Prince of Persia 2: The Shadow and the Flame | |
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Developer(s) | Broderbund |
Publisher(s) |
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Composer(s) | Tom Rettig |
Series | Prince of Persia |
Platform(s) |
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Release |
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Genre(s) | Cinematic platformer |
Mode(s) | Single-player |
Prince of Persia 2: The Shadow and the Flame is a platform game released by Broderbund in 1993.
It received an HD remake for smartphones and tablets for iOS and Android in 2013 as Prince of Persia: The Shadow and the Flame.
Gameplay[edit]
Similar to the first Prince of Persia, the character explores various deadly areas by running, jumping, crawling, avoiding traps, solving puzzles and drinking magic potions. Prince of Persia 2 is, however, more combat-heavy than its predecessor. In the first game, enemies appear only occasionally and are always alone, while in the sequel, up to four enemies may appear at once, sometimes flanking the player, and may even be instantly replaced by reinforcements when they are killed. As in Prince of Persia, the trick is to complete the game under a strict time limit from 75 minutes (which start after a certain point in game) that passes in real time. Lives are unlimited, but time cannot be regained (except by reverting to a previously saved game). In other areas, more significant improvements have been made. The graphics are far more complex than the simple look of the game's predecessor, the areas explored are larger, and the variety of backdrops is greater.
Plot[edit]
The game takes place eleven days after the events of the first game. During this period, the Prince was hailed as a hero who defeated the evil Jaffar. He turns down all riches and instead asks for the Princess's hand in marriage as his reward, to which the Sultan of Persia reluctantly agrees. The game begins as the Prince enters the royal courts of the palace. Before he enters, however, his appearance changes into that of a beggar. Nobody recognizes him, and when he attempts to speak with the Princess, a man who shares his appearance (Jaffar, who is magically disguised) emerges from the shadows, ordering him to be thrown out. With guards pursuing him, the Prince jumps through a window and flees the city by way of a ship.
Falling asleep on the ship, the Prince dreams of a mysterious woman who asks the Prince to come to her. At this time, the ship is struck by lightning, cast by Jaffar. When the Prince regains consciousness, he finds himself on the shore of a foreign island. He comes to a cave full of reanimated human skeletons that fight him. He finally escapes on a magic carpet. In the meantime, however, in Persia, Jaffar seizes the throne in the guise of the prince.[1] The Princess falls ill under Jaffar's spell of gradual death.[2]
The magic carpet takes the Prince to the ruins of an old city filled with screaming ghosts, snakes and traps. Arriving at what appears to have once been a throne room, the Prince loses consciousness and the mysterious woman, revealed to be his mother, appears again. She explains that the Prince is of a royal lineage and the only survivor of the massacre by 'armies of darkness'. She implores him to avenge the fallen.[3]
The Prince rides a magical horse to a red temple, inhabited by warrior monks wearing bird headdresses. There, he finds that the shadow, created in the events of the original game, can now leave his body at his will. He wields his shadow to obtain the magic flame of the temple, at which point the bird warriors kneel before him. He flies back to Persia on the magic horse and confronts Jaffar. With the shadow and the flame, the Prince burns Jaffar, killing him for good.
With Jaffar's spell broken, the Princess awakens. The Prince orders the former Vizier's ashes to be scattered. The game ends on a cliffhanger when an old witch is shown watching the happy couple through a crystal ball. According to Jordan Mechner the plot of the old witch and the 'armies of darkness' were set to be resolved in a sequel, which never came.[4]
Ports and remake[edit]
Titus Software ported the game to the SNES and released it in 1996.[5] It has some missing features and lacks several levels, including the last one. On August 11, 2006, the Genesis/Mega Drive port was leaked. Ported by Microïds, this conversion was going to be published by Psygnosis, as depicted in the leaked version, but it was canceled in an almost complete state for unknown reasons.[6][unreliable source?] The game can also be unlocked in the XboxNTSC version of Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time by finding a secret area. However, the GameCube, PlayStation 2 and Xbox PAL versions feature the original Prince of Persia instead and the PC version lacks the secret area entirely. The Macintosh version has high resolution graphics (640×480), the DOS and SNES version only low resolution graphics (320×200) and (256×224) respectively.
