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Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time (2010)

Director: Mike Newell

Time Out rating

Average user rating

24 reviews

Synopsis

Gylenhaal and Arterton team up to foil a devious wizard in this upbeat adventure based on the computer game.

Movie review

From Time Out London

Hands up who ever thought they’d see the director of ‘Four Weddings and a Funeral’ making a Jerry Bruckheimer movie – and a video game adaptation to boot? As with his instalment in the ‘Harry Potter’ saga, Mike Newell was clearly brought in to add a touch of dramatic gravitas to this flimsiest of summer blockbusters. It’s a strategy which pays off – but only just.

The plot feels cobbled together from myriad sources: a pinch of ‘The Thief of Baghdad’, a smattering of ‘The Mummy’ and a hefty dollop of ‘The Thousand and One Nights’. Jake Gyllenhaal plays Dastan, a one-time street urchin (natch) elevated to Persian Princeling by the generosity of good King Sharaman. But when Dastan goes against his two brothers and their scheming uncle Nizam (Ben Kingsley, whose moustache is just too short to twirl malevolently), he’s framed for the king’s murder and flees into the desert with only his camel and a bad-tempered princess (Gemma Arterton) for company.

As this synopsis suggests, Newell and his screenwriters leave no historical fantasy cliché unmolested, and that’s before we get to the mystical dagger, the supernatural assassins and Alfred Molina as a jolly, morally dubious gambler. The story does feel overfamiliar and suffers from a lack of dramatic tension as a consequence. Matters aren’t helped by shoddy CGI and some seriously silly last-act developments.

But Newell keeps things moving at a lick, barely allowing his actors a pause for breath between bouts of knockabout banter before chucking them into another athletic action scene. And Gyllenhaal is good value, his natural vulnerability working to offset some slightly alarming action-hero abs. ‘Prince of Persia’ won’t linger long in the memory – but then it probably wasn’t meant to.

Author: Tom Huddleston

Time Out London Issue 2074: May 20-26, 2010

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User reviews of this film

andy said...

Posted on Jun 07 2010 23:01 Somefilm enthusiast....oh dear! Where to start with you?. The power of print you little moron. He who lives by the sword, dies by the sword ,you small little stain.Just stick to the movie and do not attack those who liked it you insignificant being.If you are going to insult those who enjoy a film you don't,then be very careful not to knock their intelligence when you can not even type or spell.It makes you look like an ar*e you see. 'just read the reviews on here for that poof', you wrote. . Honestly? 'POOF?'
Not what you meant, I know,but hey, we're all different,my mother liked this and she has more class than you ever will,show a little respect.
and the paint analogy??? weak minded fool! its been done to death.
this flick was CLASS ACE BRILL AWESOME GREAT We are allowed to enjoy movies that are fun are we not?
Go read some books,watch some more films and develope a more eclectic taste,that takes in all kinds of genre,don't pigeon hole yourself like this,It makes you sound linear and narrow.
come back when you can compete

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_Matt_1977_ said...

Posted on Jun 04 2010 14:17 If you can forgive a little predictability, the occasional deliberately silly anachronism and the odd moment of unconvincing character development, this is epic.

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Some film enthusiast said...

Posted on Jun 04 2010 06:17 Clearly this film plays to the lowest common denominator. Just read the reviews on here for that poof of concept. Those who compare it to Oscar winning films, award winning actors, literary classics and even other video games show they have a good grasp of what a film should be about. Those who type in one line about it being "awesome", or "great" but actually say nothing about WHY it's supposedly "Awesome" or "Great" are showing how little they really know, care or think.
I bet these are the same low brow hoards who think that "Survivor - 5 Star Vacation worth 40 grand a person" or "Jerry Springer - Whores on Stage" is "Great" and "Awesome" too.
Some people will pay to see anything. Hey, what about a 3 hour film about paint drying? That would be "Awesome", huh?
If you don't have a brain in your head, please shut up and stop showing how uninformed you really are. I'm embarrassed FOR you.

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big yin said...

Posted on Jun 03 2010 10:17 torontoguy you are an an*s..
5/5 twn out of ten whatever you like
this was a superb action adventure,go away please.

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SF said...

Posted on Jun 03 2010 05:09 Very good movie. A must see. Lots of action . A little romance. Good story and very good ending. It has everything you would expect from a good movie. Don't lesson to critics.

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scrumpyjack said...

Posted on Jun 02 2010 20:46 FAR better than I thought it would be. Could have lost 10 min, though. Very enjoyable......once. hope that makes sense!

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Toronto Guy said...

