Alfred Molina and Ben Kingsley Join Prince of Persia
Disney has announced that Alfred Molina and Ben Kingsley have been cast in the big screen adaptation of Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, joining Jake Gyllenhaal and Gemma Arterton (Quantum of Solace). Disney’s live-action adaptation of the popular action adventure video game series, follows an adventurous prince Dastan (Gyllenhaal) who must join forces with a rival princess Tamina (Arterton), a feisty and exotic princess to prevent a villainous nobleman from possessing the Sands of Time, a gift from the gods that can reverse time. Molina will play Sheik Amar, a mentor to the prince, and we’re guessing that Kingsley will probably play Vizier, the main villain of the film.
I really love the recent trend of casting up for the talent in Summer Blockbusters. Casting UP immediately raises the level of the film. Look at Batman Begins and The Dark Knight as great examples of this. Look at what Johnny Depp did for Pirates of the Caribbean. If this was ten years ago, Robin Williams would have been cast in Molina’s role. It’s great to see popcorn movies, and now video game adaptations, finally being taken more seriously in this respect. I mean, remember when Raiders of the Lost Ark won four Academy Awards and popcorn films weren’t completely looked down upon? I think we’re entering a new era. Even the director Mike Newell is a few steps up the ladder of directing talent for this type of film (Paul WS Anderson anyone?).
source: Variety
Alfred Molina And Ben Kingsley Join The Prince of Persia!
British actors Alfred Molina And Ben Kingsley will join fellow British actress Gemma Arterton and non British actor Jake Gyllenhaal in The Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time. There was absolutely no need for me to point out their nationality whatsoever but I got a little patriotic for a moment there. Alfred Molina is best known for playing Doc Ock in Spider-Man 2, and will play Sheik Amar, who becomes a mentor to the prince.
Ben Kingsley is best known for having a bald head, along with gaining my respect by staring in good movies such as Schindler’s List and Lucky Number Slevin. However, he grabbed my respect and shoved it up a cow by staring in Thunderbirds, Bloodrayne, The Last Legion, A Sound of Thunder and The Love Guru. It seems for every good movie Ben Kingsley does there are 5 crappy ones on the way. Hopefully The Prince of Persia will be one people actually want to see, and from Latino Reviews script review it seems they will. They gave it an A-
Trivia: Jake Gyllenhaal could have been battling Molina onscreen in Spider-Man 2 if Tobey Maguire’s back was still bad.
Gyllenhaal Crowned Disney’s Prince
Game on.
Jake Gyllenhaal has been cast as the titular royal in Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, a joint Disney and Jerry Bruckheimer produced film adapted from the classic video game of the same name.
Joining Gyllenhaal in the fantasy adventure epic is upcoming Bond babe Gemma Arterton. The blue-blooded duo join forces to prevent their royal foe from obtaining the Sands of Time, a gift bequeathed from the gods which allows its possessor to turn back time and, naturally, rule the world.
The big-budget flick is based on the Ubisoft game first released in 1989 and which has gone on to spawn several sequels. Word is the film, should it manage to connect at the box office, will follow suit, with designs on turning it into a Pirates of the Caribbean-type franchise.
A princely notion indeed.
Brett Ratner To Direct God of War Movie?
There are quite a few popular games being adapted onto the big screen at the moment. There’s Prince of Persia which will begin filming soon, and BioShock which will be directed by Pirates of the Caribean director Gore Verbinski. Now God of War could be getting the film treatment, as a journalist recently revealed that Brett Ratner might be involved. Film Junk found the scoop at the very bottom of this article.
I have never been a hardcore gamer, so I’ve never had the chance to play God of War. For those of you who also haven’t, here’s a quick outline of what is it about.
God of War centers on Kratos, a celebrated soldier who is haunted by his past transgressions and his debt to the Gods of Olympus. It could have just been your typical hack and slash game, but the cinematic approach and highly entertaining story line earned it a reputation as one of the best around.
Brett Ratner is best known for directing the Rush Hour movies, and failing to improve the X-Men franchise with X-Men 3. He isn’t exactly the best man for the job, but then again he isn’t Uwe Boll.
Any God of War fans have an opinion on this?