The Sorcerer's Apprentice

Much like most film studios, Disney are continuing to go through their archives to look for ideas that they can use for movies. This time they go to a segment from their beloved animated classic 'Fantasia'.

One of my earliest cinematic memories, and possibly my first, was my parents taking me to see 'Fantasia' at the movies. I think I may have been too young to fully appreciate it but I know that I did enjoy the segment with Mickey Mouse as a sorcerer's apprentice. While I do not agree that studios should be using such weak ideas to make films, it is one of those facts of life that you just have to live with. There are probably many kids who don't even know what 'Fantasia' is so there is nothing for them to know what the film is referencing. Which I think is a good thing. This film could work if it did not have to live up to such high expectations. Right from the start the film put me off. The opening montage which explains Balthazar's history came across as very rushed. There was obviously a lot of information to impart and they try to do it in such a short space of time that it gets confusing. It looks like the test audiences did not like the opening. I think the writers have made the story unnecessarily complex. I understand they try to make it interesting and have enough plot for all the characters but it just gets a bit overwhelming. Considering the rest of the story there was no need to be so complex. The film does not get much better than that. The only good thing are the action sequences. Director Jon Turteltaub certainly knows how to make good action scenes and they are a lot of fun.

You would think that because he came up with the idea for the film and help produce it that Nicolas Cage would be really into the film. But he just comes across as very bored with it. Possibly his character has been searching for an apprentice for so long that he is just incredibly tired. I don't know what it is but I'm not much of a fan of Jay Baruchel. While he is playing a very nerdy character in this film, I don't think that suited the part of being a sorcerer's apprentice. He is expect to become a great sorcerer but the nerdiness will always be there and diminish his impact. While it is a bit disappointing that Alfred Molina is once again playing the villain, he is always really good.

If you completely forget where the idea came from then you may get a bit of fun out of this film. But it is still pretty bland and unnecessarily complex.