The Anderson family gathered together with some friends visiting from Tulsa and went to see Sahara…mostly on the premise that no matter what the movie was like the women-folk could moon over Matthew McConaughey! We had a good time and enjoyed the movie. One of our guests, Ava, particularly enjoyed the show because McConaughey’s character frequently called out her name…albeit spelled differently!
Make no mistake, this is a popcorn flick filled with the requisite explosions, convoluted plots, handsome bare-chested men, comely heroine, and good-guys-prevail ending. Yes, this is a popcorn flick, but as such it was actually quite enjoyable. Penelope Cruz is admittedly little more than eye candy but adds a little sophistication to an otherwise cookie-cutter role by using her charming accent and by dressing cute but fairly modestly throughout the entire production. I could think of many other actresses I would’ve enjoyed more in the role of Eva Rojas, but she did an adequate job. The real scene-stealer…and this is no surprise to anyone who has seen his work…is Steve Zahn. Zahn plays the role of Al Giordino to comic perfection. His wide-eyed stares and sarcastic one-liners provide a great deal of humorous moments that keep this film from being a pale imitation of the similar films that have come before it. Zahn alone is worth the price of admission.
The nickel version of the plot is this: Two life-time buddies, ex-military turned treasure hunters, are on a quest to find a mythical iron-clad Civil War ship. In the meantime Cruz, as a World Health Organization doctor, is on the trail of a deadly disease that is possibly plague bound. Circumstances put both parties together on the coast of Africa and adventure ensues.
The balancing act in movies like this is to make the plot convoluted enough to keep the audience entertained without stepping over the boundary into sheer ludicrousness. While getting close to the line, Sahara stays just to the right of becoming absurd. The cast gets beat up along the way but has an A-Team-like armor that keeps the ever-flying bullets from hitting home. Sahara was fast-paced but provided enough slow moments to keep the audience from becoming overwhelmed.
I’d give this movie 3 out of 5 stars…maybe 3.5. If you enjoy movies like National Treasure, The Mummy and The Mummy Returns then you will enjoy Sahara. You can view the trailer, look at pictures, download wallpapers, etc. at the official site. See it at the matinee or rent it when it comes out on DVD. Its a fun escapist movie!
All I can say is that Matthew MC has really let him self go. He really should do something to firm up his six pack.
It was a fun movie, and Zahn, as always, was great.
I prefer Penelope to Matthew anyway.
I was just kidding. Matthew was pretty hot in this movie. Just like looking in mirror, isn’t it, Carl?
Ya…sure…. 🙂
So, you’re review wasn’t that far from mine.. lol
Tho i think you enjoyed it a little more than I. Though I laughed a lot, after the movie I thought more about it & realized I wouldn’t watch it again.
But I saw it for free, so I can’t complain!
This Tuesday, I get to go see a sneak preview of The Interpretor. 🙂
Thanks for the review! This seems like a movie I’d like to see for free – I’m not a huge fan of popcorn flicks and prefer to watch them at home. However, Zahn looks really familiar but I can’t quite place him.
Haven’t seen it yet, but Matthew McConaughey is very handsome w/ a very sexy voice. I would have to say that up to this point, I like him in EDtv the best. Steve Zahn is hilarious and just to name a few of his great movies: Happy Texas, Daddy Daycare, Joy Ride………..
I’m getting off the subject here, but Mike and I watched Oceans 12 yesterday. Now I absolutely loved Oceans 11 and had O12 on my Netflix Queue for months. However, I was very disappointed. What’s up w/ Casey Affleck w/ a mustache? Also, not to give away details of the movie, but Julia Roberts playing Tess who in turn plays Julia Roberts – you’ll have to watch the movie to see this ridiculous scene.
Angela, how’d you see it for free? Are you one of those screeners?
Angela….lucky you! I’m jealous! I absolutely LOVE Nicole Kidman and am looking forward to seeing this regardless of whether its great or not.
Mysfit, Zahn was in Reality Bites, You’ve Got Mail (worked in Meg’s shop), Saving Silverman, National Security…just to name a few.
