The Sorcerer's Apprentice [PG]

Ten years ago, Dave was approached by the sorcerer Balthazar and told that he was to become a great sorcerer. But unfortunately Dave’s lessons were cut short. Now, ten years later, Balthazar is back and more determined than ever to recruit Dave as his apprentice. Giving him a crash course in magic, Balthazar trains Dave up to be brave, be strong, save the world, and get the girl. 

I hired this out from work thinking that it would be pretty lame and uneventful. I remember hearing David and Margaret talking about it on The Movie Show and both didn’t have such nice things to say. But I thought, what the hell, it looks like a bit of harmless fun. And that’s exactly what it was. 

When he was just a boy, Dave was approached by Merlyn’s apprentice, Balthazar, and told that he was to become a great sorcerer. But unfortunately Dave’s lessons were cut short when a traitorous sorcerer named Horvath escaped from his prison. Now, ten years later, Balthazar is back and determined more than ever to recruit Dave as his apprentice. Giving him the greatest crash course in magical history, Balthazar trains Dave up to be brave, to be strong, to save the world, and to get the girl. 

Not dissimilar to Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief, The Sorcerer’s Apprentice took ancient and mythical legends and married them with modern culture, rather successfully I might add. It seems to be a new art form that is happening in today’s society; mixing ancient and classic legends and folklore with modern culture, in particular, teen culture. I have to say that I don’t mind it at all. More often than not, the marriage of the two is quite successful and makes for good family entertainment. 

Not only was this film a bit of rollicking family fun, it was also rather clever in that it sampled one of Walt Disney’s forgotten masterpieces: Fantasia. There is a whole scene, which is just a modern re-enactment of The Sorcerer’s Apprentice, only there’s no Mickey Mouse. It was actually quite clever and rather funny. 

Starring Nicholas Cage, Jay Baruchel, Teresa Palmer, Omar Benson Miller, Tony Kebbell, and Alfred Molina, The Sorcerer’s Apprentice was a fun, and rollicking adventure movie that was filled with action, romance, comedy, magic, ancient legends, and some pretty cool special effects. I have to admit that I am a sucker for anything fantasy and these sorts of family action/adventure type movies always go down well with me. I may be in two minds about adding it to the collection, but I definitely do no regret watching the film. It’s just a great bit of fun.