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On July 25, 2013 a high-definition remake of the game was made available for iOS and Android mobile devices. The game includes options for both virtual buttons and gesture-based controls.[7]
Reception[edit]
According to Jordan Mechner, Prince of Persia 2 was a commercial success, with sales of 750,000 units by 2000.[8]
Charles Ardai wrote in Computer Gaming World that 'Prince of Persia 2 not only is in every dimension better than Prince of Persia, but .. is the cruelest, most infuriating, least merciful—in short, the best—game of its type I have ever played', with 'an appeal that is absolutely irresistible'. He criticized the imperfect savegame feature that forced him to replay areas dozens of times, and other aspects of gameplay, but concluded that the game 'merits nothing but salaam after salaam .. a virtuoso performance by Mechner, one of the field's most devious puzzle constructors'.[9]Power Play gave both the DOS and Macintosh versions a 68% score.[10][11]
Prince of Persia 2 won Computer Gaming World's 'Action Game of the Year' award in June 1994. The editors wrote that it 'certainly surpasses its predecessor', and called it a 'smoothly animated horizontal scrolling thriller with cinematic scope, vivid action and daunting puzzles'.[12]
Coach Kyle of GamePro gave the Super NES version a mixed review. He criticized the black outlines on the characters and the weak sound effects, but praised the eerie music and the quality of the challenge, deeming it 'A tough thinking-gamer's game'.[13]
References[edit]
- ^Brøderbund (1993). Prince of Persia 2: The Shadow and the Flame. Scene: Level 3–4 cutscene.
Princess: 'Dear Father: My heart is broken. The Prince has betrayed your trust. You must return with your army and take back your throne.'
- ^Brøderbund (1993). Prince of Persia 2: The Shadow and the Flame. PC. Scene: Level 4–5 cutscene.
Mysterious woman: 'Prince! Your bride is dying. Waste no more time. Come to me!'
- ^Brøderbund (1993). Prince of Persia 2: The Shadow and the Flame. PC. Scene: Level 8–9 cutscene.
Mysterious woman: 'Once, this was a great city, ruled by a son of kings. He was slain and his palace laid waste by the armies of darkness. I died at his side. You alone were spared, my son! I gave you up, that you might live. This was your father's sword. Avenge us! Avenge us!'
- ^Mechner, Jordan (April 11, 2013). 'Revisiting The Shadow and the Flame'. Jordan Mechner's blog. Archived from the original on January 23, 2014. Retrieved December 26, 2013.
- ^'16-Bit's Last Stand'. Electronic Gaming Monthly. No. 89. Ziff Davis. December 1996. p. 193.
- ^'The unpublished Mega Drive version'. Archived from the original on February 24, 2012. Retrieved June 27, 2009.
- ^Sliwinski, Alexander (July 11, 2013). 'Prince of Persia: The Shadow and the Flame returns on July 25'. Joystiq. Archived from the original on July 9, 2013. Retrieved July 11, 2013.
- ^Saltzman, Marc (May 18, 2000). Game Design: Secrets of the Sages, Second Edition. Brady Games. p. 410, 411. ISBN1566869870.
- ^Ardai, Charles (September 1993). 'Broderbund's Prince of Persia 2'. Computer Gaming World. p. 14. Archived from the original on July 16, 2014. Retrieved July 30, 2014.
- ^Steffen, Sönke (July 1993). 'Prinzenrolle' [Prince Biscuits] (in German). Power Play. Archived from the original on May 1, 2015. Retrieved November 13, 2014.
- ^Michael Hengst, Michael Hengst (August 1994). 'Prinzregent' [Prince Regent] (in German). Power Play. Archived from the original on May 1, 2015. Retrieved November 13, 2014.
- ^'Announcing The New Premier Awards'. Computer Gaming World. June 1994. pp. 51–58.
- ^'Super NES ProReview: Prince of Persia 2'. GamePro. No. 101. IDG. February 1997. p. 86.
