mredude411

24 May 2012

In my opinion, first good video game to movie transition

I am a big video game nerd, so when a good game or game series get madeinto a movie or movies, I get excited, and nervous. Turning a videogame into a movie is a hard process, because so much of what makes agood video game good, is the interaction between the storyline and theuser control. Without a movie theater that lets us vote on what we wantto happen or what we want the main character to do, the whole thingloses that decision aspect. So it is hard to make a good video movie.I have seen many other movies based off of video games. The Super MarioBros movie... awful. The Bloodrayne series, and any other movie done byUwe Boll is just terrible (he has turned a lot of video games into"movies"), Silent Hill was a decent movie, but compared to the originalgame, it wasn't that respectable. The Resident Evil movies had hardlyanything to do with the original games so I can't even compare them.That is all I can think of off the top of my head.Other GOOD directors such as Peter Jackson, want to try and tackle suchan idea, specifically with Jackson, the Halo games. He and othersinvolved in that project realized it would be too hard, too costly, andtoo problematic to make such a highly rated game series into a movie,so it got put an indefinite hold. So even good directors like PeterJackson take their time with the idea.So going into this movie, I was expecting to be disappointed. The Sandsof Time was one of my favorite games for the gamecube/PS2/xbox console.When I was done with the movie, I was throughly impressed. It wasn'tgroundbreaking in cinematography or anything of the sort, but for thetype of movie director Jerry Bruckheimer had to deal with, he did agreat job.The movie itself didn't mirror the actual game, because if so, it wouldhave been a crazy movie, but it did keep the major key elements thatwas in the original story. There was even some homages paid in themovie, that normally wouldn't have been smart film shots, butreferenced to the cinematic in the game. It was small things like thatthat made me appreciate the movie more. The movie had great action,thoughtful dialog and really interesting CG that complemented the keystory concepts I mentioned earlier.The only complaints I had were: - There were some cheesy lines fromtime to time, but I was kind of expecting that since it is a Disneymovie. - The fight style of the game, of Dastan, was unique and is oneof the main reason the game was so much fun to play. He was a fast,acrobatic fighting machine. He would jump and flip off walls, slide,turn, dive off anything and everything in the game, making theobstacles an interesting play through. In the movie, they do have somescenes where he has to show those skills, but it is only for a shorttime. He does do a good amount of fighting, but less of the acrobatics.I really wish they did a little more of that in the movie.Besides that, I thought it was a great movie, and anyone else thatlikes a good action movie, or anyone that was a big fan of the gamesshould go see it!

24 May 2012

A fun film!

This review is from: Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time (DVD) This was a fun film to watch but little more. Shallow plot, charming characters, a happy ending, and lots and lots, and lots of action. I've wasted more time in a much less pleasant manner; worth seeing, once.

Clint O'Connor

23 May 2012

A dud in the desert. A sultan of stink. Why is Jake Gyllenhaal wandering ancient Perisa speaking with a British accent?

killer3000ad

23 May 2012

Not as bad as people say it is

First off I didn't play the games so I went in with no knowledge of thestoryline. Secondly I'd taken the liberty of reading the IMDb reviewsand after separating the AstroTurf from butt hurt gamers, I went inwith modest expectations.These modest expectations were largely fulfilled, or one could say myexpectations were so low that I was actually entertained. Lets bestraight, pretty much every movie based on a game has stunk. I've seensuch classics as Doom, Hit-man and Max Payne get absolutely ruined bystudios who never played the games, so perhaps it was fortunate for menot to have been a fan of the PoP games.Essentially what Prince of Persia: Sands of Time boils down to isPirates-of-the-Caribbean in ancient Persia and I suspect that's whatthey were aiming for, nothing like beating the franchise to death inanother new franchise. Prince Dastan is easily a stand-in for WillTurner,a street urchin wanting to be something more than his low-bornbackground. There's the high born damsel-in-distress Princess Tamina,clearly projecting the aristocratic Elizabeth Swan, only thing isTamina spends a lot of her time whining which actually makes Lizbethrather more tolerable if you re-watch Pirates. Then there's mysticism,magic, supernatural elements and a creation myths thrown in regarding amagical dagger created when a young pure maiden made a plea to the godswho were angry and wanted to kill humanity with a sandstorm and adagger that can turn back time.... oh man this fecal matter is BANANAS!This convoluted stuff certainly reeks of all that Aztec gold curse cumsea god-imprisoned-in-mortal-form who loves tentacle Davy Jones fromthe Pirates of the Caribbean movies.Is all that wrong? Well it wouldn't be except the direction of theaction sequences are so familiar that even the addition of park foursequences from the games adds little that one hasn't already seen,assuming you've already watched the Pirates of the Caribbean movies.In the end, I was mildly entertained, certainly at least moreentertained than Clash of the Titans or Percy Jackson. In both thosemovies, I came out wondering, "What the fudge was that bovineexcrement?" With Prince of Persia, I came out thinking,"Rather tastybut could have used less sugar."

