The Sorcerer's Apprentice
Tags: fantasy, gothic, murder, cult, violence, flashback, good versus evil, psychedelic, action, humor, romantic

Plot synopsis:
The events that unfold prior to the main timeline in the movie are introduced in narration (uncredited Ian McShane), and takes us to 700 AD. The famous and powerful wizard Merlin (James A. Stephens) had three apprentices to whom he entrusted all of his knowledge of magic and cast spells over them to ensure they didn't age. However, one of his apprentices, Maxim Horvath (Alfred Molina), betrayed Merlin for his greatest enemy, the sorceress Morgana (Alice Krige). The other two apprentices, Balthazar Blake (Nicolas Cage) and Veronica (Monica Bellucci) arrive at Merlin's stronghold in time to learn of the deception and discover that Morgana was attempting to steal a spell from Merlin's spell book that would allow her to awaken dead wizards and sorcerers and rule the world, The Rising.Morgana overpowers Merlin with Horvath's help and fatally wounds him before retrieving the evil spell. Balthazar and Veronica duel with Morgana while Horvath escapes. As a last resort, Veronica uses a spell to absorb Morgana's soul into her own body to stop her but Morgana begins to kill Veronica from the inside. To ensure Veronica's survival Balthazar traps her, with Morgana, in the Grimhold, a large nesting doll. Both facades of Veronica and Morgana are displayed on the outer shell. Before he dies, Merlin tells Balthazar that he must find the child that will be born endowed with all of his powers, the Prime Merlinian, and gives him a small, metal dragon; a symbol of his magic. The Prime Merlinian will be the only one to stop Morgana. Balthazar searches the globe for the Merlinian, with no success. Over time, he battles evil sorcerers and adds them, in layers, to the Grimhold until, finally, he captures Horvath and seals him in the outermost layer.Centuries pass to the year 2000. A young boy named David Stutler (Jake Cherry) wakes up for school, greeted by his bulldog puppy, Tank. He the bus into New York City with his classmates on a field trip and draws a picture on the window which, at the right moment, makes it look as if King Kong is battling fighter planes on the Empire State Building. The act impresses his crush Becky (Peyton List). As the students rest on a side street later, Dave gives Becky a note asking her to choose whether she'd consider him as a friend or boyfriend. She writes her answer and leaves it on her bench seat but, before Dave can collect it, the note blows away in the wind. He follows it inside an antique store where Dave meets Balthazar who reprimands him for nearly knocking over a large urn, one reputed to suck anyone inside for ten years. Dave tries to explain that he was simply trying to catch a piece of paper and wound up in the store by coincidence, but Balthazar explains that there are no coincidences. Balthazar pulls out Merlin's dragon and asks Dave to hold it, saying that if it 'likes him' he can keep it. Dave takes the dragon which immediately springs to life and winds itself around his finger as a ring, revealing him as the Prime Merlinian.A relieved Balthazar explains to Dave that he's been searching the world for him and that he will grow up to be a powerful sorcerer but is, for now, Balthazar's apprentice. He tells Dave to remain in the shop and to avoid touching anything while he retrieves the book of spells from the basement. However, ever curious Dave finds that, upon moving his ring finger, a mysterious thud sounds from the wall above him. He raps the air harder and the Grimhold bursts out of the wall and lands on the floor in front of him. Dave picks it up and his touch activates the outer layer, breaking the shell open to reveal thousands of insects which meld together into a rejuvinated Horvath. He demands the Grimhold from Dave but is pinned on the ceiling by Balthazar. Horvath attacks, using his shillelagh-like staff to project his magic and Balthazar orders Dave to run with the Grimhold. In the ensuing battle, much of the store is destroyed and a fire ignites. Balthazar and Horvath are then sucked into the large urn as Dave runs outside and throws the Grimhold into the street. He is reunited with his teachers and classmates and tries to explain what just happend but, upon returning to the store, they find it untouched and empty. His classmates make fun of him while Becky can only look on sadly.10 years later, Dave is a physics genius at NYU and prefers to keep to himself. His roommate Bennet (Omar Benson Miller) tries to