External links[edit]
- Prince of Persia 2: The Shadow and the Flame at MobyGames
- Prince of Persia 2: The Shadow & The Flame at the Macintosh Garden
- Prince of Persia 2: The Shadow & The Flame page at PoPUW.com
Retrieved from 'https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Prince_of_Persia_2:_The_Shadow_and_the_Flame&oldid=886717119'
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LOS ANGELES — In the opening scenes of a wise man cautions the title character, played by Jake Gyllenhaal, not to take on too much. The warning: “You’re just not ready for this.”
The words proved an omen for Mr. Gyllenhaal in real life over the weekend, as an effort to recast him as an action hero — a star capable of anchoring a big summer movie — ended in disappointment. “Prince of Persia” sold an estimated $37.8 million in tickets in North American theaters over the holiday weekend, a weak performance for a film that cost about $200 million to make and carried global marketing costs of more than $100 million.
“Prince of Persia,” from the producer Jerry Bruckheimer and Walt Disney Studios, entered the market in second place. DreamWorks Animation’s was No. 1 in its second week, with a strong $55.7 million, an indication that positive word of mouth has followed the film’s so-so box office start. Premium-priced 3-D tickets also helped. Total domestic sales for “Shrek Forever After” now stand at $145.5 million.
The other new release of note, was third, with about $37.1 million, according to Hollywood.com, which compiles box office statistics. Warner Brothers released this R-rated sequel, which cost about $100 million to make, on Thursday to grab any fans who planned to travel over the holiday. Adding in Thursday sales, “Sex and the City 2” sold a total of $51.4 million.
Scathing critical reviews for the latest installment of this long-in-the-tooth franchise may have dented its appeal. Sales for the first five days of “Sex and the City 2” were down 24 percent, compared with its predecessor.
Continue reading the main story“Prince of Persia,” based on a video game, started rolling out in international markets on May 21. Its global box office take now stands at $133.3 million. “We had a sensational weekend overseas,” said Chuck Viane, Walt Disney Studio’s president of distribution, noting solid returns in Russia and China in particular.
Mr. Viane said he hoped “Prince of Persia” would get a boost in North America as the school year concluded in coming days. “I think we’re going to have a pretty good ride,” he said.
Even so, Prince of Persia” has a Herculean climb to profitability if you factor in supersize paychecks for Mr. Bruckheimer and others, and the 50 percent cut taken by theater owners.
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What went wrong? Theories abound. The sensitive Mr. Gyllenhaal dived into the role, growing his hair long and chiseling his physique. But he has primarily found success in movies tailored to a narrower audience. Pokemon fire ash online game.
Films based on video games don’t have good track records. And, Mr. Viane said, “an unbelievable collision of sporting events” over the weekend may have hurt the picture too.
Marketing may also have played a role. Feedback from test audiences before the film’s release was hugely positive. When turnout is poor after good test screenings, it often suggests that the public doesn’t like what it sees in the marketing materials. Disney fired its top marketing executives in a management overhaul late last year and has only recently installed a new team.
“Prince of Persia” is the third box office letdown in a row from Mr. Bruckheimer, whose last two films were and His next, a fantasy starring Nicolas Cage called is to be released July 14.
(Marvel Entertainment) was fourth in earnings over the holiday weekend, with about $20.6 million, giving it a new domestic total of more than $279 million. (Universal Pictures) was fifth, with about $13.6 million, bringing its domestic total to $86.3 million.
Over all, domestic ticket sales stood at $182.2 million for the weekend, a 15 percent decline from the same period last year, according to Hollywood.com.
Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time | |
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Directed by | Mike Newell |
Produced by | Jerry Bruckheimer |
Screenplay by |
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Story by | Jordan Mechner |
Based on | Prince of Persia by Jordan Mechner |
Starring | |
Music by | Harry Gregson-Williams |
Cinematography | John Seale |
Edited by | |
Production companies | |
Distributed by | Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures |
Release date |
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116 minutes | |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Budget | $150–200 million[1] |
Box office | $336.4 million[2] |
Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time is a 2010 American actionfantasy film directed by Mike Newell. The film was written by Jordan Mechner, Boaz Yakin, Doug Miro, and Carlo Bernard, produced by Jerry Bruckheimer, and released by Walt Disney Pictures on May 28, 2010. The film stars Jake Gyllenhaal as Prince Dastan, Gemma Arterton as Princess Tamina, Ben Kingsley as Nizam, and Alfred Molina as Sheik Amar. The film has the same title as the video game Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time developed and published by Ubisoft, and is primarily based on it. Elements from Warrior Within and The Two Thrones, the two other titles from the Sands of Time trilogy of the Prince of Persia video game franchise, are also incorporated. The film was premiered in London on May 5, 2010 and was officially released on May 28, 2010 in the United States.