Ian Nathan

22 May 2012

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.

Ryan Cracknell

21 May 2012

It wanders through the desert, looking for an exciting hook but never finding one.

sandimcg

17 May 2012

Totally entertaining - lots of fun!

I get so tired of fun movies being panned by critics. This movie wasmade to be entertaining and fun. It was full of action, well-donespecial effects and a good story (who CARES if it's predictable - youdon't know how it's going to be played out). It met all of the criteriafor which it was made. We laughed, we got caught up in the actionscenes, we wondered how it all could come out OK -- it's quite nice tobe lost in mindless entertainment for a few hours. See it and enjoy it.It is a good one for a big screen, since there is so much going on.These days, of course, that could be your TV set. It's also a good onefor kids who aren't too young (scary snakes might cause nightmares).

17 May 2012

Should there be a sequel?

This review is from: Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time (DVD) In my opinion, yes. A BIG Budget Live Action Disney film with big stars such as Jake Gyllenhaal and Ben Kingsley. A Jerry Bruckheimer production. Phenominal special effects. What's not too like?

James Plath

16 May 2012

While Prince of Persia is no Pirates of the Caribbean, it's also nothing Bruckheimer or Disney need to feel ashamed of. My kids loved it.

Daniel McKinney

16 May 2012

Brilliantly Fantastic!

Went to see this movie in theaters today, and it is so amazing, itssimilar to Aladdin and Sinbad. This has became a greatadventure-fantasy film in the Hollywood Motion Pictures made by WaltDisney Pictures. Jake Gyllenhaal did a great job playing the Prince ofPersia and he is a great warrior like other Disney movies like CaptainJack Sparrow of PIRATES OF THE Caribbean films, CHRONICLES OF NARNIAfilms, and the new heroic movies of this year are coming out intheaters are SORCERCOUS' APPRENTICE and TRON: THE LEGACY. I cannot waitto see this on DVD and get it for Christmas this year. PRINCE OFPERSIA: SANDS OF TIME has became the first Disney's Fantasy film.

13 May 2012

GREAT FUN, ABSOLUTELY ENJOYABLE TO WATCH!!!

This review is from: Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time (DVD) I love action and adventure films and this is as good as the best in this genre. It is fun, exciting, the sets are amazing, the parkour fantastic and most of all Jake Gyllenhal is soooo hot. He is one of my favorite actors, very skillful and normally in deeper more serious roles, so it is clear this one was easy for him. He looks so fit, muscled and lean in this movie and best of all you can tell that he just had a blast making it. In fact everything about this movie screams fun. Clearly, aside from the extras marching in the 125 degree Moroccan desert heat, it appears that everyone involved was caught up in the magic of a wonderful tale wonderfully done. It is not deep but it has a good message, and while there is a lovely romantic story it is not the only story of love. Familial love and love of one's country and culture are also important. The special effects are good too and used sparingly as needed so this is not a CGI movie. In fact the fact that Jake did most of his stunts and Gemma did a lot of hers and that they didn't CGI the parkour makes it a lot better to watch. I really don't like movies where they have to hide the actors face all the time to cover up the stunt double or where the actor leaps from a building and becomes a cartoon character. This has a great story, gorgeous costumes and sets and an excellent cast. Ben Kingsley is a superb actor, slightly wasted in a limited role, but still an asset. I highly recommend this film, it is very enjoyable to watch and will be one of a select few that I watch more than once. I would go into more detail about the film but I feel this is one that was so much fun to watch not knowing anything about the story. Give it a chance you won't be disappointed.

Jamie Russell

12 May 2012

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.

Jordan Hoffman

10 May 2012

I know there is nothing new under the Sun, but this time it really feels like the story is a cotton T-shirt that's been washed so many times it is see-through.

Jeff Bayer

09 May 2012

It goes through the proper motions to be a summer blockbuster, but I never once got hooked.

