"Prince of Persia" is a tale stuck between Iraq and a hard place

by Ken San Nicolas

Director: Mike Newell

Time: 2 hours

Genre: Action

Starring: Jake Gyllenhaal, Gemma Arterton, Ben Kingsley

"Prince of Persia: Sands of Time" is the latest video-game adaptation to hit the big screen. And like the endless expanse of desert that the movie is set in, the film is lengthy and will have you longing to get up and find a drink. Gyllenhaal plays Dastan, an adopted street rat-turned-prince who stumbles upon a mysterious dagger during one of his father's empire's raids. When he is accused of his brother's murder, Dastan flees with the mysterious Tamina (Gemma Arterton), a beautiful princess who holds the secrets to the dagger.

"Prince of Persia" has a few cool details. There are some free-running scenes, pretty cool special effects, and a few decent fight scenes. But those things only take up 1/4 of this 2 hour borefest. The other 3/4 of the film consist of some lame dialogue between Dastan and Tamina, a couple of repetitive scenes to show the power of the dagger, and an obvious red herring final third plot twist that you'll catch in the first 30 minutes of the film. I compare this to waiting in line to pay bills: You know that you aren't going to be happy when you reach the teller and pay the amount, but yet you still have to wait for so long just to get to the front.

As a movie, "Prince of Persia" is nothing special. Compared to other video game adaptations though, the movie does translate well. Unfortunately, there is not enough substance in the story to keep viewers interested once the hour glass empties and the sands of time fade away.

3 out of 5 stars.