Sorcerer’s Apprentice

Walt Disney Studios

R4 DVD

This film is notable to me for a number of reasons. First, it shows just what a bad state the U.S. film industry is in. They are taking older films, classics in some cases, and revamping them for new issue. This is not always bad because some of the early realisations of good stories were pretty woeful. Secondly I like Nicolas Cage as an actor. His early career wasn’t spectacular and it was only in 1997 with Conair that he started to come to notice. With National Treasure (2004) his career really took off and he showed that he could do good character roles. His slightly hesitant, retiring acting style suited the part of a shy historian well. Kickass (2010) was possibly not the best film he ever made but it was lots of fun. Again his acting style was a perfect contrast to his wisecracking daughter and the brash young wannabe superhero.

Now he is back as Balthazar, a sorcerer who is one of Merlin’s three apprentices. The evil apprentice Horvath (Alfred Molina plays the evil part well) betrayed his master to Morgana, the powerful sorceress. The other apprentice, Veronica, saved Horvath by taking the spirit of Morgana into her own body. Horvath reluctantly imprisoned the two of them in the Grimhold, a prison whose earthly manifestation is a set of nested dolls. Over the years many sorcerers have tried to take the Grimhold but Balthazar has caught and imprisoned them as well. If the doll is opened all the evil sorcerers the world has known will be released.

Merlin foretold that there would be a Prime Merlinian, a powerful sorcerer who could destroy the evil forces hidden in the Grimhold. Balthazar has protected it so far while he searches for this man. He has kept a low profile whole doing so and the part suits Cage’s acting really well.

Ten year old Dave comes across Balthazar one day and Balthazar thinks Dave may be the Prime Merlinian. He tests Dave with Merlin’s dragon ring and the ring wraps itself around Dave’s finger, signifying its acceptance of him as merlin’s successor. Unfortunately Dave is only a schoolkid and it is ten more years before he and Balthazar meet again. Dave is now a physics student and teacher. He works on high voltage electricity. Balthazar convinces Dave to learn magic and begin his training. Dave doesn’t believe in magic at first but Horvath has been accidentally freed from the Grimhold and he certainly does. He pursues Balthazar and Dave. Then he threatens Dave’s girlfriend. Bad move.

The film has little to do with Disney’s animated Sorcerer’s Apprentice (1940) starring Mickey Mouse. There is a not-so-subtle scene where Dave tries to use magic to get his brooms and mops to clean his lab, as in the original animation, but this film has a completely different script. It has nothing to do with the Goethe poem on which the animated version was based. In many ways it is just a standard American film based on a foreign legend (as was the original) but sometimes they get it right and produce a good piece of cinema. This film is one of the good ones.

The CGI is excellent, the acting is good and the performances credible. There are some great holes in the science but you overlook that and just enjoy the film. It is traditional Disney in that both the parents and the kids will enjoy it, even if it is aimed more at the teenage market. I am long past my teens, but even I thought it was great watching.

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