get him to 'participate' more but all Dave really wants to do is experiment with Tesla coils in a rented lab space, accompanied only by Tank. He has kept the dragon ring throughout the years but leaves it in the top shelf of his dresser. During one of his classes, he is reunited with Becky and learns that she works at a local radio station. Inspired by his newfound crush, Dave returns to his lab to work with the coils and the electricity they emit while listening to Becky's station.Meanwhile, after 10 years trapped, Horvath emerges from the antique urn, now owned by an elderly couple (Sándor Técsy and Marika Daciuk). Learning that he's the first to emerge, he takes the urn and tosses it out the window bidding farewell to Balthazar. Falling several stories, Balthazar manages to escape before the urn crashes to the ground. Horvath finds his way to Dave's apartment, guided there by an old school report of Dave's that was sucked into the urn with him. When Dave can't remember the whereabouts of the Grimhold, Horvath conducts a spell that sends a pack of wolves to chase Dave out of the building to nearby train tracks. Just as the wolves are about to pounce, Balthazar arrives on a large steel eagle; a gargoyle he plucked off the nearest high-rise, and turns the wolves into puppies. Balthazar takes Dave away as the next train arrives (and manages to save the puppies by imprinting them on paper which blows away).Balthazar takes Dave to the top of a building where he tells him that he must begin learning sorcery and help retrieve the Grimhold. Dave is naturally against doing anything but living a normal life until Balthazar summons Dave's dresser and pulls out the dragon ring. He then convinces Dave that, if he helps find the Grimhold, his obligations will come to an end and he can decide whether he wants to continue learning magic. Dave agrees. Using an atmospheric spell centered over the Grimhold's location, Balthazar finds that it's somewhere in Chinatown. Together, they go to an impound where Balthazar finds his old car and starts it up like new. On the way, Balthazar gives Dave the most basic of lessons in magic and tells him that the ring he wears is a focal point for the natural energy in Dave's body; without the ring, a sorcerer is powerless.Horvath returns to the antique shop to retrace the Grimhold's last location. Using a time spell, and the knowledge that Dave threw it into the street, he discovers that the Grimhold was picked up by an elderly Chinese shopkeeper (Wai Ching Ho).Balthazar pinpoint the Grimhold's location to an old shop and instructs Dave to keep an eye out on the street where a parade is takign place while he goes to fetch it. Upon entering the shop, Balthazar meets the old shopkeeper and inquires about the doll. When she falters, he compliments her in Chinese and she commends his Mandarin. However, Balthazar throws her against the wall and says that he spoke Cantonese; the old woman was Horvath in disguise who shows Balthazar the Grimhold, and another layer broken. The released wizard Sun-Lok (Gregory Woo) attacks Balthazar but is thrown out the window into the street. Dave goes to him to see if he's all right, but Balthazar advises him from above to run. While Balthazar battles with Horvath, and manages to take back the Grimhold, Dave attempts to elude the large, and very alive, dragon that Sun-Lok conjures from a group of revelers carrying a parade dragon. Balthazar advises Dave to fight back, much to Dave's bewilderment. However, Dave manages to conjure his first bout of magic and defeats the dragon and, subsequently, Sun-Lok. Excited with his first success, Dave agrees to learn magic from Balthazar.Dave introduces Balthazar to his lab space where they take up residence and begin practicing. Balthazar creates a Merlin Circle to help centralize Dave's magic and gives him a pair of what Dave calls 'old man shoes' that are supposed to help conduct the flow of energy. Balthazar tells Dave that, once he enters the Merlin Circle, there is no going back.Meanwhile, Horvath, after noticing the ring on Dave's finger and discovering that he is the Prime Merlinian, goes in search of an apprentice for himself. He is sent to the illusionist Drake Stone (Toby Kebbell) who happens to be a true sorcerer, albeit flamboyant and theatrical. He blames his alternative, magical lifestyle on the fact that his mentor disappeared and he attempted to blend into society doing what he does best - though not to the extent of Horvath. Horvath takes him to Battery Park in the financial district and points out