10,000 B.C.

Starring: Steven Strait, Camilla Belle, Cliff Curtis, Omar Sharif (narrator),
Directed by: Roland Emmerich
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Adventure, Thriller, Romance
2008

Times Seen:
Tim: 2

Summary: A young warrior (Steven Strait) sets off after a band of thieves after they abduct the woman (Camilla Belle) he loves. He follows them across the known world, facing unbelievable creatures and frightening dangers, determined to save the woman he loves.

Review:

Tim: I am a huge fan of Roland Emmerich. I know that many, many movie fans will disagree with me here, but I absolutely love Independence Day and The Day After Tomorrow, and Stargate isn't too bad, either. I will always watch his movies. I approached this one with a bit of timidity. It looked good- the special effects could definitely be outstanding, but how many prehistoric movies actually work? Sadly, this film is a complete miss, down their with Emmerich's Godzilla. This movie is weak, ridiculous, and a disapppointment.

Perhaps the biggest problem is that it is so hard to take this movie seriously. There are more plot holes and historical inaccuracies that I won't even go into them. I'll simply say that the idea here was to entertain, not let things like reality and common sense interfere with that. I wish Emmerich would have done a bit more research or at least made a halfhearted attempt to fit this movie within the bounds of historical accuracy. Let me stress again that I am a huge proponent of taking liberties with history and facts in the attempt to tell a better or more interesting story. However, I have limits, and this movie blows past those. I also have some fault with the geographical locations of this movie- we have the high mountains, lush jungles, barren deserts, rivers, and more. This is all within walking distance (certainly, it is an epic journey, but these widely different landscapes all seem a bit too conveniently close together.

These flaws might not have been fatal if there were some interesting characters that we'd actually care about. Steven Strait isn't exactly leading man material, but he does decently well here. I wish a more memorable, exciting actor took this part. I suppose I like Camilla Belle in the role, but she has absolutely nothing to do. She is completely wasted in this part, and I never bought the relationship between Strait and Belle. I did like the casting of Cliff Curtis. He is so overlooked as an actor, but his presence always makes movies better. I really enjoyed him here.

As with most Emmerich movies, the biggest appeal are the special effects. They are occasionally stunning here. The mammoth hunt scene is incredible. I love the epic scope of Emmerich's movies, and he doesn't disappoint here. The mammoth scene was impressive. He also tries to give us a similar scene with the giant deadly bird creatures. This was fun to watch, but the ostrich-like beasts just came across as silly. I also love the scene with the boats on the river- it was short, but such a beautiful moment. The film's final climactic battle is definitely impressive in scope, if not in execution.

I also need to touch on the film's conclusion. It is terrible. My ability to suspend disbelief is almost legendary, but this was just too much for me. I have my limits, especially in regards to logic. I can pretend or turn a blind eye to silliness, but there needs to be a pay off. This movie asks us to believe the impossible, and yet rewards us with nothing. This movie ended in terrible, stupid fashion, and only furthers drives home the point that this movie might have been a terrific effort, but Emmerich lets us down with this one.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 6



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: Stargate, Independence Day, The Day After Tomorrow, Godzilla, 2012, Quest for Fire, One Million Years B.C.