Posted on Jun 02 2010 12:31 While fully aware of the film's roots being in yet another video game, like the Lara Croft Tomb Raider flicks of the past few years, I had great anticipation this one would be as attention grabbing and thoughtfully pieced together as Angelina's movies.
I was DEAD WRONG.
Looking like a set stolen from Disney's animated Aladin film, complete with a "street rat" beggar thief who gets chased through the streets of "Agribah"... oops, Agribah was the Disney city Aladin was chased around, in this movie they called it "Alamot"... by evil royal henchmen and then cut to scene where he's a prince in the royal palace. Sadly this film was missing Robin Williams comedic Geni of The Lamp and the cute animated flying carpet to bring about any sense of why I spent money on the ticket to see this.
The plot, as flimsy as it was executed; certainly had all the great stuff we look for in an installment of The Mummy... Evil plotting royal advisers, seductive yet cryptic female protagonists sword fighting and digging around in deserts of sand and... oh, this wasn't The Mummy part 4? Right... sorry...
So the video game... yes: A time controlling enchanted triangle that gives only its posessor the power to control time but the evil cult called the Illuminati... oh, that wasn't the right video game... that was Lara Croft again wasn't it? My bad.
I may have nodded off... did I miss the part where Donny Osmond sang about his "Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat", or where the cast of Glee did that Bangles number "Walk like an Egyptian"? Oh... now I'm confused....
What movie was this again?
Something about rags to riches street trash making it big then being betrayed by his family and getting run out of town but after finding some enchanted knife and getting stuck in the sand he eventually gets the girl in the end. OK, yeah...
So, wasn't Excalibur a great film!! I mean, those knights of the round table really had it in for Lancelot but he and Guinevere persevered and in the end Camelot was saved. No? OKay, well...
This film sucked. Not only can they not steal from great literature properly, not only can they not admirably copy the right pieces of Disney masterpieces that made those films great, not only can they not plagiarize the plot of a rival gaming firm like the Tomb Raider series properly, they can't even cast Harrison Ford as Indy in this one... oh, different super star of Desert adventure films, my bad again.
If you liked Pineapple Express... (probably because you were fried off your azz when you went to see it), you'll be able to tolerate this one too... well, so long as you're fried for this one too. Otherwise, save your money, and do something useful with it, like throw it out of your car window on the freeway.

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hukiworld said...

Posted on Jun 02 2010 05:13 I thought the movie was awesome! I am glad I am not a movie critic because they NEVER enjoy any movie they watch, their too busy over analyzing the entire film from minute one till credits end.

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jimbo said...

Posted on May 31 2010 18:35 OMG its the dicovery channel?history channel/national geographic" all our persian yesteryears" rolled into one dull lecture .
Much like the USSR yugoslavia czechoslovakia and prussia, AND PERSIA THEIR VERY EXISTANCE HAS BEEN COMBINED TO THE HISTORY BOOKS berwick has The thing is sara you are clearly picking fault at something SO immaterial to the movie it beggars belief..
ITS BASED ON A VIDEO GAME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Ok so the desert was in the north and persia had as much grass as europe,desert shmesert...who cares????
action wise and daft daftness made this movie worth every penny,,,who cares if the sand was the wrong colour!!
Honestly some people stun me!

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Sara said...

Posted on May 31 2010 08:48 As a Persian, this is the first time that I see hollywood didn't try to distroy we Persians(Iranian)too much. We Persian planned to see this movie. I saw the movie tonight and I just came back from the cinema. I think it was a fine movie and I enjoyed it. However as a persian I was trying to see where in our country we have/had such a desert that this movie was showing. Don't forget that ancient Persia was from some part of China to the many countries in the Europe. In nowadays Persia(Iran) we have two little desert in the east coast of Iran and the rest of countery specially north, west and center of Iran are very green and look like Europe. It was Interesting that Tahmineh in this movie was telling Dastan that" Iam not look like you from desert". very intersting !!! because Tahmineh was from a small place of Alamot which was part of Persian empire. The empire which was cover from part of China to Hungary in the Europe. Alamot is a immageneray place that our greatest Poet Ferdosi made it in his Shahnameh book(Book of the kings). All Dastan, Tahmineh, Alamot and The rest of things are poatry from our famous poets Ferdosi. These charactors and places were immaginary story that Persian poets Ferdosi wrote in his poem book Shahnameh. Generally I think it was a good movie and I enjoyed it very much. I hope hollywood keep making the movies that people can trust. in spite of 300, Aleksander and without my doughtar that we abondent them and non of us went to see them. Most of will go to see the Prince of Persia movie. I think hollywood is coming back to the right track.

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eugene said...

Posted on May 31 2010 03:00 This was the best movie iv ever seen 10 out of 10

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mrshopper said...

Posted on May 29 2010 23:07 I thought he movie was great. Ben Kingsley remarkable as always. This movie kept me on the edge of my seat the whole time. Definitely a must see.

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x said...

Posted on May 29 2010 03:59 I had been looking forward to it for months, like many other fans of the Prince of Persia game series. Unfortunately the only similarities to that were the prince and the dagger of time. Do not go if you're a fan of the games, you will be disappointed. Some of the archetypes and dynamics expected were there but there were so few consistencies that unless you are able to take it completely separately from the games there is no way to enjoy it. Now that said, if you have never put your hands on the games and are just looking for a movie, it's probably all right.

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movielegend.com said...

Posted on May 28 2010 19:26 So who are you murray? what an un-informed moviegoer you are,This movie has everything thats aBLOCKBUSTER needs.silly easy to follow story,pretty people in the lead roles< over the top villains lots of ridiculous unfightable fights due to crazy choreography and wire work,tons of CGI,big set pices really BAD baddies,a happy ending and no over indulgence in plot or character development,transformers,avatar.jurassic park,godzilla2012..I could go on.. as movie manger said<< time and £££s show the real critics are the ones who dip into their pockets to pay for the tickets

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Murray said...

Posted on May 28 2010 18:27 I thought it was rubbish, it was as if they made the film up as they went along, it didn't add up and the situations and resulted actions were so unrealistic and in so many ways. What a rubbish story about how the sand came about and that she saved everyone by offering herself and it collected in a jar allowing her to go back in time using a dagger, then hoping someone doesn't get it and unleash a sandstorm. Jake was a terrible choice for that role, at least get someone who looked like a skilled killer or someone who might of at least had a fight before. - when the king died why would every one instantly attack the prince with no hesitation, that would never happen, is so stupid... soo bad....!!
the best charactor was the ostrich guy. i walked out the film about 1 hour in. 1 out of 5 BAD.

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