the location for The Rising while Drake is distracted by signature-seeking fans.Dave and Balthazar rest on a bench while Dave waits for Becky to finish her shift at the radio station. When he sees her, Balthazar asserts that love is nothing but a distraction. Despite his warnings, Dave runs to meet Becky and accompanies her down to the subway. They're attacked by a mugger (Jason R. Moore) who runs off with Becky's bracelet, a gift from her grandmother. Dave runs after the mugger and uses magic to lock the gateways out of the upper subway level before confronting the man. While the mugger is initially confused with Dave's awkward stance, he is surprised to see Dave lift a garbage bin and set it on fire before he's knocked out by it. Dave retrieves Becky's belongings and invites her to visit his lab the following day. She agrees.The next day, Becky stops by as Dave and Balthazar are practicing magic. Dave eagerly puts off the lesson to accomodate Becky and Balthazar, who introduces himself as Dave's uncle, makes light of the situation and comes up with an excuse to leave them alone for the moment. He goes back to his old antique shop and goes into the basement where he takes a necklace wrapped in fine cloth out of his secret hiding place. Dave shows Becky his Tesla coils situated around the room and invites her into a small 'cage' where his main console is located. Using his computer, he programs the coils to emit electric bolts through the air at differing frequencies, causing spurts of sound which, when timed right, sound like music. Dave plays a song that Becky played during her shift and he explains that her passion for music rekindled his passion for science...and her. He admits he's sappy as they watch the rest of the light show. Later, he drops her off at her yoga class and she agrees to see him again later that night.Dave goes into the restroom where he's confronted by Drake, who addresses him as the Prime Merlinian. Confused at first, Dave is horrified to see Horvath come in after Drake. Horvath mocks Dave's faith in Balthazar and claims the man is not what he seems and that he's been withholding. He also detects that Dave is in love and threatens to end the relationship if Dave doesn't hand over the Grimhold which, he says, Dave actually knows nothing about. Balthazar comes to Dave's rescue and the two return to the lab where Dave confronts Balthazar about what Horvath told him. Balthazar reveals that the inner-most layer of the doll contains Morgana who was contained by Veronica. Balthazar and Horvath were in love with Veronica while they were apprentices to Merlin, but Veronica only reciprocated Balthazar's love. The necklace Balthazar took from his old shop was intended for Veronica. Heartbroken, Horvath betrayed them for Morgana. The purpose of Dave's training was to prepare him to be strong enough to fight Morgana and end the threat against the world once and for all. He will be ready once he is able to perform magic without the assistance of the ring. Stunned, Dave rejects the idea and ushers Balthazar out of the lab so he can prepare for Becky's arrival. Realizing the lab is an utter mess and he has little time to shower, Dave performs a spell reminscient of Mickey's from Fantasia. However, as in the original, the mops and brooms soon wreak havoc on the lab and flood it as Becky arrives. Dave is forced to send her away and, while unsuccessfully trying to stop the maniacal mops, nearly falls into electrocuted water but is saved again by Balthazar who scolds him for abusing magic. Dave argues in frustration with magic and not being able to perform it well before leaving the lab in a huff.He walks downtown and sees Becky in a coffee shop talking with other friends. He walks away but not before Becky notices him. She follows him to the top of a building where he stands on the roof, contemplating getting rid of his dragon ring. She tells him that she noticed him looking sadder than usual and tries to boost his confidence by saying that one botched date wasn't going to make her hate him. They reminisce about their childhood and Becky says that what she likes about him is that he saw the world differently than other people and thought he was cool for it.Balthazar cleans the lab of the remaining water as Dave walks in again. However, Balthazar notices too late that 'Dave' is actually Drake in disguise and is tied up to a coil fan. Horvath enters and finds the Grimhold before attacking Balthazar. The real Dave enters and saves Balthazar at the last moment while Horvath and Drake escape. Balthazar