Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time [DVD]

I had read one or two negatives reviews in the press for this film, but this is just my sort of thing. What's not to like about a rollicking good yarn, full of action, amazing costumes, beautiful sets and an attractive cast?!I thoroughly enjoyed it from beginning to end; much more so than Clash of the Titans. Jake Gyllenhaal, who I've never really taken much notice of before, was GORGEOUS; totally buff, totally believable as an action hero AND a pitch perfect English accent. Gemma Arterton was great too - feisty, difficult and stubborn and the relationship and comedy between them was perfect. The supporting cast were all just right and well cast and the whole spectacle was visually stunning.I thought the story was good - not too fantastical, but with a touch of magic. I'm reliably informed by my brother who plays computer games that it was fairly true to the game as well in terms of the panoramas and some of the action moves.All in all, great fun that looked good and was hugely entertaining.

What is wrong with people giving this movie a low score? If you like a great fantasy story, great action and adventure and great effects- you cannot go wrong with this movie- it will transport you to the mystical magical land of Persia in the 4th century- the sets and effects are first rate and don't let up for a minute. Jake Gyllenhaal and Gemma Arterton are great leads- Gyllenhaal plays the adopted Prince of Persia who is accused of murdering the King and has to flee his people and attempt to prove his innocence-there's a magical dagger-an amazing ostrich race-killer snakes-palatial cities in the desert- Ben Kingsley is dastardly with a capital D as the baddie -Alfred Molina (Doc Ock) is a fun sidekick. This is Pirates of the Carrabean set in the Persian desert and will give you a really fun two hour ride.

Good entertainment. Easy storyline and great sets.

I found the film to be a great peace of entertainment it had excellent graphics and a very good story line and I would class in one of the best films I have seen over the past five years and would love to see a follow up meaning how the got on with there lives after the battlesof good and evil and if they get married when as well as what would happen to the future of there people after they used all the sand and if the Gods would praise them for there triumph over his evil uncle.So overall veiw is Excellent, Worth watching suitable for child over 12 Yes and brillant, I would also like to say well done to the writers, directores and producers and cast.

Bursting with action, magic and excitement! This is a great family film (in my opinion) my 12year old neice thoroughly enjoyed it, a really good storyline. I wasn't expecting much from this film, so surprisingly loved it. It totally hooked me the effects are great. I wont spoil any of the film apart from it has several small twists with a happy ending. But please be warned it does have a fair amount of blood/aggression for young children. Depending on what level of tolerances you have for violence, depends on weather you will enjoy as a family film (stabbings, deaths, snakes)-this makes it sound awful, it's not ...honest!!

Prince of Persia is an adaptation of the computer game franchise into the world of film and it is a perfectly reasonable family-friendly adventure. Jake Gyllenhaal takes the lead as Prince Dastan who must save the world from a dastardly plot being hatched by his own uncle while fighting bad guys and the hierachy of the Persian court. It is a truly beautifully costumed film and the scenery is excellent. The plot is fine if not especially challenging, the cultural references are there for those who want to see them, and in the main the acting is ok.Jake Gyllenhaal's Price Dastan makes for an ok adventure lead. He is not overly charismatic and he is a little wide-eyed too often but as the centerpiece of the film he is not offputting. He is deliberately more earthy and energetic than his Princely brothers because of his origins. The earliest scenes show him as a child being taken under the wise king's wings for his bravery and integrity. He doesn't particularly display those character elements later on in the film where he is more cunning than anything - perhaps this is character development showing the effect of court life on that boy or perhaps character development isn't really the point of a film like this.Gyllenhaal's biggest problem is that he is cast alongside the weakest part of the film - Gemma Arterton. Her role as Princess Tamina is annoying. Being the traditional bratty princess who backchats her way through most of the film makes her a difficult to like character. Arterton is not particularly well cast for the role at all. She does not suit the Cleopatra style makeup that she wears early on and she doesn't have the *ahem* *physique* to fit the slave girl outfits. Some of the most entertaining parts of Prince of Persia are when Dastan catches Tamina out and she gets her occasional comeuppance. Arterton is not terrible when taking on the more ethereal sounding lines in her role as High Priestess but she has too many other lines.Fortunately the rest of the cast are generally very good. Ben Kingsley is a bit under-used so crams in a little bit too much ham into Prince Nizam but he is a menacing and darkly entertaining villain. He has great presence as an evil Grand Visier style character. The brothers are perfectly fine and the nobility of Richard Coyle's Prince Tus is very endearing. As the straight man it can be hard to shine in a film like this but Coyle turns in a decent performance. Alfred Molina is probably supposed to steal the show as Sheikh Amar and he definitely has all the best lines but it probably would have been much funnier had it been Omid Djalili.The dialogue takes a little getting used to because everyone is English. It works but only by rationalising which makes it a little more hard work than it should be. Dastan has a London accent most of the time which makes logical sense as it is a relative accent compared to the more received pronounciation English of the higher born characters but still it does take a while to get over the question as to whether he's supposed to be a mockney.Still, this is a respectable family film because the plot works. It is the traditional get the item quest but each step is well taken. The machinations and motivation of Nizam make sense, the reactions of the Princes are perfectly understandable, and the morality works both for the modern audience and in trying to place it to 6th century Persia. Even the ending turns out to be better than it should have been.This is not an historical adventure, it is a computer game adaptation. However, it has a distinct setting in place and in time and it does reasonable superficial justice for those who aren't looking for complete accuracy. The Hashashin and Sufi Islam obviously didn't exist in the 6th century but that doesn't matter because both did exist in that place not long afterwards and were very significant features of it. That they and the Sassanid's didn't coexist doesn't mean that these elements of Persian history must be kept apart when some of the very best scenes in the film are about ostrich racing.The scenery that the film is set in is absolutely terrific. The extras reveal it unsurprisingly to be Morocco and pretty much every scene is absolutely gorgeous. The costumes for the set and for the actors are stunning and it really does seem to be set in a living environment. Prince of Persia is probably the best-costumed film since Lord of the Rings.As a predominantely action film, the battle sequences need to be good and they are. Ben Kingsley has a surprisingly impressive action moment, the Hashashin fight vs the Sudanese knife thrower is absolutely terrific, and Prince Dastan is at the heart of some excellent gymnastics. The extras show that the stunts are largely Parkour based and that works very well for Prince of Persia. The vertical lifting and the jumping are extremely reminiscent of the game that appeared some 20 odd years ago. There probably aren't quite enough traps to be completely reminiscent of that game but perhaps it is more similar to the recent game? The stunts and the fights are believable and varied, Jake Gyllenhaal is a very credible swordsman.The extras are a little limited but what is there is good. The making of is a talking heads session with plenty of in-sequence action in the background and a brief insight into the major features of set and costume as well as a bit of talk from the main actors.A fun and worthwhile family-friendly action adventure with great background and swordfighting is not the greatest film of its generation or genre but is also far from the worst.

A Good family film not to be missed, from the word go its action packed, the film is well thought out and starts off fun and friendly, then our main star is set up for a fall, but as time passes the truth comes out to why his father was murdered.Can the Prince Prevail........watch it and see :0)9.5/10Overall this film is really worthy of a watch, i was pleasantly surprised by everyone involved within this film Nice 1.

This film is silly, cheesy and a whole lot of fun. It lags a little in the middle but mostly it's great entertainment and that's all I wanted from it.