The film received generally mixed reviews from critics, who shared the consensus that the film was an improvement over other video game adaptations and giving praise to the score, action scenes, humor and the acting performances (particularly those of Gyllenhaal, Kingsley, Molina and Toby Kebbell), while showing negative attention towards the screenplay and departure from the source material. It grossed over $336 million against a production budget of $150–200 million, and it was the highest-grossing video game film ever at the time of its release.
- 3Production
- 4Release
- 5Reception
Plot[edit]
Ruins of Alamut Castle
Prince Of Persia Watch Online
Setting
The film seems to be set in ancient Persia, as the film starts with a map portending to show the expanse of the Persian Empire 2500 years ago. The film set design seems to be based on ancient Persia. Islamic architecture with intricate use of geometric shapes and domes are shown. The cities in the film all appear to have minarets. The Allied Kingdom of Alamut, shown in the movie, was not established until the 9th century (after the Islamic Conquest of Persia).[3](see the Alamut State)
Storyline
Dastan, a street urchin in Persia, is adopted by King Sharaman after showing courage. Fifteen years later, the king's brother Nizam relays evidence to the princes—Dastan, along with the king's biological sons Tus and Garsiv—that the holy city of Alamut is forging weapons for Persia's enemies. Tus directs the Persian army to capture Alamut. Dastan and his friends breach the city and open a gate for the siege. During the attack, Dastan defeats a royal guard and takes from him a sacred dagger.
Alamut falls to the Persians, but Princess Tamina denies that the city has any weapon forges. Tus asks her to marry him to unite the two nations, and she only accepts after seeing the dagger in Dastan's possession. At their celebratory banquet, Tus has Dastan give their father an embroidered robe. The robe is poisoned, fatally burning King Sharaman. Garsiv accuses Dastan of the king's murder, but Dastan escapes with Tamina. Tus is appointed king and sets a bounty on Dastan's head.
While in hiding, Tamina attempts to kill Dastan and steal the dagger, and in the struggle Dastan discovers the dagger enables the wielder to travel back in time. Dastan concludes that Tus invaded Alamut for the dagger, and decides to confront his brother at the funeral of the king in Avrat. On the way, the two are captured by merchant-bandits led by Sheik Amar who seeks the reward money, but they manage to escape. After arriving in Avrat, Dastan tries to convince his uncle Nizam of his innocence. Seeing burns on Nizam's hands, Dastan realizes that Nizam orchestrated the king's murder. Furthermore, Nizam has set up an ambush for Dastan along the Persian streets, but after a conflict with Garsiv, Dastan escapes. Nizam sends a group of covert warriors, the Hassansins, to kill Dastan and find the dagger.
During a sandstorm, Tamina tells Dastan that long ago, the gods unleashed a great sandstorm to destroy humanity but were moved by a young girl's offer to sacrifice herself in humanity's place and trapped the Sands of Time in a large sandglass. Tamina is the latest guardian of the dagger, given to the young girl by the gods, which can pierce the sandglass and potentially destroy the world but also enable the dagger's wielder to travel further back in time than the one minute's worth of sand the dagger holds. Dastan realizes that Nizam intends to travel back to his childhood, prevent himself from saving Sharaman from a lion attack, and grow up to be king of Persia in Sharaman's place. Amar captures the two again, but Dastan saves Amar's men from a Hassansin attack using the dagger. Amar is convinced to escort them to a sanctuary near Hindu Kush, where Tamina will seal the dagger within the stone it first came from. At the sanctuary, they are found by Garsiv, whom Dastan convinces of his innocence, but the Hassansins ambush them, killing Garsiv and stealing the dagger.
