In recent years the action/adventure genre has been well represented. Indiana Jones being the quintessential example has set the bar extremely high and has rarely been equaled. I believe, in my humble opinion, that "National Treasure" of last year was a very honorable attempt to rekindle the "Indy" spirit in adventure pictures. The critics weren't crazy about it but the folks loved it so it stands to reason that Hollywood would try to keep the trend going. The next attempt is the Clive Cussler novel, "Sahara". In true adventure style, Sahara has all the needed elements. The good lookin' hero, the wise cracking sidekick, the babe (well, sorta), the treasure and the bad guy. The picture opens in 1865 as the Civil War ends. The last of the ironclad battleships is running a blockade out to sea filled with Confederate gold coins (!!!). It disappears into the night and we are brought into the present. Enter Dirk Pitt, treasure hunter. He's been tracking this gold filled ironclad and believes the legend that it ended up, of all places, in Africa. So he and his trusted sidekick head for the Sahara and the gold, meeting up with a doctor who is investigating a plague that's killing people in Mali. Their two separate missions become one as they battle an African warlord and without spoiling the story, an impending cataclysmic event. Trust me when I tell you, saving the world ain't easy. Matthew McConaughey is good as Dirk Pitt. Handsome, athletic and guess what? HE CAN ACT! Penélope Cruz (yuck! or in español, Guakala!) is the doctor who wants to save the African people and puts her life in harm's way to do it. Both good performances but the picture is stolen by Steve Zahn, the sidekick. His jokes and one liners are funny and he delivers them while actually being a bad-ass who can handle himself amply in a pinch. Add to the cast Glynn Turman, Delroy Lindo and William H. Macy and you've got some pretty good depth of acting. Look folks, you know me, I need no "message" in the story and every picture does not need to be Oscar® material to be entertaining. If you look too deep you ruin the fun and that's what this picture was.....FUN! Was it perfect? No. Two flaws that I noticed were the "nap time" first 40 minutes. I believe in plot development but an action picture MUST do it with action. After the lull the story picked up just fine. The second flaw was the sound track. The rock songs that they played were VERY loud and just overwhelming to the point of being irritating. That aside, I enjoyed it and though it was no Indiana Jones or National Treasure it WAS fun and sometimes that's enough. "NOW, we're home free!" RECOMMENDATION: Take the family and have a good time. Ignore the so-called "critics" who are all still looking for "messages". Go to the movies for what it was meant to be...fun. Rated PG13 for some combat type violence. TWO GOOD OLD SATURDAY AT THE MOVIES THUMBS UP!!! (message free) Movie Review © 2005 by Terry Anderson |
