Director: Jon Turteltaub
★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆
Producer Jerry Bruckheimer’s second fantasy blockbuster of the summer following Prince of Persia is this daft but fun adventure that starts with practically an entire movie’s worth of backstory in a prologue that shows how Balthazar (Nicolas Cage) was once an apprentice of Merlin. His centuries long search for a successor ends in modern day New York where he meets student Dave (Jay Baruchel) whose help he needs to defeat the bad sorcerer (Alfred Molina) who betrayed Merlin. It’s a typically goofy hodgepodge of silly names and cheesy mythology that might have flown in the 80s, often labouring under the misguided notion that any old rubbish with a wizard in it will automatically hoover up the Potter crowd. But slick effects, a nice sense of humour and the always likeable Baruchel keep it just the right side of nonsense.
