I don't have much to say about Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time.
So instead I thought it would be funny to tease myself about my enslavement to commenting on new releases every Friday, even though I obviously haven't seen them yet. It's become an unofficial secondary feature on my blog, in addition to my Second Chances series.
In fact, the last time I didn't write about a new release on a Friday was December. I excuse myself Christmas Day and New Year's Day, not only because they were holidays, but also, because I was in Australia. But two weeks before that I failed to talk about any of the December 11th releases, opting instead to discuss the difference between Steve Oedekerk and Bob Odenkirk (fascinating stuff).
I don't know, I can't help myself. It keeps me current, even if I don't plan to see many of these movies in the theater. And what better time than a film's release to write a "think piece" about the issues it raises/cinematic trends it exemplifies, even if this will necessarily be abstract and require certain assumptions about it? Besides, it's your last opportunity to theorize about whether a film will be good or not. After that, the critical consensus on it is a matter of public record.
But I figured I'd at least include a couple random, disconnected thoughts about Prince of Persia -- as opposed to my usual brilliant theses -- just so this post has some kind of meat to it:
1) When I first heard about Prince of Persia last year, I was pretty excited for it. That's a part of the world and a time in history that we don't see portrayed too often on film -- in fact, maybe not since Aladdin, and that was animated. I was really looking forward to the ornate production design, and indeed, that looks to be one of the film's primary selling points.
2) When I learned it was based on a video game, I lost some of that enthusiasm.
3) I am a heterosexual male, happily married, with a child on the way. But dammit if Jake Gyllenhaal doesn't look exceptionally hot in this film. (And as a side note, even though I spelled Gyllenhaal correctly on the first try, I still have to look it up every time to be sure.)
4) A dagger that turns back time?
5) It's Memorial Day weekend, and I have yet to see a single one of the big summer releases. (Of which I consider there to be approximately four: Iron Man 2, Robin Hood, Shrek 4 and MacGruber.) Prince of Persia might be the film to pop my cherry on this particular summer, even though it will probably be stupid. In fact, I thought there was a decent chance I'd go after work today. We are often let out early on the day before a holiday weekend, and I have a sporadically observed tradition of kicking off three-day weekends with a movie after work. But it probably won't happen, because a) my boss tends to be absent-minded about remembering to let us go early, and none of us wants to bring it up, and b) I can't risk encroaching on Game 6 between my Boston Celtics and the Orlando Magic, which starts at 5:30 my time.
Have a great first weekend of summer, everyone. Have a hamburger and a beer (or six). And enjoy Prince of Persia if you end up going.
