Review: Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time
Release Date: May 28, 2010
Rating: PG-13 for Violence & Action (Disney Film)
Starring: Jake Gyllenhaal, Gemma Arterton and Ben Kingsley
Directed by: Mike Newell
Based on the video game Prince of Persia from UBISOFT
Most video game movies to put it bluntly, just plain suck and I have seen my fair share of them. The last one that I saw with any real substance or quality was the original Resident Evil (the first one before any of the half-assed sequels) which honestly wasn’t bad. But for every good video game movie there are ten that make you want to go home and burn the game. I don’t think I need to remind anyone of the joke that was DOOM. I never actually played any of the Prince of Persia games since I know there are more than just the one out now, but I have heard and read nothing but good things so my hopes for the movie were moderately high. Not to mention the fact that I am continuously impressed with Jake Gyllenhaal’s versatility and solid talent as an actor.
The story is full of action (obviously) and surprisingly a good deal of heart which comes for the family bond between the King of Persia and his three sons, the youngest being Dastan played by Gyllenhaal. A traitorous plot is set in place to destroy Dastan’s family and his father’s kingdom forcing him to step up and become the hero who eventually changes the future. I think that explains the plot well enough to not give anything away, after all most of the storyline is pretty much spilled in the trailers and to anyone who played the game but still I wouldn’t want to ruin it.
On the plus side this film did something that more action adventure films should uphold to, it didn’t take itself too seriously. The whole point of action sequences with cool shots of the hero beating down the bad guys is to let the audience have fun so if that part of it isn’t embellished then what is the point? The story was great, hence the fact that there is both a series of games and a film based on it, and the acting excellent. I read that there had been some speculation and even all-out outrage that Gyllenhaal had been cast to play Dastan having neither a British accent or any of the ethnic heritage but regardless of those things I couldn’t imagine anyone else playing the part any better. He really did a great job and his accent is perfectly seamless which isn’t easy for a lot of American actors to pull off. Gemma Arterton, who plays his audaciously spunky royal love interest, is perfectly lovable and one of the funnier parts of the film always making Dastan’s life a little bit harder.
In the end it was pretty obvious what was going to happen but that didn’t make it any less enjoyable for me. Predictability can be sometimes disappointing but since I had enjoyed the rest of the film so much I was willing to overlook it.
(Slight Tiny Spoiler about the ending) I personally think happy ending are highly underrated in today’s heart-numb society so when a film pulls one, even out of thin air I have to give kudos at least a little bit. (end spoiler bit)
: It’s better than Bacon
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