Sahara
Directed by: Breck Eisner
Starring: Matthew McConaughey, Penelope Cruz, Steve Zahn, Lambert Wilson, William H. Macy
Rated: PG-13 for action violence.
Parental Notes: This is standard summer PG-13 fare. The violence is mostly of the big explosions and fast chases sort, with plenty of scattered gunfire, but it’s all in good fun and generally not dark or cruel in tone. There are deaths, but not gruesome ones. This is a good film for preteens and teens who like summer action flicks.
It seems like the summer action movies come out earlier and earlier each year, and “Sahara” is clearly the front-runner of this year’s batch. It has all the classic elements of a summer action flick: the attractive leads, one male (Matthew McConnaghey) and one female (Penelope Cruz); the comic relief character (Steve Zahn); the villainous bad guy with a high-tech weapon of mass destruction; plenty of chase scenes and fights; and a global threat. This is classic summer action fare and a rip-roaring good time if you don’t mind plot holes and inconsistent characterization.
An adventurer-historian named Dirk (McConnaghey) and buddy Al (Zahn) are in search of a lost Civil War ship. A doctor named Eva (Cruz) and her team are in search of the source of a plague. Their paths cross and it turns out that they may be searching for the same thing. The problem? Both trails lead into a war-torn African country ruled by a bloodthirsty warlord. The warlord is up to no good and it’s up to our heroes to stop him before he poisons the world’s water supply. Sure, there are plot holes and plenty of unanswered questions by the end of the film, but the bad guys are defeated so everything must be okay.
The characters are painted with thoroughly broad strokes. Dirk is an adventurer who likes to blow things up and party hard, but he’s also a good guy at heart. Eva is as intelligent, dedicated, and determined as she is beautiful. Al is always good for a laugh and is essentially Dirk’s other half: they’ve been best friends since kindergarten and can practically read each other’s minds. Their boss, a retired Navy admiral (William H. Macy), is played with the kind of dogged resignation Macy is known for. The villains are thoroughly evil and sophisticated, with lots of weaponry and high-tech gadgets (although the warlord has pretty standard weapons, his partner in crime is an affluent European businessman with all the latest doodads).
Sure, there are things that don’t make sense. There are plenty. Our warlord flies a helicopter into the thick of battle, putting himself directly in harm’s way. Dirk shows absolutely no reaction when a priceless archeological artifact is all but blown to smithereens. Dirk’s biggest question about the lost ship is never answered, and he doesn’t appear to care in the least.
Fortunately, there is plenty of action and adventure to distract us from the plot holes and character issues. We have car chases, boat chases, and the aforementioned helicopter. There’s a battle between our heavily outnumbered heroes and the warlord’s army. There are fights aplenty, both hand-to-hand and with all manner of weaponry (ranging from a .455 pistol to a 150-year-old cannon). Things are shot up, blown up, and generally destroyed with plenty of joie de vivre on the part of our heroes.
This is a film out to have a good time. It’s a bit tongue in cheek, which is vital for a movie with as many flaws as “Sahara.” That sort of self-aware, “we’re being goofy, and isn’t this fun? Yee-haw!” attitude makes it hard to be a party pooper and get upset about the film’s flaws. This is a film that laughs at itself and encourages us to laugh along with it. It’s over-the-top, ludicrous, and a lot of fun. Those in search of deep characterization or a stirring storyline would do better to look elsewhere, but those eager for a big, goofy summer flick in the vein of “The Mummy Returns” will enjoy it.