The Sorcerer’s Apprentice (2010)

Review: written March 2011

Special Effects Extravaganza Lacking In Wit Or Depth

It's some feat, that `The Sorcerer’s Apprentice' - the movie, manages to be more childish than its cartoon predecessor. The scene in Fantasia/Fantasia 2000 [Blu-ray ] which spawned this bloated effort was witty, clever, well executed if simple in its idea - and has thus pretty well stood the test of time. Sadly, this in comparison struggles to be more than a joyless exercise in marketing.

After a short preamble in which we learn an awful lot of backstory involving Merlin and his apprentices, we move to New York, and Nicholas Cage searching for the heir to Merlin's powers, apparently in the form of an unassuming nerdy boy more interested in being noticed by his childhood sweetheart. Jay Baruchel essays the nerdiness well, and approaches a level of charm that might endear you to his character and will him on, and Teresa Palmer comes across as having a new Naomi Watts -meets-Heather Graham blue eyed charm, but they, and Cage, are let down by a clunky script which searches for set pieces to use up the obviously impressive budget. Alfred Molina is hammy even by his standards, but then treating his role any other way than over the top would be ridiculous, so it actually works here. Overall though, the tone is so uneven you're never sure whether you're supposed to be gasping at the efforts to (yawn) destroy the world, or smirking at the attempts at humour, mostly at the expense of the age gap between Cage and his younger co-star. Too often the efforts filmmakers lose the classic Disney touch of crafting a movie that works for a younger generation, and cross the line to just making it childish. It just doesn't come together, and the lack of any surprises along the way left me completely disengaged when clearly I was supposed to be emotionally invested in the outcome. In fact, the only scene that feels like it has any charm is the scene homaging the original. I'm left with the nagging feeling that the 3 or 4 minute backstory at the start might have made a more interesting movie...

Make no mistake, if you like Cage in big budget special effects showcases, or are looking for something to keep the kids amused for a while, then this is brash and spectacular enough that you may well be fine. If you crave anything deeper than a leaky paddling pool, then run away.