"Based on the video game, which follows an adventurous prince who teams
up with a rival princess to stop an angry ruler from unleashing a
sandstorm that could destroy the world." (imdb.com)
Viewed on May 30, 2010 in theaters
I remember the Prince of Persia video game. I've played it on a cell phone and an old video game system or two (I want to say a Gameboy and a Sega?). I used to think it was awesome and that Dastan was just Aladdin on steroids, meant for older kids. Needless to say, I've been eagerly waiting for this movie to see what the treatment of Dastan and his legend will be like. I was not disappointed.
Filled with fighting, swords, pretty women, rugged men, awesome CGI, and some heart-stoppingly awesome parkour moves, I absolutely love this movie. Yeah, yeah, so it has a few really (and I mean really) cheesy lines in it--they don't take away from the film at all. I never thought the gay cowboy Jake Gylenhaal would ever be this likable to me. To be honest, his portrayal of Dastan is fantastic.
The story is extremely well-written and easy to follow. Dastan is a hero everyone can root for and young men should want to grow up to be--he's pure, honest, brave, smart, quick on his feet, loyal, loving, and tough when he has to be. When faced with constantly changing loyalties and horrible scandals, he remains dedicated to truth and virtue. **SPOILER ALERT!!!** He even gives up his life at one point to convince another character that he's telling the truth. **SPOILER OVER!!!** Dastan truly is one of the best heroes Disney has given us in a long time. Although he's not nearly as much fun as Jack Sparrow, he's certainly one of the most heroic larger-than-life characters I've seen in a while. His purity and honesty are refreshing in these times of treachery and violence.
The dagger of time itself is one of the most original and intriguing pieces of story I've seen in a while. It gives the holder the ability to turn back time for up to one minute. It leads to some pretty sweet eye-popping time-wrinkling CGI. It also helps to reverse some unfortunate turns of events (thank the good writers for THAT!) and turn them into huge learning experiences that bring the characters to a new sense of themselves. However, there's always a catch--A) it could unleash the destruction of the world, and B) it requires the death of an innocent person in order to destroy it. Ouch.
NEGATIVES:
>> Profanity is literally non-existent. I couldn't hear one foul word or one innuendo. It was awesome.
>> Violence is the name of the game. When we're talking about swords, bows and arrows, Persia, warfare, and assassination, there will be an extremely high body count. Granted, this film is taken almost directly from a video game where the objective is to annihilate one's enemies. It does that very well, and often the violence feels like it's straight from a game. People are slashed, burned, poisoned, stabbed, sliced, throats cut, snakebitten, falling from great heights, beaten, impaled, shot, thrown, slammed, punched, kicked, flung into walls, tackled from horseback, tripped...you get the picture. In the legacy of Pirates of the Caribbean, there is not much blood (some, but not alot).
>> The spiritual end of things is all connected in ancient polytheistic legend. All things come back to the gods who created the dagger and the limited ability to turn back time. They hold the key to existence, and they are the ones who would destroy the world if their gift were abused.We're not preached at, but the legends aren't exactly explained away, either.
>> Alcohol makes a minor appearance once.
>> Thankfully, sexual content is limited to some cleavage-showing women, an allusion or two to harems and women, and a couple of jokes. One kiss is shared.
One more thing--anyone who isn't familiar with parkour, go YouTube it. It's the most amazing display of physical athleticism I've ever seen, and these people keep me spellbound with their talents. The first few minutes of this movie were stocked-full with classic Parkour moves, and I LOVED IT! The ridiculousness of alot of the physical action is offset when one realizes that most of the action moves used in the movie are completely, totally, and 100% possible. I've seen people do these jumps, falls, and running up walls. It's completely possible, totally believable, and jaw-droppingly amazing. Not to mention it makes for some massively entertaining chase scenes. :)
I thoroughly enjoyed this movie. I would highly recommend it to anyone, although I feel it's a bit too intense for younger children. It showcases a hero who is free of blemish (even if his world is not), and it gives us something to root for. I love it.
6 stars out of 6
So that everyone (including myself) may benefit from it, please feel free to leave your own personal opinion of this film.
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