Officially unveiled during Ubisoft's "Ubisoft Forward" digital event, the 2003 video game "Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time" is coming back in the form of a remake, and it's being developed by Ubisoft India Studios.
Check out the trailer for the reworked game below:
Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time Remake Official Trailer | Ubisoft Forward 2020 | Ubisoft [NA]
While certainly needing improvement on the visuals and looking more like a remaster than a full fledged remake, the "Prince of Persia: Sands of Time Remake" is slated to be released on January 21, 2021.
With the swift moves and grace that befalls a great Persian warrior, I was lucky enough to get invited by my friend Mark to the advance screening of one of this summer’s most anticipated action films – Prince Of Persia: The Sands Of Time. Based on the series of games created by Jordan Mechner, this film is an adaptation of the classic 2003 video game, which was a reimagination of the franchise and a blockbuster hit on its own right. Having experienced and played that game myself, it was a no brainer decision that I had to see this movie. However, from experience watching films based on video games, I kept my reservations on, since there was bound to be deviations to the plot that normally reflects the “Hollywood treatment” given to adaptations like these. My hunch proved right, and many things about the PoP movie is far different compared to the game I played during my college years. Still, it does make use of the main theme – which is the Prince acquiring the Dagger Of Time and doing what he can to right wrongs, save the princess, and survive at the same time.
Movie: Prince Of Persia: The Sands Of Time
Starring: Jake Gyllenhaal, Gemma Arteton, Sir Ben Kingsley, Alfred Molina
Directed By: Mike Newell
From the poster itself, one who has played the 3D PoP games would be deceived to believe that the movie is a direct adaptation of The Sands Of Time game. Heck, since the Prince and the Dagger of Time were fleshed out in the one sheet, it looks mighty convincing that it is the game turned into a live action movie. This is far from the truth though, and like I said, only certain elements and the main theme of “Prince-Dagger-Princess” were carried over. What makes this iteration of Prince Of Persia different is that the Prince actually has a name – Prince Dastan, who is played by Jake Gyllenhaal. The 2003 video game never divulged his identity other than characters simply referring to him as “The Prince”, and that’s one air of mystery no longer present in the movie. Aside from this, Dustan is actually an orphaned street urchin taken into the royal family, adopted by the Persian King and raised along side his own two children, making them “brothers”. This makes up part of the family oriented theme that family is not only linked by blood, but by love and loyalty to one another as well (This is a Disney movie after all, so it works for the most part). From there, we skip 15 years, and the Persian army wages war on a Holy City that has the Dagger Of Time. Dastan becomes the hero, gets framed for a severe crime he didn’t commit, and has to escape with the Princess and Dagger before he meets a grim fate. The story doesn’t really follow the game’s plot in that manner of sequence, but in totality, he goes on a quest to redeem his name and save the world before the horrors of the Dagger’s power fall into the wrong hands.
Prince Of Persia: The Sands Of Time Trailer
Casting Jake Gyllenhaal in the titular role of the Prince was met with some criticism, and it’s quite understandable given the setting of the movie. For one thing, he doesn’t look Persian, and despite sculpting a chiseled figure in his preparation for the role, nothing changes the fact that he doesn’t look the part. Still, I have to give props to the fact that his acting was good in the movie, and I wasn’t too focused on the “whitewashing” aspects so many critics have voiced about over the movie. On the other hand, I find the lovely Gemma Arteton sexy as Princess Tamina. Although it’s a shame they didn’t use Princess Farah from the games, Arteton acts well here, and much like actresses’ recent role in Clash Of The Titans, her British accent and delivery make her quite a charm in movies, one I hope to see used more frequently in future movies. Also making appearances in the film are legendary veteran actors Sir Ben Kingsley and Alfred Molina. The former plays Dastan’s uncle and primary villain Nizam, while Mr. Molina takes on the comedy relief role of Sheik Amar, whose antics you just have to see in the movie to believe. Overall, I didn’t mind the casting choices at all, and everyone played their parts well.
