Viewed in theaters, August 09, 2010
From the moment I heard there would be a live-action adaptation of the classic Mickey Mouse cartoon The Sorcerer's Apprentice, I was filled with excitement and hesitation. I knew that it would be an interesting movie; I also knew that, given Disney's track record with magic and sorcery, it would most likely be a soup of offensive dark occultic mess. I was half expecting a Disney-fied Harry Potter. When I found out that Nicolas Cage was the sorcerer, I was a little more happy but still hesitant.
When the movie came out, I waited to hear feedback about it. The reviews that came back were very abstract and confusing, and they never truly stated what the nature of the sorcery was or what the powers were attributed to. Even my fallback, Focus on the Family's Plugged In Online, didn't explicitly state their full opinion on the occultic nature of the film. I wrestled for weeks about whether or not I should go see it--I really don't mind certain types of sorcery in films, but I've also spent a long time formulating my opinions on obviously Satanic/witchcraft-oriented entertainment such as Harry Potter (if you want to hear my opinion on it, I'll be more than happy to talk anytime). If I went to see it, and the sorcery was a certain kind, I would be a hypocrite and betraying the longtime opinions I've held and talked about to others. But at the same time, it looked like a fun ruckus filled with Disney "magic" and Nicolas Cage's style of acting (which I love!).
When I did see it, I was a bit disappointed with the storyline but wasn't really bothered by the nature of the magic involved. My problem with the storyline: It was rather hollow and wasn't really that interesting. Sure, Nic Cage is awesome (and his hair is actually okay here!), and some of the concepts were pretty original (the mirror idea is really kinda cool). However, that doesn't redeem the ANNOYINGness of Jay Baruchel. I cannot stand him as a lead actor--his voice, acting style, etc. is all just irritating. Every so often I would get to where I could almost like him, but he would lapse back into something and look awkward and I would remember how annoying he is. It also doesn't validate the lame jokes that come in every so often, or some of the impossibilities (I'm not a science geek but at least I know that you can't make a Tesla coil out of park lampposts). Alfred Molina, as terrific as he is, plays a character who is on a one-track mind and doesn't really make an intimidating baddie. The bad guy who is totally likable is done away with nonchalantly and not made a major character.
NEGATIVES:
>>Profanity: I seem to remember one or two questionable words. Nothing big.
>>Violence is pretty much relegated to characters being knocked off their feet, one or two being thrown from great heights, physical fighting, two characters having their "life" literally drained out of them, and the rising of an undead army. There are very few deaths in the film, but alot of physical force happening. In a way, the chaos resulting from alot of violent encounters helps to shield us from disturbing hits, punches, slashes, punctures, and even an electrocution or two.
>>Spiritual content: My opinion on the nature of sorcery involved: apparently, science is the answer and love overcomes all. Some of the things happening in this film are of dark spiritual nature--such as the attempt of one bad character to raise an army of undead to take over the world, or certain symbols being used such as pentagrams, or the fusion of two souls into one body, or the creepy chanting in Latin that happens near the end of the movie by the bad guy. For the most part, stuff just kindof happens. Balthazar (Cage) makes a huge deal of explaining away alot of the "sorcery" as simply science--apparently sorcerers aren't magicians at all, they've just learned how to use 99% of their brain capacity so that they can move matter by manipulating radio waves with their minds. Alot of seemingly "magical" things are actually shown to be spawned from electricity, gravity, or some other force of nature. It's kindof confusing, but basically the filmmakers steered away from most spells, demons, crystal balls, ouija boards, most visual symbols, special pointy hats, etc. Magic is treated as amoral, a neutral force that can be used for good OR bad. The entire time I was thinking, "Would Jesus watch this movie with me?" At the end, I was left thinking, Well, maybe. This film left me with a rather confused taste in my mouth, where I wasn't so sure how I felt about it. I have absolutely no change in my opinion on the occult and Satanic sorcery; however, I really don't think that this film dabbled in that or even touched into that. It's rather confusing. However, a HUGE difference from other magic-filled entertainment is that here the good guys and bad guys are CLEARLY delineated. It's obvious who is good and who is bad; love is the motivation for one and revenge/lust for power is the motivation for the other; *SPOILER* the good guys win and bad guys lose, in no uncertain terms.
>>One or two jokes come in about being drunk, but they are quick and pass by without really being noticed.
>>Sexual content is also restrained, being found only in a few quick kisses and one or two pictures on someone's wall.
Overall, I enjoyed this movie and I think it's worth watching. The level of sorcery did not really bother me on a spiritual level. I think this film would be boring for little kids, but I don't think that it is inappropriate for them, with the exception of a few scary scenes. I also don't think this film is very good--it's rather shallow and not all that interesting on its own merit. Sure, there are a few things here and there, but as a whole it just doesn't fully realize its potential.
Potential--that's a huge part of this film's story. Characters realizing their potential and destiny. Ages-old prophecies being fulfilled. The originality of the storyline that never really becomes the epic awesomeness that it could have been.
3 1/2 out of 6 stars
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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