Dastan's group travels back to Alamut to retrieve the dagger from Nizam and warn Tus of Nizam. Amar's right-hand man Seso dies retrieving the dagger for Dastan, who demonstrates the dagger's powers to Tus to convince him of the truth. Afterwards, Nizam interrupts them, kills Tus, and takes the dagger back. Tamina saves Dastan from being killed and the two head for the secret underground tunnels beneath the city that lead to the sandglass. When they reach Nizam, he stabs the sandglass and throws them both off a cliff. Tamina sacrifices herself, releasing Dastan's hand and falling to her death to allow him to fight Nizam.
When Dastan removes the dagger from the sandglass, time rewinds to the moment he found the dagger. Dastan finds Tus and Garsiv and exposes Nizam's treachery. Nizam attempts to kill Dastan, but is subdued and killed by Tus. Tus apologizes to Tamina for the siege and proposes to strengthen the two nations' bond by marrying her to Dastan. Dastan returns the dagger to Tamina as an engagement gift and tells her he looks forward to their future together.
Cast[edit]
- Jake Gyllenhaal as Dastan
- William Foster as Young Dastan
- Gemma Arterton as Tamina, Princess of Alamut
- Ben Kingsley as Prince Nizam of Persia, King Sharaman's brother
- Alfred Molina as Sheik Amar
- Richard Coyle as Prince Tus of Persia
- Toby Kebbell as Prince Garsiv of Persia
- Ronald Pickup as King Sharaman, The King of Persia and father to Dastan, Tus, and Garsiv.
- Reece Ritchie as Bis, Dastan's servant
- Steve Toussaint as Seso
- Darwin Shaw as Asoka
- Gísli Örn Garðarsson as Hassansin Leader
Production[edit]
Development[edit]
In March 2004, the production company Jerry Bruckheimer Films sought to acquire feature film rights to the 2003 video game Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time with the film to be distributed by Walt Disney Pictures. Under John August as executive producer, the series' creator Jordan Mechner was hired to write the script. Producer Jerry Bruckheimer's Pirates of the Caribbean film trilogy served as a touchstone in how a theme park ride was converted into a film franchise. According to Mechner, 'Rather than do a straight beat-for-beat adaptation of the new videogame, we're taking some cool elements from the game and using them to craft a new story.'[4] Mechner previously considered producing an animated film based on the games, but could not resist Disney and Bruckheimer's offer.[5] In February 2006, Disney hired screenwriter Jeffrey Nachmanoff to write a new script for Prince of Persia.[6]
Early in 2007, Disney announced Prince of Persia as one of its tentpole films and by June had scheduled a release date for July 10, 2009, before having a final script or any actors attached.[7] By November 2007, Disney entered negotiations with Mike Newell to direct the film based on a script by Mechner and Nachmanoff, though the studio held off production until the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike was resolved.[8] Newell was fond of Bruckheimer's films,[9] and loved the 'exciting and immensely romantic' script, which reminded him of Lost Horizon. His assistant played the video games and gave the director key details.[10] Mechner, in writing the script, re-conceived the storyline to shift the perspective from the interactive one experienced by video gamers to the non-interactive experience by film audiences. The screenwriter left out elements of the Prince of Persia video games Warrior Within and The Two Thrones and did not anticipate including these elements in the film's possible sequels.[5]
When filming began, the film's release date was postponed to May 28, 2010, with the studio seeking enough time for the post-production process in designing the film's special effects. The profit margin on the Pirates of the Caribbean films was compromised by overspending as special effects teams rushed to complete the films for their release dates.[11]Variety also ascribed the postponement to avoiding the potential 2008 Screen Actors Guild strike so the studio could ensure that the film leads to a 'mega-franchise' similar to its successful Pirates of the Caribbean series.[12] Other reasons for the release date change were that the film was originally scheduled a week before Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, and Disney needed more time to co-ordinate its marketing campaign.[13] Gyllenhaal claims he 'over-prepared'[14] for the role, gaining five or six pounds of muscle.[14] The actor says, 'I never knew how much they were going to ask me to do, so I just made sure I'd be hopefully able to do anything.'[14]Gemma Arterton was announced to play the role of protagonist Tamina,[13] and Arterton reported she practiced horse back riding in Madrid before filming.[15]Ben Kingsley was to portray the film's antagonist, Nizam.[16]Alfred Molina was to portray a character named Sheik Amar, who becomes a mentor to the prince.[17]Toby Kebbell was to play Prince Garsiv, Dastan's brother and head of the Persian army.[18]Richard Coyle was cast as the eldest brother Crown prince Tus and William Foster was cast as young Dastan based on his experience in parkour. The leading characters of the film all speak with recognisable English accents.