and Dave give chase along the city streets, transforming the oldsmobile into a sleek sportscar. As the chase carries on, Horvath and Drake transfer to a garbage truck that crushes Balthazar's car. Balthazar and Dave escape and pursue Horvath by foot. Horvath taps a passing woman in the crowd to make her look like Veronica, distracting Balthazar and allowing Horvath to escape.At Drake's pad, Horvath reveals that it will take a great deal of power to release Morgana's shell and employs the 'parasite' spell on Drake, stealing his energy and killing him in the process. This allows him to crack the second-to-last shell which frees Abigail Williams (Nicole Ehinger), a young witch from Salem whom he sends to kidnap Becky. Once that is done, Horvath steals Abigail's energy as well.Balthazar and Dave track Horvath's location to Drake's pad where they split up to find the Grimhold. Balthazar becomes trapped in a Persian rug with a quicksand-like center while Dave finds the Grimhold. However, Horvath confronts him, holding Becky hostage. Horvath tells Dave that he will release Becky if Dave hands over his ring and the Grimhold. Dave obliges and Horvath leaves. Balthazar frees himself and finds Dave somber, though he defends the choice he made. Balthazar agrees that it was the right choice but advises Dave to stay behind while he faces Horvath alone. He then flies off for Battery Park on the steel eagle while Dave attempts to explain to a bewildered Becky everything that just happened. Determined to help Balthazar, Dave comes up with a plan and calls Bennet for assistance. They attach one of Dave's Tesla coils to the front of the oldsmobile and Dave drives out towards Battery Park with Becky, upon her insistence to help him.Balthazar arrives at the park where Horvath has released Morgana, still in Veronica's body. Morgana begins to chant ancient rites in a circle and uses the satellite dishes on the nearby rooftops to reflect beams of magic into the form of a pentacle. Horvath detects Balthazar's presence and engages him in battle, bringing to life a large brass bull which focuses on Balthazar.As Dave and Becky drive closer, Dave sees the beams of energy produced by Morgana. Becky elects to help and Dave tells her to climb to the top of one of the buildings and disrupt the flow between the discs. Before she leaves, he asks her what she wrote on the piece of paper he gave her 10 years ago. She says she'll tell him so long as he doesn't die. While she climbs to the roof, Dave manages to drive the oldsmobile right into the brass bull harassing Balthazar and uses the Tesla coil on the front to disarm and incapacitate Horvath. Balthazar's steel eagle then swoops down and carries the bull away before it can charge again. At that moment, Becky is able to knock one of the dishes out of place just as the spell is under way. All the dead sorcerers that had begun to rise disintegrate and the spell rebounds and knocks Morgana unconscious. Balthazar runs to her and, seeing that both Veronica and Morgana are still alive, performs what Veronica did. He takes Morgana into himself and revives Veronica. Balthazar winces in pain as Morgana possesses him and forces herself out of his body, manifesting in a misty haze of her former body. She attacks Balthazar and Veronica but Dave rushes in and is able to deflect her attacks without the power of the ring.Morgana focuses her attacks on Dave who uses his magic to summon electrical wires to the spot. At the right moment, he bombards Morgana with a series of electrical pulses which disable her powers. He is then able to barrage her with plasma balls and destroy her. Elated over his victory, Dave runs to Balthazar to celebrate but finds that he's collapsed in Veronica's arms. She sadly tells Dave that he's gone, but Dave won't give in. Veronica steps back as Dave uses electrical energy to restart Balthazar's heart, all while frustratingly insulting him. Balthazar comes back to life and thanks Dave before embracing Veronica and giving her the necklace he bought her. Becky arrives at the park and greets Dave. They embrace and kiss and Becky tells him 'girlfriend, definitely girlfriend'. Dave summons the steel eagle and invites Becky to have breakfast in Paris with him. They hop on the eagle and fly off into the night, David admitting that he 'doesn't know how to land this thing'.A secret ending reveals Horvath's hat in Balthazar's study, the hat that had been left behind following the battle with Morgana. A dark figure collects the hat, carrying a cane, and strolls out of the study.