My favorite Zahn movie has to be ‘Happy Texas’ where he plays a crook pretending to be a beauty pageant expert who has to help prepare a class of school age girls for their big show.
I’ve heard mixed reviews on Ocean’s Twelve. Some people I know loved it and others hated it. I really liked the first one but haven’t had any desire to see the second.
Rob/Carl – A friend’s husband works at a tv station, and when he sees the free passes he’ll usually grab them for me since he knows i love movies.
Very nice! I’ve gotten these from both my sister’s and my wife’s work before. They don’t come often enough but I always enjoy them when I can get them!
Sounds like an fun movie. I liked both The Mummy and National Treasure so I will try to catch this flick too. I’m not big Mathew or Penelope fans but I do enjoy Steve Zahn’s work.
As for Ocean’s Twelve I enjoyed it more than Eleven. In the grand scheme though neither film is one I would watch again. It’s too bad the efforts of so many talented actors are really wasted on two forgetable scripts. Also as lover of DVD extras these films don’t have ANY extras. How can you have two films that have made tons of money and have these all star casts and yet you have NO extras. What is movie company thinking putting out DVD’s of these films with no extras. Very disappointing.
That is surprising. Maybe they plan on putting out a combined DVD package with extras later…you never know how the messed up minds of Hollywood execs work.
I’m a big fan of the “Mummy” movies, but “National Treasure” left me ice cold (hated it all the way). I might watch this one when it makes it to network TV but I’m not shelling out $$$ for a ticket and sitting in an icky theater (creeps me out thinking about what is surely all over those theater chairs).
Couldn’t agree with you more, Suzanne. I hated National Treasure. Old Nick Cage is back to his dumb antics.
I’m actually looking forward to catching National Treasure when it comes out on DVD. I think I’ll end up liking this one as I’ve liked Cage’s past movies that are similar….The Rock, Con-Air, Face-Off. Of course nothing tops his performance in Raising Arizona…that was the best of Nick Cage! Love that movie…I need to queue that up on Netflix, haven’t seen it in a loooong time!
Ok, C-man. Nick was fun in Raising Arizona for two reasons: Coen brothers. I hated all those other movies. (sorry)
Now he was great in:
Matchstick Men
Adaptation
Leaving Los Vegas
That’s it.
Whatever! I was glad he won for LLV as the trailers looked like he did a good job acting…I just don’t usually like useless movies like that regardless of how good the acting is. I will watch Adaptation eventually as it looks interesting and someday will probably catch MM as well. I respect your, and Suzanne’s opinion, but you won’t convince me that those other movies weren’t very fun action movies and I think Cage makes an interesting action movie star. That’s the great thing about movie variety, to each his own. 🙂 And yes, everyone was great in Raising Arizona because of the Coens, but I just can’t imagine anyone else playing H.I. McDunnough.
And no matter how many movies she’s been in I always thing of R.A. when I see or hear Holly Hunter. And Goodman is great in all the Coen bros movies.
R.A. is my second favorite after Oh, Brother and only because Oh, Brother had such great music and I liked that it was based on the Odyssey. Made it fun figure out which characters were based on characters in that classic epic. (have to admit that I haven’t read it, however, just seen several things based on it and Mary and I read the cliffnotes after Oh, Brother came out…shame on us!)
To be fair, I really wanted to like National Treasure. The problem for me was the script. At least with the mummy movies it was clear that the whole thing was a traditional comic book adventure, but beautifully filmed, with likable characters, and a terrific soundtrack. NT took itself too seriously, making the lame parts all that more obvious. The sequence with the ship in the ice just hurt my brain in every way (that was in the first few minutes) and turned me off to the rest of the movie which only got worse. The soundtrack was intrusive and distracting (in a bad way). I believe Mr. Cage did the best he could with the material he had to work with. Believe me when I say I am truly glad you liked the film, and irritated that I did not.
Yes, movies like this definitely need to be filmed with a bit of tongue-in-cheek humor or they really do end up being silly. I thought Sahara did a fairly good job of this…again, without Steve Zahn this movie would’ve been pure crap, but his presence really made the movie fun.
