece Ritchie	...	Bis
Gísli Örn Garðarsson	...	Hassansin Leader
Claudio Pacifico	...	Hassansin Porcupine
Thomas DuPont	...	Hassansin Whip Man
Dave Pope	...	Hassansin Giant Scimitar
Domonkos Pardanyi	...	Hassansin Double-Bladed Halberd
Massimilano Ubaldi	...	Hassansin Long Razor

Also Known As:

"Dagger" - Philippines (English title) (review title)
"Prince of Persia" - USA (short title)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action.

Runtime:

116 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.44 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS | Sonics-DDP (IMAX version)

Certification:

USA:PG-13 (certificate #45718) | Denmark:11 | UK:12A | Ireland:12A | South Korea:12 | Finland:K-13 | Canada:PG (Ontario) | Portugal:M/12 | Canada:PG (Manitoba) | Canada:PG (British Columbia) | Norway:11 | Singapore:PG | Australia:M | Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | Philippines:G (MTRCB) | Philippines:PG-13 | Hong Kong:IIA | Argentina:13 | Peru:PT | Netherlands:12 | Japan:G | Brazil:12 | Sweden:11 | Malaysia:PG-13

Filming Locations:

Albert R. Broccoli 007 Stage, Pinewood Studios, Iver Heath, Buckinghamshire, England, UK

Company:

Walt Disney Pictures

Trivia:

The characters often mention "God" or "the Creator" in a monotheistic fashion, which are not references to Judaism or Christianity (as most Western audiences are accustomed), but in fact to Zoroastrianism, the religion practiced by Persians until Islam (Allah) became popular. Zoroastrianism, however, does not have a concrete concept of "Hell," despite "Hell" being mentioned by Nizam. Tamina, of course, worships an unnamed polytheistic set of gods, which are briefly presented in juxtaposition to Dastan's beliefs.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: When Tamina is being readied to be presented to King Sharaman her maid wipes the Henna Tattoos revealing clean skin. Henna paste, once dry, leaves distinctive stains on the skin which take up to three weeks to fade.

Quotes:

King Sharaman:[to those inside the palace after suggesting Dastan should marry Tamina] He plunges into a hundred foes without thought, but before marriage he stands frozen with fear! And there are those who say he is not yet wise!
[the Persians laugh]
Prince Dastan:[quietly to Bis] I need a drink.
[the robe Sharaman is wearing begins to smoke and burn him; soldiers rush to pull it off only for their hands to be burned]
Garsiv:[runs in to help] Out of my way!
[soldiers pull him back after his hands burn]
Prince Dastan:[kneels next to the king] Father.
Nizam:Oh God, help us! The robe, it's poisoned!
Prince Dastan:Somebody help him.
Garsiv:The robe Dastan gave him!
[...]

Movie Connections:

References The Ten Commandments (1956)

Soundtrack:

I Remain

The sands have spread fairly thin and it shows... but surprisingly in a good way

The common view amongst "professional" reviews is that the movie is average. scoring below 50% from Rotten Tomatoes, and MetaCritic, and notably a 2 out of 4 stars from Roger Ebert. The average user ranking on MC puts it at 9 out of 10.

Most reviews range anywhere from 8 out of 10, to as low as 2 or 3 out of 10.

If there's one thing critics can agree on, its that the movie is clichéd, borrowing elements from plenty of epics based in the Middle East and fantasy alike, and that it's loads of fun.

The one thing no one can agree on is whether that's good or bad.

It should be pointed out that this film is produced by the same company/studio that brought us 'Pirates of the Caribbean', and it certainly shows.

With that said, I'll lead into my thoughts on the film. The first "Pirates" scored on average a 7.8 - 6.4 of 10, while the sequels averaged anywhere from 4.5 to 5.3. I'd say this movie is better than the sequels while not as good as the first.

So, I'd give it roughly a 7 out of 10.

The story is fun, for what it is. Which is a rough retelling of the video game "Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time", while incorporating elements of the following two sequels, as well as incorporating stylistic elements from the following game and the first three of the original trilogy. Thats right! Based loosely on one game, borrowing elements from SIX more. The movie is stretched too thin, and it shows.

The movie feels like your prototypical "sword and sandal" action flick, borrowing heavily from films like "The Thief of Baghdad", and stories found in "1001 Nights". So think 'Arabian Nights', Ali Baba and the 40 Thieves, Aladdin, all mixed with some Steve Reeves 'Hercules' and Robert E. Howard 'Conan' flash.

Is it as cheesy as that sounds? YES! Is it as awesome as that sounds? YES!

But it's still well edited, well acted, well scored (Harry Gregson-Williams never fails), and overall well done enough to merit an enjoyable experience.

The ONLY complaints I can think of are few, but here they are: A bit too much CGI, not on the stunts (not much CGI there surprisingly) but on things like demonic-esquire snakes (you'll see). Too much random slow-motion. The sexual-tension seemed too forced (too many of those really slow "they're about to kiss but don't" moments). And whereas yes, the ending is supposed to have a "Deus-Ex-Machina" feel to it, in the game it is much more thorough and more explained, in the movie you're just expected to roll with it.

Other than that. A fun night at the movies! Grab your over-priced candy, soda, and popcorn (or do like me and sneak snacks in) and have fun with friends, family and loved ones, recapturing the fun escapism of your childhood with an epic but cliché action movie.

Hope you enjoyed my review... And I hope you enjoy the movie too!