May 29, 2010 -- “Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time” is a swashbuckler in the grand tradition of movies like “The Mummy,” “Cutthroat Island,” “Sinbad the Sailor” and any number of similar movies in which a fearless hero saves the world and gets the girl. There is lots of daring leaps high in the air, often accompanied by acrobatic flips and lots of swordplay. There is also political intrigue, assassinations, treachery and an evil megalomaniac. In short it has the ingredients of a good summer popcorn movie.

Jake Gyllenhaal of “Brothers” is the unlikely hero of this tale. He plays Dastan, an adopted Prince of Persia, selected for his courage and daring as a young boy who defied the king. Dastan, along with his brothers, Tus and Garsiv, participate in an unwise attack on the sacred city of Alamut. After easily capturing the city, Dastan's fortunes suddenly hit rock bottom when he is falsely accused of killing his father, King Sharaman, head of the mighty Persian empire. Dastan makes numerous Houdini-like escapes, often accompanied by the lovely Tamina (Gemma Arterton) the high priestess of Alamut. Eventually Dastan discovers the secret of an ornate knife he captured. It has the ability to turn back time. The villain of the story hopes to use the dagger to turn back time so he can rule the entire Persian empire. In trying to do this, however, the world could be destroyed.

Dastan and Tamina make an unlikely alliance with the shady Sheik Amar (Alfred Molina of “Hoax”) and his band of crooks. Together, they seek to save the world, stop the evil plans of the villain and his deadly band of ninja-like assassins called the Hassansins. Sheik Amar is a funny comic character in the Tea Party mold. He distrusts the government and hates taxes. He runs a shady, tax-free gambling operation in the desert, protected by the legend of evil forces. As you would expect, when push comes to shove, there is some courage and nobility in this likeable rascal.

There is plenty of action and some great stunt work. Some of the stunts are so incredible, however, they must have been done digitally. It is a bit much, but fun to watch. This looks like one of those old movie with a cast of thousands, although some of those are probably digital as well. It is hard to tell what's real and what's not. This movie is done on an epic scale, however. Stunt coordinator G.A. Aguilar (“Zombieland”) and a large number of stunt performers, riggers, stunt doubles, wire-riggers and others, like Parkour coordinator David Belle, create a lot of impressive fight and escape scenes. There is even a bit of character development here and there. This is a good popcorn film. It rates a B.

Click here for links to places to buy or rent this movie in digital formats, or to buy the soundtrack, posters, books, even used videos, games, electronics and lots of other stuff. I suggest you shop at least two of these places before buying anything. Prices seem to vary continuously. For more information on this film, click on this link to The Internet Movie Database. Type in the name of the movie in the search box and press enter. You will be able to find background information on the film, the actors, and links to much more information.

Copyright © 2010 Robert Roten. All rights reserved.
Reproduced with the permission of the copyright holder.

Robert Roten can be reached via e-mail at .