Filming[edit]
In March 2008, director Newell selected Morocco as a shooting location for Prince of Persia and also planned to film in Pinewood Studios. Production was scheduled to begin in mid-June 2008.[19] By May 2008, actors Jake Gyllenhaal and Gemma Arterton were cast into the lead roles. With a new script by Jordan Mechner, Doug Miro, Carlo Bernard, and Boaz Yakin, filming began in July 2008 in Morocco as well as London.[13] Eight weeks were spent in Morocco before the first unit moved to Pinewood.[14] Unlike other Disney films being made at the time, filming was not done in three dimensions, nor was the film converted into 3-D during post production.[20]
Soundtrack[edit]
Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time | |
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Soundtrack album by | |
Released | May 17, 2010 |
Genre | Film score |
Length | 66:26 |
Label | Walt Disney |
Producer | Hans Zimmer |
Alanis Morissette composed the theme song for the film, named 'I Remain'.[21] The score was written by composer Harry Gregson-Williams.
Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time Soundtrack | ||
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No. | Title | Length |
1. | 'The Prince of Persia' | 5:20 |
2. | 'Raid on Alamut' | 6:32 |
3. | 'Tamina Unveiled' | 2:34 |
4. | 'The King and His Sons' | 2:59 |
5. | 'Dastan and Tamina Escape' | 4:31 |
6. | 'Journey Through the Desert' | 2:55 |
7. | 'Ostrich Race' | 0:59 |
8. | 'Running from Sheikh Amar [sic]' | 3:27 |
9. | 'Trusting Nizam' | 4:37 |
10. | 'Visions of Death' | 1:46 |
11. | 'So, You're Going to Help Me?' | 2:20 |
12. | 'The Oasis Ambush' | 1:54 |
13. | 'Hassansin Attack' | 2:59 |
14. | 'Return to Alamut' | 3:05 |
15. | 'No Ordinary Dagger' | 4:39 |
16. | 'The Passages' | 3:09 |
17. | 'The Sands of Time' | 3:58 |
18. | 'Destiny' | 3:38 |
19. | 'I Remain' (performed by Alanis Morissette, written by Alanis Morissette and Mike Elizondo) | 4:57 |
Total length: | 66:26 |
Release[edit]
Disney's marketing strategy included a step by step release of the film. Prince of Persia was released first in Europe, with its world premiere held in Westfield, London, UK on May 9 then premiered on May 19, 2010 in Italy, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Norway, Denmark, Sweden and Finland, and on May 20 in Germany.[22] It was released on May 21 in the United Kingdom, Spain, Bulgaria, Poland, and Turkey. It was released in Australia, Hong Kong, Malaysia, and the Philippines on May 27. The film was not released in the United States until May 28 to try to profit from the potentially higher audience on Memorial Day weekend. It was also released in Ghana, India, Romania and Nigeria on May 28.
Marketing[edit]
Mechner, Gyllenhaal, Bruckheimer, and Newell at a panel promoting the film at WonderCon 2010.
