This week at the movies, we’ve got a royal adventure (Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, starring Jake Gyllenhaal and Gemma Arterton) and sexy socialites (Sex and the City 2, starring Sarah Jessica Parker and Kim Cattrall). What do the critics have to say?
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Carrie, Samantha, Charlotte, and Miranda are back to drum up business for the elite fashion designers of the world. Only this time, their adventures take them away from “The City” to the remote paradise of Abu Dhabi, where Samantha (Kim Cattrall) has been asked by a sheik to head a PR campaign. Taking place 2 years after the events of the first film, Sex and the City 2 focuses on the troubles the foursome face when life has settled down, and critics say this sequel is one they could have done without. With a running time of close to two and a half hours, most feel the plot wears much too thin to sustain its length, making it an unfortunate continuation of the wildly popular HBO series.
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Hollywood was certainly wise to tap into the video game market for movie ideas as the medium became a more prominent piece of modern pop culture. Unfortunately, it seems no one has yet been able to crack the secret to creating an effective yet faithful adaptation, and critics say that Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, while sitting in the upper echelon of the genre, ultimately fails to break the cycle. Jake Gyllenhaal stars as the titular hero, who teams up with an exotic princess (Gemma Arterton) to retrieve a magical dagger from an evil nobleman. Reviews so far have been mixed, with some critics calling the Jerry Bruckheimer production an entertaining enough romp, while others decry the film as tame and lifeless. (Also, be sure to check out Jake Gyllenhaal’s Best Movies in this week’s Total Recall, and take a look at our Best Video Game Adaptations countdown to see where Prince of Persia ranks.)
Also opening this week in limited release:
