Critique?

Everyone has their own genre when it comes to books, movies, music, etc.

Me? I don’t know how to explain it, but words like authentic, adventure, imaginative, and captivating come to mind concerning my own “type”. Books like Fablehaven and the Bartimaeus Trilogy are at the top of my list. As are Michael Buble, Jon Schmidt, and Josh Groban when it comes to music. For movies? Well, as of now, my all-time favorite has to be Prince of Persia, which I saw for the first time earlier today.

Not only is the main character very (very) attractive, but it is exactly the high-end fantasy/adventure I love, with believable characters, a captivating plot, and hints of humor and romance in the mix. My favorite characters are 1. Sheik Amar (was that so hard to guess?) and 2. Prince Dastan (he’s not just attractive, mind you, he’s kind, caring, reckless yet brilliant, with a good heart and fabulous eyes…). Overall, I was very pleased with the movie, it had me enthralled the whole time.
Another great thing about Prince of Persia is that I was emotionally involved, to the point that I grieved and rejoiced with the characters. It is a story of the tragedy of human nature. As Sheik Amar puts it, “This is a secret government killing society. That’s why I don’t pay taxes!”

The storyline revolves around bonds of brotherhood being broken by the greed of men. In the beginning, Prince Dastan is framed by his brother, who was framed by his uncle, who wanted his brother’s throne. Soon after, a whirlwind of events unfolds as Dastan and Tamina, a princess and guardian of a powerful dagger with magical properties, try to uncover the truth and save time, the kingdom, and the world before it’s too late.

This greed, pride, or selfishness–take your pick–is something that got my mind in a flutter. During a scene transition, I thought to myself, “why don’t the brothers just share the throne?”

And then it hit me.

Could you imagine the King of a large and powerful empire known as Persia, say, “Hey little brother, do you want to take a turn wearing my crown?”

No. You would never hear that, not in a millenia. And then… it made me sad how I found that statement above funny. How ridiculous it was, how unheard of, how mocking. Why couldn’t someone share power with someone else? The fact that I can’t comprehend that, I think, is proof that unselfishness is something the human mind can’t understand. Some would argue with me, but then again, there are some things that can’t be argued.

Human nature sure makes great movies.