With his sunglasses on and a Conga drum in his lap, Matthew McConaughey asked me in a recent interview if his latest movie, Sahara, was worth seeing. I paused. "It's a good ride," was all I could muster up. I was honest. The low grade Indiana Jones-type action movie, starring McConaughey, Penelope Cruz and Steve Zahn, is a good ride, much like a mediocre amusement park ferris wheel. However, it's not much more than that. It's not the rollercoaster we would expect out of Indiana Jones and his fellow high-caliber heroes. Of course, it still does hit a few of the essentials for a movie of this sort, and I would recommend this movie for anyone who doesn't want to be stimulated beyond seeing McConaughey flash his pearly whites.
If we were to create a checklist of the requirements for an action movie, we might start with what the movie does accomplish:
1) Beefcake, but believable, action hero. Check. McConaughey carries the role with enough swagger to fill the shoes of Dirk Pitt, the protagonist in Clive Cussler's series of quasi-historical novels. McConaughey's trademark Southern charm slimes its way across the screen, and carries the viewer along for some of the, y'know, ride.
2) Farfetched plot. Although I'm not a devoted Cussler reader, it seems that, in simplifying the book for a screenplay, we skip over much of the essentials to making the plot believable. The premise is that a civil war battleship, previously thought disappeared and lost to history, has made its way across the Atlantic to the Western Coast of Africa, allowing rogues McConaughey and Zahn to???seek it's historically lost treasure! Ah yes, but this leaves us without a female. But wait! Penelope Cruz as a WHO doctor in the region allows for a convenient romance angle, as well as an excuse for her inability to speak convincing English. Pair up sensible Cruz and zany, adventure-driven McConaughey and bam! We've got an action driver.
3) Sidekick. As McConaughey's funnier, and not lauded-enough compadre, Steve Zahn shines. With a stacked filmography, it's amazing that Zahn hasn't broken through as anything more than everyone's wingman. However, as with every good action movie, the sidekick steals the show, and salvages the movie's few laughs.
Yet, for all the foundations of a good action movie that this film does accomplish, it still manages to flub the details that make this eye candy good.
1) Take the movie seriously, man. For an action movie with as interesting a premise as this one, it doesn't even bother to make it seem like it could happen. Sure, it doesn't have to be all Crichton-esque jargon, but the train of logic drops off at many points.
2) All action, no screenplay. With tighter writing, one could incorporate the humor without keeping it at the sixth grade level. It's simply not well written. The lines are cheap, and the dialogue is so low grade that you almost want to stick to the panning shots of the Sahara and McConaughey's snowy white capped smile, instead of hearing anyone speak.
3) The little things. Maybe it was the jarring Southern rock that blasted while showing shots of Northwest Africa. Maybe it was the blatant political incorrectness. (I swear there was a casting call for "Tricky Arab #12.") But the movie just doesn't stick the landings where it should. It starts out on a good premise, but wobbles all over the place.
This said, if you can get past the weak script and sloppy production, you may enjoy yourself. On a sophomoric level, the movie is without a doubt enjoyable. Your little sister in seventh grade will definitely like it. Just don't be disappointed if you go in expecting a high caliber roller coaster. But it's definitely a fun ride.
Sahara
Starring: Matthew McConaughey, Penelope Cruz, Steve Zahn
Director: Breck Eisner
RunTime: 2 hr. 7 min.
Rating: PG-13
Showing at: Loews White Marsh, AMC Towson, UA Westview Mall 9, R/C East Points Movies 10