Review: Fun. Dueling sorcerers, a compelling back-story, top-notch acting talent, and the Disney brand bring the idea born of Fantasia's Sorcerer's Apprentice to the big screen in a live full movie adaptation.
is funny and charming in a believably nerdy fashion; Cage is at his quirky but charismatic best; the effects are plentiful and top notch; there's both a tragic love story and a young cute one plus a healthy dose of clever references to Disney's epic Fantasia (from which this film is partially inspired).
He is a very talented actor and he proves it in each movie he's in whether it's good or bad.This is about wizard named Balthazar who lives in modern day New York City.
This Disney movie is fun and the effects are first grade.Nicolas Cage is good as expected.
Turns out it's true that minimal expectations help in seeing a movie in its own terms and, as family-film trifle, APPRENTICE delivers, if not much else.Exposition abounds when we are introduced to the plot, which opens in 700 A.D., where great Wizard Merlin is killed by his evil adversary Morgana (Alice Krige, in it for only a few minutes), and passes his legacy to one of his young apprentices, Balthazar (holy smoke!
Forward a few years more and Dave, now a geeky teenager (Jay Baruchel), is now ready to be trained with the Magical Arts (which, the movie explains, is actually more connected to modern science than we thought) and save the world.
With so many movies around throwing out fantasy for realism (meaning lots of shaky "you are there" camera work), THE SORCERER'S APPRENTICE is a pretty close throwback to some of those 80's effects-heavy fantasy movies usually associated with Lucas' Industrial Light and Magic effects house (the film reminds most of the effects-laden YOUNG SHERLOCK HOLMES when I saw the trailer).
As of late Disney has not brought forth any movies I have loved till now, and between Jerry Bruckheimer, Nicolas Cage, Jay Baruchel, and Alfred Molina the movie had great chemistry.
The Sorcerer's Apprentice does cater to a younger audience, but also provides enough action, suspense, and humor to cater to those of the older generation, making it a great family movie.
I do not understand how a producer invests millions of dollars in a film with Jay Baruchel in a lead role, and why Nicolas Cage and Monica Bellucci accepted to work in this flick.
This fantasy film has a lot going for it: an engaging story, lavish Disney production, the exciting location of New York City, and a talented cast including Nic Cage, Alfred Molina, Jake Cherry and many strong support actors.
Jay Baruchel and Cage play apprentice and master, and they're facing off against Alfred Molina's Horvath, one of three Merlin students who are now foes in 2010 vying to stop/open a vase with an evil witch in their who can destroy the world, yada yada, Baruchel has a girl he wants to be with and/or protect, so on so forth.
On occasion they do, and one can tell they had some thrills putting on their old-style costumes- Cage in particular looking like he could be out of film-noir as much as a sorcerer- but the script gives them little to do except declare things to other characters and deliver exposition.
A consistent movie with some great performances and awesome special effects, it's problems lay in other things.First of all, I'd like to say that I don't think Jay Baruchel is the worst actor ever.
Don't get me wrong, a character can laugh during an action scene, but it depends solely on how it's done, and in this movie, it's certainly not done well.I'd recommend this movie if you like a family-friendly fantasy film, and I'd say that if you have the chance to watch it, go for it, but really, don't expect too much..
The plot of the movie is pretty much textbook Bruckheimer, like his film Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time which was released earlier in the year.
But for now, you're my apprentice ¨ From the producer of Pirates of the Caribbean, Jerry Bruckheimer, and the director of the National Treasure franchise, Jon Turteltaub, comes The Sorcerer's Apprentice, a film with big names, a great amount of CGI visual effects, but little imagination.