While I found it disappointing to note that the story is much different and loose from the source material, I think it was decent enough to sit through and enjoy as a popcorn flick. However, some scenes in the movie, particularly in the beginning and towards the end, were somewhat dragging and executed poorly. The introduction title sequence in particular felt like a waste, and it didn’t feel as epic as I would have wanted. I’m sure PoP was to be marketed as a kid friendly film, but they could have livened things up with a kick and such. Also, as a Jerry Bruckheimer production, this movie was a little more toned down on the action, and for a concept like PoP that demands over the top execution and stunts, most of it seemed light-hearted fun and routine than mind-blowingly insane and awesome. Gyllenhaal’s Dastan has a lot of the stuntwork pulled off, but nothing Matrix-like or over the top, which I wish was present. Also, I’m happy to see the Dagger Of Time rewind function used properly in the film, but the execution in key scenes were a waste. For instance, it was fine to explain that it lets the user travel back to a certain point in time once… but done twice in succession? Not a lot of things went well, but setting the bar straight, it worked anyway for the audience.
For somebody like me who has played the Prince Of Persia games, especially the namesake title, Prince Of Persia: The Sands Of Time does a decent job of entertaining its audience. It’s far from being a perfect film adaptation of a video game (that trophy still lies with the original Mortal Kombat film), but everything works for the most part, and the screenplay itself was overseen by creator Jordan Mechner himself, as well as a few established film writers who have proven their skills through the years. Directed by Mike Newell, I’d recommend this film for the action and family oriented crowd. Those who loved the games can sit through as well, but don’t expect too much out of it. Like the series it’s based from, it’s a new adventure and a new prince… so go with the flow of time and destiny and see it if curiosity pulls you in.
I love the Prince Of Persia Playstation 2 games. They were some of the best titles I enjoyed during the golden years of Sony's sixth generation system, and ones I spent countless hours being transfixed in due to repetitive combat and addicting gameplay. While were on the subject, it's time to introduce something different - A gaming retrospective! Before that though, here's a slight update related to the topic at hand:
No doubt many of you have heard about the upcoming Prince Of Persia film by Walt Disney Pictures. It stars Jake Gyllenhaal as Prince Dastan, which is a first for the series as every game never gave a name to the protagonist. According to PoP creator, Jordan Mechner, he chose the name Dastan because it is the Persian word for "Trickster", which suits the character's personality well.
The film's official one sheet poster was just released, and it looks like this:
In terms of appearances, Gyllenhaal DOES look like the Prince, however it's more of the costume from this game:
That's Part II's look. What I'm going to tackle back on is the original itself.
My favorite among the trilogy would definitely have to be the first game, The Sands Of Time, which arguably has the best story and the best feature any videogame could have back in the day - a dagger that allows the user to rewind and escape jinxes, mistakes, and most of all, CERTAIN DEATH. With abilities like those at your disposal... anything was possible. The acrobatic skills of the prince alone were impressive enough... so much so that you had a fun time killing enemies with style and hardly breaking a sweat at all!
This game introduced us to the eponymous title character - The Prince, who conqueres the city of the Maharajah of India alongside his father, King Shahraman and his armies. After looting everything, including two mysterious artifacts and the beautiful daughter of the Maharajah named Farah, the army arrives at their destination, Azad, alongside the man who sold his own city for gain - the evil Vizier. After sharing a conversation with the traitorous prophet, The Prince is fooled into releasing the Sands Of Time from the Hourglass Of Time using the Dagger Of Time, turning the entire kingdom of Azad into a nightmare. Seeking a way to restore everything to normal and gain a measure of revenge, The Prince fights hordes of monstrosities inside the palace in order to stop the Vizier and rescue Farah, who may hold the answers he is looking for.
Catchy Story is just one way to describe this awesome tale. The Sands Of Time can be considered one of my greatest achievements in my long, personal history of playing and beating videogames. Despite the dated looking visuals as opposed to the graphics granted by todays console standards, trust me, this is another classic example of a game that doesn't rely on visuals alone to instill audiences with an excellent plot paired together with fantastic gameplay. The learning curve is not hard at all, and you'll have fun executing death-defying moves and laughing at the face of danger itself when you use the Dagger Of Time to rewind and escape trouble. If you happen to browse through a game shop and see this for whatever platform you own, do yourself a favor and pick it up. With the movie coming out next year, this will school you on what it means to be "The Prince".