The poster made its debut as a background prop in a 2009 Bruckheimer production, Confessions of a Shopaholic, similar to how Warner Bros. incorporated poster for various developed but never filmed projects based on their comic characters in I Am Legend.[23] The week of Confessions of a Shopaholic’s release, Disney signed a merchandising deal with Lego for the film.[24]
Disney released merchandise such as action figures, Lego sets, costumes and a replica Dagger of Time. It also released a graphic novel called Prince of Persia: Before the Sandstorm, which will act as a prequel to the film. Also, a video game was developed by Ubisoft Montreal titled Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands and was released alongside the film; however, the game's story is unrelated to the film, and instead takes place between the first two games in the Sands of Time trilogy.[citation needed]
Home media[edit]
Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment released a single-disc DVD, a single-disc Blu-ray Disc, and a 3-disc Blu-ray combo-pack in the US on September 14, 2010.[25][26] The DVD landed in the number one spot on the US DVD sales chart, with 664,041 units sold within the first week and 1,623,361 units in total (equal to $33,941,976) as of March 13, 2011.[27]
In the UK, it opened at number one on the DVD and Blu-ray charts during its first week.[28] In Germany, too, the DVD landed No. 1 on the country's DVD chart.[29]
Reception[edit]
Critical response[edit]
Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time holds a 36% rating on aggregate review site Rotten Tomatoes, with an average score of 5/10.[30] The critical consensus is: 'It doesn't offer much in the way of substance, but Prince of Persia is a suitably entertaining swashbuckler—and a substantial improvement over most video game adaptations.'[30] Another review aggregate, Metacritic, which calculates an average rating based on reviews from mainstream critics, gave a score of 50/100.[31]Chicago Sun-Times film critic Roger Ebert gave the film two stars out of four and wrote, 'The two leads are not inspired. Jake Gyllenhaal could make the cover of a muscle mag, but he plays Dastan as if harboring Spider-Man's doubts and insecurities.'[32] Film critic David Roark of Relevant Magazine, on the other hand, gave the film a positive review and wrote: 'Newell has unquestionably accomplished what he set out to do, which is ridiculous, silly and forgettable, but amusing nonetheless.'[33]
Box office[edit]
The film which—according to Disney and Bruckheimer—was supposed to be 'the new Pirates of the Caribbean', debuted #3 at the U.S. box office behind Shrek Forever After and Sex and the City 2 with $30.1 million in its first 3-day weekend of release. It is the third highest opening for a video game adaptation, behind Lara Croft: Tomb Raider and Pokémon: The First Movie. During Memorial Day, it surpassed Sex and the City 2 to gross $37,813,075 for the 4-day weekend and finish in second place.
Internationally, the film grossed an estimated $18 million in its first weekend (before its US release), when it opened in 19 major European countries.[34]Prince of Persia debuted at #1 in these countries, except the United Kingdom where it lost the top spot to StreetDance 3D. A week later the film was released in the rest of the world and it grossed an estimated $61.6 million in total from 47 countries and $30.1 million in North America,[35] becoming the leader of the worldwide box office with $91,695,259, while reaching the #1 spot in 41 of the 47 countries.[36]
The film has ultimately earned $90,759,676 in the United States and Canada and $244,394,967 in other countries, for a total worldwide gross of $335,154,643. The film overtook previous record holder, Lara Croft: Tomb Raider as the highest-grossing video game adaptation of all time, before it was surpassed by Warcraft in 2016.
See also[edit]
- Hashshashins (Assassins)
References[edit]
- ^Collett-White, Mike (May 11, 2010). 'Gyllenhaal ready for 'Prince of Persia' sequel'. The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on May 15, 2010. Retrieved November 3, 2010.
Estimates of 'Prince of Persia's' production budget range from $150 million-$200 million.
- ^'Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time (2010)'. Box Office Mojo. Internet Movie Database. Retrieved August 28, 2010.
- ^Al-Atraqchi, Firas (June 1, 2010). 'Prince of Persia Slaughters Historical Accuracy'. Huffington Post. Retrieved August 13, 2018.
- ^Bing, Jonathan; Cathy Dunkley (March 3, 2004). 'Jerry preps game plan for 'Sands''. Variety. Reed Business Information. Retrieved July 14, 2008.
- ^ abVejvoda, Jim (July 25, 2008). 'SDCC 08: Mechner Talks Persia Movie'. IGN. News Corporation. Retrieved August 6, 2008.
- ^Gardner, Chris (February 26, 2006). 'Scribe goes into action for Disney'. Variety. Reed Business Information. Retrieved July 14, 2008.