My favorite scene in the movie was the one from Disney's Fantasia in which the mops and brooms come to life to help clean the lab, but that was perhaps one of the few positive things along with some funny scenes from Cage that I can say about this movie.And now it's time to explain the plot, my least favorite part about The Sorcerer's Apprentice.
The movie opens with a Lord of the Rings style narration in 700 AD where Merlin, the greatest sorcerer ever, is teaching his three apprentices Balthazar (Nicholas Cage), Horvath (Alfred Molina), and Veronica (Monica Bellucci) the secrets of the sorcerers.
Meanwhile, Dave begins to get a little distracted when he runs into his old childhood sweetheart, Becky (Teresa Palmer), and Horvath find an apprentice of his own in entertainer and magician Drake Stone (Toby Kebbell).The plot is very silly and really doesn't work in a film that invested so much in the visuals and in the cast.
Nicolas Cage does what he can to save this movie, Alfred Molina is also a good villain, Jay Baruchel probably wasn't the right choice in a movie like this, but his character was silly anyway, Teresa Palmer played the girl of his dreams and she was alright, and the surprise in this film was Toby Kebbell who had a pretty funny role as Molina's apprentice and entertainer, but he had very little screen time.
The movie really suffers from little imagination because if you have the resources to make a film about sorcerers several entertaining things can be done, but the story is pretty simple and we've seen most everything before.
The main characters got on my nerves, The story was OK but not great.I was expecting something better, I am a huge fan of the Fantasy genre, even if Fantasy and magic and everything gets dragged into real-life surroundings, only with magic powers or a few monsters to allowing it to be classed as 'Fantasy'.I've watched the Percy Jackson film on Sky Movies, and I nearly enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed the book series.
However, Horvath (Alfred Molina) has other plans, to resurrect Morgana (Alice Krige) to take over the world.Frequent Disney film director Jon Turteltaub delivers a wonderful fantasy family film set in present day New York.
Cage is on surprisingly likable good form and looks particular comfortable in his role.At first lead actor Jay Baruchel as Dave, the Sorcerer's Apprentice, is annoying, a mix of a bad impression of Chris Kattan's Corky Romano voice and gawkiness,who is reminiscent of a young Mike Myers.
There is a weak homage to the earlier film with a series of uncooperative wet mops, but the rest of the story is calculated, hokey Arthurian legend, the patchwork result of three credited scriptwriters, Matt Lopez, Doug Miro, and Carlo Bernard, who play strictly by the cliché guidebook.The convoluted plot, such as it is, focuses on one of Merlin's apprentices, the noble Balthazar Blake, who must fight to save mankind from the evil machinations of Horvath, who of course, wants to destroy it.
Nicolas cage on this movie ha ha ha i think lately the great actors of the Hollywood are starving because of internet downloads of movies and trying to find better victims in small ages to fill their pockets lol Ha ha ha they trying to act in cartoons to give their voices to animals etc.God of internet balance their pockets and their egoism and their thirst for money.I think year 2008-2009-2010 was the year of the most stupid films ever made in the American cinema history.They deserve this.
I brought my wife and kids to this Film, the Kids are 15 and 6.We were not expecting much, but it was a fun action packed adventure film that ticked every box.The story line was good, it is fast paced with lots of funny moments.The acting was great, the 2 main characters had a great rapport.
With much special effects as enhancement, the action scenes are candy eye which try to replace the cliché' story about a nerd training into an apprentice of a sorcerer and getting the girl he is so mad in love.
Balthazar (Cage) is a Sorcerer in the present day and finds Dave (Baruchel) who will become his apprentice to help defeat Horvath (Molina) another Sorcerer who has designs on ending the known world.
Balthazar Blake (Nicolas Cage) is a master sorcerer in modern-day Manhattan trying to defend the city from his arch-nemesis, Maxim Horvath (Alfred Molina).