TheLittleSongbird

08 May 2012

Entertaining film

This film I see has had a mixed reception. I am inclined to think thatwhile it is flawed it was an entertaining and above average film. AsI've said, it is flawed, the film is rushed sometimes, I personallywould have liked more room to breathe, the script does have itsweaknesses, some of it could have been more witty and less wordy andbanal though there are some funny moments, and while I don't thinkGemma Arterton is a bad actress-she was brilliant in Tess of theD'Urbevilles her chemistry with Gyllanhaal is rather dull and hercharacter was quite vapid.However, the visuals, cinematography, costumes, special effects andsets are all excellent, as is the rousing music and exciting actionsequences. The story has some nice nods to the games but is essentiallya stand-alone which I didn't mind at all, and for me it was anot-too-predictable and fun story. The direction is serviceable enough,and the acting apart from Arterton is good and the characters ifslightly unoriginal and under-developed fun. Jake Gyllanhaal is ahandsome and likable lead, Ben Kingsley is excellent and Alfred Molinasteals the show.In conclusion, I thought it was entertaining albeit with flaws. 7/10Bethany Cox

08 May 2012

Bad story

When I played the game I thought it would be a nice story for a greatmovie and a new concept but the director screwed up all with a sillyand crappy story. The story of sand creation in movie is such a sillyidea that I am not able to digest. They should have taken most of thestory from the video game itself. The story should have many twists andturns so as to reveal the power of sands of time. I personally thinkthe story should goes like that – The Vizier (from a different kingdom)visits the King Sherman's court and advises him to attack his kingdom(Vizier's kingdom) by narrating him tales of richness and wealth and byoffering never seen before diamond, jewelry etc to the King. The KingSherman then orders the attack and with the help of Vizier, he is ableto win the Kingdom. The King was killed and the Princess is taken asprisoner. Prince finds the hour glass filled with sand; King Shermanthen asks Vizier about the hour glass and why it is kept in secret. TheVizier tells the story that the hour glass contains the magical sandwhich can grant unimaginable power to the one who opens it but it canonly be opened by a dagger hidden in a separate fortress guarded by theelite forces and died King's loyal army. The Prince promises to bringthe dagger as the army is tired after long and devastating battle. TheKing Sherman then asks the Vizier, if the sand is so powerful then whythe dead king didn't claim the power for himself and why he kept sandand dagger hidden in such high security. The Vizier tells that the deadking travelled to a forgotten island with a huge army but returnedalone with the sand and the dagger. Since then he is afraid of usingits power. The dead king gave him some books which he got from theisland to decipher it and he got to know about the secret of the sandfrom those books. King Sherman ordered the Prince to fetch the daggerfor him. When he returned the Vizier takes control of the situation andask prince to hand over the dagger to him in return for the life of hisfather. The Vizier has grand plans to claim the power of sand andprincess for him. The Princess then reveals to prince that the Viziermust not use the dagger. The prince then plunges it into the hourglass. This results in reverting the time to several years to a pointwhen Prince was not born, without affecting the ages of Prince, Vizierand the Princess. King Sherman now young didn't recognize his son andorder to arrest him and princess for the crime plotting to kill him.Actually reverting the time results in Vizier inviting the King Shermanto attack the fortress that contains the dagger first as Vizier changedhis strategy of attach this time. The Prince and Princess became friendin Jail. The princess tells that they can go to his father fortress andthen reveal the plans of evil Vizier and prevent all this fromhappening. The Prince like the idea and plans to escape. The Prince andPrincess escaped from the prison and while escaping the Prince got theopportunity to steal the dagger once again. While stealing the dagger,he is intercepted by his father. While protecting princess and in orderto escape the Prince killed his father. The Prince and Princess nowhead Princess's father's fortress so that they can reveal the plan ofVizier. Killing his father results in Prince dying a slow death and hisbody turning into sand. The Prince must hurry as he has very limitedtime left and will convert into a sand wraith soon. Taking advantage ofKing Sherman's death the Vizier sends his assassins to kill Prince andPrincess and took the dead body of King Sherman in front of Princess'sfathers to prove his loyalty once again. He tells that he has killedthe invading King and now the King must muster his army to displace theinvading army. The Princess's father asks Vizier why he grew so old,the Vizier said that he learned about the attack and went to protectthe fortress and was able to kill the invading King with the help ofdagger and this turns him old but now his son posses the dagger andplanning to launch an attack on this fortress, so the King must hurryand send all his army to attack the invading army. Meanwhile theassassins killed the Princess and badly injured the Prince. The princemust now use the dagger to kill the assassins and save his life. Hefills the dagger with the sand falling from his body, reverts the timeand kills all the assassins. He is not able to bring the Princess alivebecause the dagger can only revert the time for a limited moment as itcontains limited amount of sand. The Prince reached the Princessfathers' fortress and revealed the Vizier's evil plot. But to hissurprise it was the Vizier in the King's garments. The Vizier actuallykilled the king and claimed his Thorn. Taking advantage of shock thePrince is in, the Vizier stab the Prince with his knife and tells himthat he killed countless people to claim the sand's power and now heturns the time to favor his destiny and today he finally going to tastethe sand's power and no one can stop him now. The prince laughed, hetook the sand falling from his body, fills the dagger, reverts the timebefore he was killed and plunges the dagger in the hour glass resultingin releasing the sand and forwarding the time to a point when Vizierhad come to King Sherman's court to invite him.

