Sahara (2005) Movie Information:

Sahara (2005) Directed by: Breck Eisner Sahara (2005) Written by: Joshua Oppenheimer, Thomas Dean Donnelly, James V. Hart, John Richards Sahara (2005) Cast: Matthew McConaughey, Steve Zahn, Penelope Cruz, Lambert Wilson, Glynn Turman, Delroy Lindo, William H. Macy

Sahara (2005) U.S. Distributor: Paramount Pictures Sahara (2005) U.K. Distributor: Not available at this time

Our Rating: User Rating:  Log in to rate this movie

Sahara (2005) Synopsis:

Master explorer Dirk Pitt (Matthew McConaughey) takes on the adventure of his life when he embarks on a treasure hunt through some of the most dangerous regions of West Africa. Searching for what locals call "The Ship of Death", a long lost Civil War battleship which protects a secret cargo, Pitt and his wisecracking sidekick (Steve Zahn) use their wits and clever heroics to help Doctor Eva Rojas (Penelope Cruz) when they realize the ship may be linked to mysterious deaths in the very same area.

Sahara (2005) Movie Review:

Dirk Pitt is probably one of the best kept secrets in adventure fiction today. Novelist Clive Cussler created the heart-throb deep sea adventurer in 1973’s The Mediterranean Caper, which launched 18 adventures for the popular character. It wasn’t until 1983’s Pacific Vortex that Dirk Pitt’s first adventure was revealed.

“Sahara” is definitely one of the most famous and popular books of the Dirk Pitt series but its no place to start when introducing a new audience to this character. It would be like making “From Russia with Love” first.

“Sahara” also isn’t the first incarnation of Dirk Pitt to hit the silver screen. The first attempt to bring this adventurer to screen was 1980’s “Raise the Titanic” which starred the late Richard Jordan as Pitt.

Dirk Pitt’s creator never started at the beginning and it worked for both James Bond and Indiana Jones, so what happened?

“Sahara” is the 11th Dirk Pitt adventure in the series and the filmmakers decided to drop the audience right into Pitt’s world. Pitt, this time played by rugged Matthew McConaughey, has been obsessed with tracking down an infamous Civil War battleship known as the “Ship of Death”. Just as he gets his closest clue yet, Pitt rescues Eva Rojas (Penelope Cruz), a World Aid doctor from a gang of thugs. Pitt learns that the doctor has stumbled upon a growing epidemic that is sweeping across Africa. And in some sort of twist of fate both the epidemic and ancient battleship seem to be linked. What secrets will both adventures reveal?

“Sahara” in its silver-screen incarnation has been reduced to something that resembles “Jake Speed” or a tamer “Further Adventures of Tennessee Buck” or basically a very sandy and sloppy Indiana Jones rip-off or is it a James Bond rip-off. You decide.

Rookie director Breck Eisner seems to know how to map out action sequences but really has no idea how to pull a story together. That could also be the fault of the 4 screenwriters who cobbled this film together. How can it take four extra writers to produce a script on already produced material without an origin sequence or explanation?

Because the message board opening is so effective. Pay attention class, there will be a quiz later.

I guess by about half way through the film I found myself locking my brain away in the back of my head. I found myself really enjoying the chemistry between McConaughey and his sidekick Steve Zahn. I loved the stranded in the desert sequence and most of the solar plant scenes.

Then it just seemed to go no where.

I really liked McConaughey as the action hero, especially when he allowed for his hero to get his beaten by every guy he had to fight. It was never really easy for him. I also really enjoyed Steve Zahn as the comic sidekick to McConaughey’s straight-faced hero. These two were great and I kind of wished that they would come back for another Dirk Pitt movie that would be smarter, thrilling and intense like a Dirk Pitt Adventure is supposed to be.

I have always thought as Dirk Pitt as closer to “Doc Savage” than James Bond. Not only is Pitt pulled into the adventure but so are the people around him where Bond is more of a lone wolf. Doc Savage had his associates and Dirk Pitt has his crew.

It really is a shame this film was so sloppy and didn’t finally give Dirk Pitt a home on the silver screen. Maybe the next time.

So Says the Soothsayer

Our Rating: User Rating:  Log in to rate this movie

Sahara (2005) review written by: Dean Kish