Baruchel's acting is very much like he was in 'She's Out Of My League' but he does it well enough so why change it if he's getting movie offers, plus he's still young enough to develop his repertoire.Some people have made reference to the special effects not being brilliant but I didn't notice much difference to the stuff you'd see in the Harry Potter films.To sum up - Maybe not a big enough film to go and see at the cinema but can easily fill a slot on a lazy afternoon in-front of the television..
It also stars Jay Baruchel as goofy, science-loving Dave (Balthazar's unknowing apprentice), and Balthazar's arch-nemesis Horvath played by Alfred Molina.
Balthazar must teach Dave all about sorcery while fighting Horvath and defending New York City from centuries old sorcerers and witches that are being brought back before the release of the most powerful dark sorceress Morgana (who just so happens to be trapped in a "doll-like prison" with Balthazar's love Veronica).
Dave does his best to try and stop Balthazar from believing that he can be the Prime Merlinian, the only sorcerer able to beat Morgana, but throughout their time together they each learn from one another and grow together.The underlying theme here seems to be that greatness can come from anyone.
Unfortunately this also means as apprentice to Balthazar, he is thrust into doing battle against Maxim Horvath (Molina), a skilled sorcerer of old who has some devilish plans he wants to enact.The Disney/Cage/Turteltaub combination once again deliver family friendly high jinx for the target audience.
Jon Turteltaub's "The Sorcerer's Apprentice" is a goof-ball action film with a mere gimmick: a nerdy physics student, Dave (Jay Baruchel), finds out he has secret abilities he didn't know about.The opening of the movie has an odd and lengthy back story to sorcery, told in random glimpses of ancient sword and magic fights and other historical events that took place since the time of Merlin.
No surprise, the sequence comes up well short of the original and Baruchel just doesn't have the physical skills to pull it off.I assume this movie is aimed at 10 year olds and I am just not sure they will understand the story, though I feel confident the big special effects and cool car chase will be enough for a few oohs and ahhs.
Cage plays Balthazar an age old sorcerer who looking for the last of the great sorcerers when he finds him and his name is David (Jay Baruchel) After giving very nerdy David a crash course in sorcery to put a stop to an age old nemesis of Balthazar's and the famous Merlin, Maxim Horvath (Alfred Molina) who has escaped his inescapable prison to un leash an age old witch which will doom all of mankind.
In the end Cage and Baruchel learn from each other as the younger guy has a few science tricks to help defeat the bad guys.The Sorcerer's Apprentice is not going to be ever listed as one of the great products from the Magic Kingdom, but it's an entertaining family film a good recommendation in these days..
Because they want to destroy the world.And that is the maximum dramatic deepness The Sorcerer's Apprentice aspires to.Besides of being superficially based on the rich Arthurian legends, The Sorcerer's Apprentice has the doubtful distinction of being a remake of a famous Disney film...or, better said, a remake of the most famous scene from the classical Fantasia, where we saw Mickey Mouse losing the control of various cleaning implements as a consequence of practicing magic without his master's permission.Clear that that nice scene did not have car chases, or alternative rock, or references to Star Wars.The problem is that the screenplay from The Sorcerer's Apprentice feels very forced, at the same time it has many elements we have already seen too many times.The Sorcerer's Apprentice is one of those apparatus movies with many turns which do not lead to anywhere.After the introduction of the characters, the screenplay falls into a routine which combines the lessons from the "master", the shy approaches from the "hero" in order to get closer to his loved one and the appearance every 10 or 15 minutes of the villain in order to generate a little bit of drama...
or, in other words, to produce another over the top special effects sequence to generate some excitement.Needless to say they did not provoke that on me, since I found them to be as boring and insipid as the rest of the film.Even though their characters lack of deepness, I have to say that Nicolas Cage and Jay Baruchel show a good level of credibility and enthusiasm on their roles.And Alfred Molina is absolutely wasted as the villain.In conclusion, The Sorcerer's Apprentice is a boring, mediocre and disposable film experience, so I cannot recommend it.In my humble opinion, this is another failed imitation of Harry Potter, but at least, it is not as bad as Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief.Unfortunately, that is one of the best things I can say about it..