eric-1803

07 May 2012

Entertaining but Predictable

I saw this movie this evening at a pre-screening event in Manhattan'sAMC Empire Theater on 42nd Street and 8th Avenue. I had no idea what Iwas going to see because it was a "blind screening", which meant you'reinvited to what a movie that you don't know by a studio that won'treveal themselves. Well, when we got there I asked one of the AMC staffif they screened any prints that morning (usually pre-screeners arrivethe day before or the day of the showing). The staffer confirmed thatthey screened a print for this movie (but it's not due out until the28th. So after seeing this movie, I can say that it will surlyentertain you, but it may not satisfy you if you crave change,unpredictability and something different. This, in the end, is a Disneymovie and Disney will only invest in sure things. That's what thisis... a sure thing. It's fun, exciting, but the characters are not deepand many of them are difficult to differentiate from one another.So here's my big beef with it, this is yet another story about war inthe middle east (there has always been war in the middle east), but nowa time travel element is included yet they still can't stop fighting?Really? Also, the gypsy character was too much like a fat Jack Sparrow,I feel Disney is trying to further cash in on the absurdity of such acharacter.

lazar93

06 May 2012

Very predictable but interesting at some points

I tought that this movie was going to be amazing... I've got provedwrong! Prince of Persia:sands of time movie looked good(promising) instart but later as story has been developed i found out that this kindof movie is old school... i wont tell the details of the movie:)First:someone got assassinated (everyone suspects "the good guy")andstarts accusing and prosecuting. Second:during almost a whole movie wewitness romance between two characters growing (and romance is simpleas seen in every action based movie) Third: movie is verypredictable... while watching for 1h40min(movie length) i knew for morethan a half of movie what will happen.. it wasn't interesting at all..But idea with dagger and moving through time is interesting.. Thismovie could of been a lot better.. all because it was too predictableto me. I voted 4 just because of dagger and sand of time

05 May 2012

5 STARS FOR PRODUCTION DESIGN -- THREE FOR STORY

A big disappointment both from critics and from paying audiences. And the Disney logo didn't really help now that the general consensus among teens boys - the core demographic for this film -- is that it will be overblown and sentimentally sweet and devoid of any substance.That said, I enjoyed the film for the extraordinarily well-rendered production and art design that made believable the world of the story. There were ethnic protests that a Persian actor didn't play the lead, but Gyllenhaal is just fine as the rogue prince and he is in great shape and obviously does a lot of his own stunts.Adapted from a video game (by its creator Jordan Mechner) it went through some strange permutations from the popular side-scrolling puzzler that began it all to the needlessly complicated film. Mike Newell has a fine eye and a sure hand in the vistas and the action.But if you want to enter an exotic realm, this one will deliver on looks alone. Take the ride to a world beyond the pale.

joeflys3256

04 May 2012

Fun and adventurous movie...

Prince of Persia - The Sands of Time is a fun and adventurous movie. Ifyou want to go to the movies to see something in this category you willnot be disappointed. If you are concerned about the gore factor thereare a few fighting scenes but they are done in a Walt Disney fashion.Rated M in Australia.I made the mistake of reading some of the other reviews from thiswebsite and others and went in expecting cliché after cliché...they arethere, but the fun and adventure keeps you entertained. All actors inmy opinion played their parts well and if I was asked to fault themovie I would be speechless so just enjoy.