Review of Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time (2010) by Mike S — 02 Jan 2013

This tale of a medieval Persian prince who discovers a complicated plot involving political assassination and usurping the throne is okay, but not great. Why do the Persians all speak with British accents, thereby required American actor Jake Gyllenhaal to attempt an accent? The movie is loosely based on characters and situations from a series of video games, and so is unsurprisingly fantastical and unconvincing.

The major plot device is a dagger with a hilt filled with magic sand. When a button on the end of the hilt is pressed, the sand "activates" and causes the holder of the dagger to travel back in time.

The sand can only be used once, however, and must be replenished from a secret source. This device leads to a climax that is perhaps to be expected, but nonetheless feels like a cop-out. The acting and special effects are decent.