Besides Robin Hood, the other movie that I’ve seen so far this summer is Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, which of course is based on the popular video game.

In this movie, the orphan boy Dastan is rescued from the streets by the king and raised as one of his sons. Flash forward several years, and Dastan has morphed into Jake Gyllenhaal (love the abs, hate the hair). Dastan and his brothers decide to go against the king’s wishes and sack a holy city. Eventually, Dastan comes into the possession of a mystical dagger that lets its owner turn back time. The dagger is guarded by a beautiful princess, and she and Dastan spar back and forth as they try to unravel a conspiracy about the dagger and who wants them both dead.

This isn’t a terrible movie, but it’s not a great one either. Some of the fight scenes are cool, and Dastan and the princess have a good rapport. Other than that, it’s a lot of Ben Kingsley chewing the scenery as Dastan’s treacherous uncle and Alfred Molina being annoying as a guy who loves ostrich racing (seriously).

Wait for this one on cable. 

My grade: C-.