Even with the fantastical elements at play in the film, and specifically with his character, Cage is the single most believable thing in the film.Baruchel, while not quite at a point in his career where he can legitimately carry a movie (voice acting notwithstanding), is fairly enjoyable as Dave.
An entertaining origin story; some truly neat special effects played against the very real streets of New York City makes The Sorcerer's Apprentice that much more magical and lots of fun to see on the big screen..
"The Sorcerer's Apprentice" produced as kind of spin-off of a Walt Disney animated short subject from the 1940s brought to scale in production slate season 2009/2010 by Jerry Bruckheimer Films with a production budget of 150 Million U.S. Dollars, building a state of the art symbiosis between production design and computer-generated visual effects, but denies itself to find a center sequence of spectator-transcending magical matter.In that sense, the director Jon Turteltaub misses its chance to find a wide audience, giving itself to a weakly written script full of teenage-day-dreaming cliché, followed by miss-cast actor Jay Baruchel in the leading role as the apprentice.
It has a great cast, plot, lore, action, special effects, acting, and musical score.With some good characters, this movie can at times, be very memorable.
All the negative reviews are focusing on the acting performances of Cage and Baruchel, which, I agree, aren't the best but at the end of the day this film wasn't made to be a contender for any acting Oscar nominations.What you get I is a good, fun movie that lets you escape from the usual day to day rubbish and that doesn't pretend to be anything more that what it is.I'm not saying this because I'm a Nicholas Cage fan, which I'm most certainly not, while I think he is a talented actor I've only really enjoyed him in Con Air, Face Off and Lord if War.Tell me, who didn't like Micky Mouse in Fantasia, or never dreamt about being a witch or a wizard when they were a kid or loved watching dungeons and dragons cartoons, this movie takes you right back..
Balthazar Blake (Nicolas Cage) is a good sorcerer trying to prevent the bad sorcerer Maxim Horvath (Alfred Molina) from releasing the dark sorceress Morgana le Fey. In order to finally defeat Morgana, Balthazar must recruit Dave Stutler (Jay Baruchel) the Prime Merlinian.Lots of CG effects in this Jerry Bruckheimer production directed by Jon Turteltaub (National Treasure).
Film Title: The Sorcerer's Apprentice Director: Jon Turteltaub Cast: Nicolas Cage, Jay Baruchel, and Alfred Molina The movie starts out with Balthazar who is played by Nicholas Cage, Veronica played by Monica Bellucci and Horvath that is played by actor Alfred Molina fighting alongside Merlin tying to defeat Morgana in medieval times.
The second time in the movie where we see the theme of love is in the scene were Dave played by actor Jay Baruchel goes after a robber after Becky's bracelet gets stolen.
Released in 2010, the film stars actors Nicholas Cage, Jay Baruchel, and Alfred Molina.
'The Sorcerer's Apprentice' is designed on a very clear and often used formula of the Disney family movie with special effects, and it holds no surprises - in any case neither too bad, nor too good ones.
well since this is Sci-fi stuff i guess anything is possible, and somewhere there i read that he actually had apprentices, because he would get tired every other century or so and then he will take a nap of decades.Either way, movie leaving the action effects on the side, which are great on the battles between sorcerers, the story was good interesting, but well the was it was projected was a little eeh.
With The Sorcerer's Apprentice he set out to turn the famous Mickey Mouse segment of Fantasia into a live action film which in turn was based on a 18th poem by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe.Starting in 740AD the great wizard Merlin has three apprentices, Balthazar (Nicolas Cage), Horvath (Alfred Molina) and Veronica (Monica Bellucci), and they were in battle with Morgana le Fay (Alice Krige).