Gyllenhaal Rules in "Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time"
Peter Kreysa
June 04, 2010
This Memorial Day weekend, Walt Disney Pictures brought to the big screen the "Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time." This action-packed epic adventure set in the mystical lands of Persia features rogue Prince Dastan (Jake Gyllenhaal) and a beautiful mysterious Princess Tamina (Gemma Arterton), who are on a perilous quest to stop an evil plan to turn back the sands of time. Producers Mike Newell and Jerry Bruckheimer have brought together an impressive and talented cast and an inspired crew in an ambitious effort to bring to life the imaginings of a popular video game series. The result is a very entertaining action-packed picture that will appeal not only to teens who play video games, but also to adults seeking adventure, romance, and stunning visuals.
The enormous imagination and scope of this richly produced and visually entrancing story engages the audience from the first scene when the all-powerful King of Persia adopts a courageous orphan boy who grows up to be a handsome prince with a strong moral compass and exceptional fighting skills. Faced with a conflict between their military orders and evidence of treachery, the King's sons must decide whether to invade the Holy City of Alamut. The army attacks and, with an inspired but insubordinate infiltration of the enemy ranks by Gyllenhaal, the Persians easily conquer the City.
Discovering a mysterious dagger with secret powers and wending their way through the devious lies of the King´s brother, and Gyllenhaal's mentor, Nizam, the story takes the characters through an extraordinary and entertaining series of adventures filled with sumptuous costumes, beautiful women, fighting scenes, and battles between good men and evil sorcerers.
Gyllenhaal, who appears in every scene from minutes into the film until the very end, delivers a masterful performance as the brave Prince Dastan. His performance brings to life the video character in Jordan Mechner's seminal video game series in a way that makes the character a likeable "everyman" despite his unusual and exceptional abilities. Gyllenhaal's craft as an exceptional actor is evident from the way in which he takes what could be a two-dimensional action figure and converts him into the kind of hero that will inspire teens and remind adults why we go to the movies.
Gemma Arterton's Princess Tamina turns a predictable conversion from remote and icy princess to a likeable and stalwart ally in an inspired character study. She does this by never overplaying her character and keeping her obvious attraction to Gyllenhaal at a low-intensity smolder. This performance should land her on every director's short list for a woman coming into her own.
The evil Prince Nizam is played with panache by Sir Ben Kingsley, who weaves his web of deception with great skill. When outed as the evil mastermind behind the murder of his brother, King Sharaman, ably played by Ronald Pickup, Kingsley displays the ability of an accomplished artist in preventing the character from becoming a trite stereotype.
The two other princes, Tus and Garsiv each grow into men we can like and respect. This is entirely due to the sensitive acting and care taken by the very capable actors Richard Coyle and Toby Kebbell.
Films of this genre draw much of their credibility from the efforts of their costume designers and cinematographers. Penny Rose (creator of the costumes in the Pirates of the Caribbean trilogy) brings a lushness to the costumes that matches the majestic scenery and luscious desert landscape brought to life by cinematographer John Seale, who makes the Moroccan desert as much a character in the film as Gyllenhaal and Arterton.
In the end, however, this production—opulent and gorgeous as it is—will rise or fall on the skills of its lead actor, Gyllenhaal, who had to meet enormous challenges for this role. "'Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time' was just so different from anything that I had been involved in," said Gyllenhaal. "I thought that creating an iconic character like Dastan could be both fun and a huge challenge. I've always loved movies in which the hero has the capability to do almost anything, but still be a human being, and not a superman."
"The development of the character was massively physical at first," Gyllenhaal continued, "getting in shape and learning parkour [the art of movement], sword-fighting and the mentality of a warrior. I knew that if I got through that, I'd be halfway there. And when it was decided that Dastan would speak in a standard British accent to be consistent with the rest of the performers, I worked hard at that as well with a dialect coach named Barbara Berkery."
And, as Disney executives must have predicted, Gyllenhaal does not disappoint. It is his consummate skill which keeps this picture from being just another action adventure. So, it is with much confidence that I say that, in Prince of Persia, Gyllenhaal rules.
Credits
Jake Gyllenhaal (Dastan)
Sir Ben Kingsley (Nizam)
Gemma Arterton (Tamina)
Alfred Molina (Sheikh Amar)
Steve Toussaint (Seso)
Toby Kebbell (Garsiv)
Richard Coyle (Tus)
Ronald Pickup (King Sharaman)
Reece Ritchie (Bis)
Gisli Örn Gardarsson (Zolm, Lead Hassansin)
Claudio Pacifico (Hassansin Porcupine)
Thomas DuPont (Hassansin Whip Man)
Dave Pope (Hassansin Double-Blade Halberd)
Massimilano Ubaldi (Hassansin Long Razor)
Jerry Bruckheimer (Producer)
Mike Stenson (Executive Producer)
Jordan Mechner (Executive Producer/Screen Story By)
Patrick McCormick (Executive Producer)
Boaz Yakin (Screenplay By)
Doug Miro & Carlo Bernard (Screenplay By)
George Aguilar (Stunt Coordinator)
Michael Kahn (Film Editor)
Martin Walsh (Film Editor)
Tom Wood (Visual Effects Supervisor)
Trevor Wood (Special Effects)
Harry Gregson-Williams (Composer)
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