“I am truly glad you liked the film, and irritated that I did not.”
I’m not. I’m hurt and angry that Carl liked the movie. I’m bitter. Carl, you need shock therapy to stop liking NT and Sahara!
🙂
I think its all the shock therapy that helped me to like these movies! Don’t knock it until you’ve tried it! 🙂
Hey Carl, in Rob’s list of approved Nic Cage movies, he forgot to mention Family Man. Have you seen it? I was pleasantly surprised!
Poor Melissa. Always in her big brother’s shadow. 😉
Thanks, Mel, I’ve netflixed that Cage movie. Hey, what was that other sappy chick flick that you loved so much… the one with Bruce Willis?
I love Family Man…always cry during the part when his daughter is talking to him. And for the men folk, Tea Leoni is hot in a little black dress in this movie! Its a fun remake of Its a Wonderful Life.
And welcome, Melissa, its wonderful to have your input! I hold you in high esteem having had to grow up with both Rob for a brother and having James hanging around all the time! 🙂
Yikes…saying that without one specific guy the film would have been “pure crap” is not exactly a ringing endorsement! Yep, pretty sure I’ll be skipping this movie now. Thanks for the heads-up!
Suzanne, I think that could be said about many, many movies. Matthew could’ve been replaced by any number of cocky, buff actors and I’ve already shared that there are 100 actresses I like better and think are better looking than Penelope Cruz…but Steve Zahn is the only Steve Zahn. There are tons of funny actors but Zahn is a special kind of corny and I really enjoy him. When it comes out on DVD you need to give it a try, it really is a fun movie! I feel the same way about Happy Texas…its an okay movie on its own but is much better because of Zahn.
Carl, I agree! Tea is hot. Nic on the other hand not so much. Also, despite my brother’s elitism, I think I will still try out National Treasure. 😉 One adventure flick I would warn you from seeing though is Flight of the Phoenix–possibly the worst adventure movie! We went with my husband’s staff of college students. It was so melodramatic that by the end with each new dramatic twist or elaborate save, the students were either all high fiving one another or pretending to cry. Ironically, their obnoxious behavior made the movie more enjoyable!
Rob, The Story of Us is the movie you always hear me mentioning. Although it is a movie about relationships, I wouldn’t call it a chick flick. That term tends to limit the film’s scope to sappy fluff, which let me add I do enjoy from time to time, but The Story of Us has substance.
Carl, how do you get away with calling women hot (other than your wife?). I’d have to disagree with you though. Though Tea is more talented, Penelope is way hotter.
LOL, Mel, you’re too funny. Ok, chick flick or not, it’s been added to the list. #347, I’ll get to it in no time!
She beats me like an old rug every time I mention that another woman is ‘hot’, but I take the abuse and soldier on! 🙂 Actually I’ve been known to comment about handsome men also as it frequently amazes me how in shape some guys can get…Vin Diesel! Ryan Reynolds in Blade Trinity…man, that guy was cut!!!! I honestly feel like I have a really good marriage and my wife knows, because I frequently tell/show her, that I am extremely attracted to her so I think we both feel comfortable enough to talk about stuff like this. Neither one of us are blind and its kind of stupid to pretend that you don’t think an actor/actress is attractive. I prefer to talk about stuff like this with my wife rather than get around the water cooler with the fellas and mumble conspiratorily about it! I realize you didn’t want this diatribe so I apologize!!! My wife knows that she’s stuck with me…unless Nicole Kidman knocks on the front door and at that point I may have to try to convert the whole family to the Old Testament version of ‘marriage’. (She feels the same way about Denzel Washington and though I cry every time I think about it I’m starting to get over it!)
And Rob, I’m not trying to be difficult but I’d take Tea Leoni in that black dress in Family Man over Penelope Cruz each and every day!
And on the subject of attractive stars, I was at a movie with the Dibben’s (Jimmy’s House and Percolations) the other day and I heard Julie say, after we commented about it, that she too thought Shania Twain was attractive….I admire honest women with good taste! 🙂