Review: The Sorcerer's Apprentice

"The Sorcerer's Apprentice" / Rated PG / Walt Disney / Dir. by Jon Turteltaub / 121 min.

"The Sorcerer's Apprentice", Disney's latest attempt to update anything from the studio's illustrious past for new audiences, is produced by Jerry Bruckheimer ("Pirates of the Caribbean"), directed by Jon Turteltaub (the "National Treasure" movies) and written by people responsible for "Prince of Persia" and "Bedtime Stories". Whatever movie you just envisioned from that list of credits is probably right on the money. "Apprentice" is not the brainiest of movies with characters that are decidedly two-dimensional, but the makers of the film obviously intended to make a light, breezy special-effect extravaganza that leaves the brain as quickly as it engages the senses and to that end, it's very successful.

A large part of your enjoyment of this movie will depend on your tolerance of "nerd du jour", Jay Baruchel (t.v.'s "Undeclared", "She's Out of My League", "How to Train Your Dragon"). Baruchel's humorous, but potentially annoying nasal whine is proudly on display throughout the film. Personally, I find his self-effacing mannerisms amusing. He plays Dave, a brilliant, socially-awkward physicist (think the lost cast-member of "Big Bang Theory"), who unwittingly discovers that particle physics comes so easily to him because he is the "Prime Merlinian", a powerful sorcerer destined to destroy the mythical Morgana Le Fay (Alice Krige). Guiding him in this quest is his master, Balthazar Blake (Nicolas Cage), one of Merlin's three apprentices. Another of the three, Maxim Horvath (Alfred Molina), has decided to align himself with Morgana and is dedicated to helping her destroy the world by raising the greatest evil sorcerer's in history from the dead.

Yes, the plot is just another restructuring of the Campbell-ian mythic hero archetype, but complaining about the plot is sort of like complaining because "National Treasure" isn't historically accurate. It's not the point. The point is the humor, the action and the F/X, all of which are strong....not exceptional, but still enjoyable.

Cage spends most of the movie doing his normal shtick and Baruchel is solidly playing himself, but the other actors seem to be having a lot of fun, especially Molina, who has now lifted two enjoyable, if unremarkable, summer films (this and "Prince of Persia") just by showing up and having a good time.

Turteltaub is a very solid director who is just artistic enough to avoid "point and shoot" laziness, but not creative enough to really stand out. He hasn't developed a visual style per se, but he definitely has a vibe that permeates his films. With few exceptions, his movies (the "National Tresure" films, "The Kid", "While You Were Sleeping", "Cool Runnings") have a buoyant giddiness that doesn't sharpen the mind, but you really don't care as long as you're smiling. This movie fits that mold very well.

All told, this isn't a classic, but it's a perfectly enjoyable time-killer.

Final Grade: B