Sahara (2005)

It took more than 25 years for another Clive Cussler novel to come to the screen after the financial and critical disaster of Raise the Titanic. Based on Cussler's oddly landlocked adventure, Sahara finds the author's hero, Dirk Pitt (Matthew McConaughey)--a sort of all-American, high seas variation of James Bond--in Africa looking for a Confederate ironclad ship that impossibly might have ended up there. Soon he and his faithful sidekick Al Giordino (Steve Zahn) are lost in another adventure, discovering a deadly contaminate being tracked by a beautiful doctor (Penelope Cruz). The results are checkered: there's no one outstanding sequence, but the action is enjoyably varied, while the thrills are mild yet not bombastic or gratuitous. The cast are all adept in their roles, yet the only one who sparkles is the scene-stealing Zahn, cast against type; McConaughey, who also produced, knows he might be starting a franchise character and plays it safe. He's never as dangerous as Cussler's hero is on the page (except in his introduction), and in fact, the whole movie plays towards comedy, infused by a soundtrack of 70s FM radio monsters. Cussler fanatics may not like this lighter fare, especially with the archeological portion (a Cussler strong point) not fully embraced, but with a very, very likable cast and colorful settings, Sahara is a kindler, gentler action film that has all the elements in place for a better, more memorable franchise if anyone cares to attempt it. --Doug Thomas Amazon.com

SAHARA REVIEW

I have read Clive Cussler's Book Sahara and as usual it was a great book. As you can see I am a big fan. If a book appears on the shelf with Clive Cussler or even NUMA files - It is immediately bought. I saw the film Sahara - What a dissapointment. The actors were very much less than convincing. The thread of the book was totally lost in the movie. Somewhere so was Abraham Lincoln. The story plot was very much lost and re-written in the movie. If I were Clive Cussler and wrote this book and then saw the movie - I don't think I would recognize it as the same thing. In my final opinion movie very poorly done. Wrong actors to play the parts and plot so re-written. July 21, 2008

Just so - so.

Sahara tries to be an Indiana Jones flick but fails miserable.
The adventure across the sands.............BORING!!!
The damsel in distress.................BORING!!!
The usual Hollywood nonsense movie that they were hoping would turn into a new franchise............NOT GONNA HAPPEN!!!
It's an OK action adventure; it's just not very memorable or very much fun.
The acting is passable; the script is just kind of blah.
All in all, it's worth a rental if you can't find anything else to rent.
Recommended? Not really.
But if you're curious, sure go for it.
June 25, 2008

It started with a bang and ended with a thud.

It started with a bang and ended with a thud. The majority of the scenery and the action scenes are jaw dropping. However the movie goes from bad to worse after 30 minutes. It's because of the plot and the directing I think. June 9, 2008

Shara HD DVD

Recieved the item in a very timely manner and the movie played just fine. Can't beat the price. May 28, 2008

I'VE SEEN BETTER - REVIEW EDITED

I love Indiana Jones, action adventure type movies, but I just could not get into Sahara. Maybe it was too predictable? Maybe it was too slow - I actually fast forwarded through most of it. Maybe I'm just tired of watching Penelope Cruz. I don't know. But I would pass on this one. There are better movies out there to be found and enjoyed. - OK, SO SOME TIME HAS GONE BY AND I ACTUALLY ENJOY THE MOVIE MORE NOW. IF I'M EATING DINNER OR SOMETHING I'LL JUST FASTFORWARD TO THE PARTS OF THE MOVIE I ENJOYED. I GUESS THAT QUALIFIES IT AS A 3 STAR, BUT I CAN'T CHANGE THAT. May 21, 2008

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