- ^McNary, Dave (July 13, 2007). 'Hollywood films' dating game'. Variety. Reed Business Information. Retrieved July 14, 2008.
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- ^'Prince of Persia Movie Update'. ReelzChannel. Hubbard Broadcasting Corporation. November 11, 2007. Archived from the original on January 13, 2009. Retrieved October 12, 2008.
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- ^McClintock, Pamela (July 31, 2008). 'Disney pushes 'Persia' to 2010'. Variety. Reed Business Information. Retrieved August 1, 2008.
- ^ abcGraser, Marc (May 20, 2008). 'Jake Gyllenhaal is Disney's 'Prince''. Variety. Reed Business Information. Retrieved July 14, 2008.
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External links[edit]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time (film). |
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- Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time on IMDb
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- Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time at Rotten Tomatoes
- Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time at Metacritic
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In the beginning, cinema and video games kept their distance from each other. Indeed, film feared gaming, and gaming scorned film. An age of interactivity was thought to have begun. People were expected to spurn passive forms of entertainment: instead, they'd supposedly insist on participating themselves. So, the movies would be superseded by the medium of the future. To the surprise of some, it never happened. The games business grew huge, but the movies too continued to flourish. Understandably, each side began to wonder if it could perhaps feed off the other's success.
Game-makers noted that while their customers were prepared to stump up more than cinemagoers, the latter were far more numerous. So, in the hope of expanding their market, they started to make games that were based on films. Unfortunately, most of these fell flat. Developers complained of deadline pressures and being forced to stick too closely to source material. Nonetheless, a deeper problem seemed to beset them. Somehow, film-based games too often became just imitations of existing products.
This didn't stop film-makers from returning the compliment that the rival medium had paid them. They were impressed by gamers' passionate attachment to their favourite titles. So, in the early 1990s, they began to make movies that were based on games. A few of these did more or less OK. Lara Croft: Tomb Raider took $131m at the box office, and Mortal Kombat took $70m. However, even these titles were critically reviled. Most of the based-on-games films, from Super Mario Bros in 1993 to BloodRayne in 2006, were flops by any standard.
Nonetheless, such films continued to appear in ever greater numbers. Surely, it might be thought, one of them must eventually come good. If indeed one were going to, it ought to have been Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time. Mike Newell's film enjoys the benefits of a budget of more than $130m and a raft of promising stars. It's based on one of the most venerable and robust of all games franchises, and the creator of this iconic brand has been keeping a watchful eye on its celluloid progeny.
Jordan Mechner is well aware that films are different from games. He's said that this one 'has to stand on its own'. He wanted it to be like Raiders of the Lost Ark, Zorro or The Thief of Baghdad. Well, it isn't. There are good things about Prince of Persia. It looks great. It has plenty of plot. But overall it's a rubbish film.
The characters are vacuous and the dialogue's infantile. The drama's crude. Because of this, the opportunity for acting doesn't really arise, capable though the players might have proved if given the chance. It's impossible to care about the fate of the protagonists. All of which would have been just fine – in a videogame.
In the film, the interest lies primarily in watching Jake Gyllenhaal's Dastan scale walls, jump from roofs, slay enemies bloodlessly, court a princess sexlessly, find a magic dagger, lose it, find it, lose it and then find it again. That's the trouble. You have to watch him. You'd need to be doing it all yourself for it all to be worthwhile. This isn't a film; it's a game, but one that leaves its would-be players inconsolably console-less.
A film's task is to hold us spellbound. A game must do the opposite. Its job is to give us the wherewithal to cast a spell of our own. As a film, Prince of Persia has no heart. As a game, it's been driven for the last two decades by the heartbeats of its players.
Previously, this film's producer, Jerry Bruckheimer, managed to create a hugely successful big-screen franchise out of a mere theme-park ride. Creating a film from a video game may have looked much less of a challenge. Yet more has turned out to be less. Out of almost nothing, he was able to create characters and narratives that could spring into life on celluloid. From a cornucopia of apparent riches, he's now brought forth a dud.
It's time that film and gaming understood each other. Then, perhaps they'd be content to go their separate ways.