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Right before Sahara was released, I read an article somewhere, saying that author Clive Cussler was threatening to sue. The article said, as I recall, that Cussler didn’t get the final script approval that had been agreed upon, and, after seeing the movie, he was upset with how it turned out. If I hadn’t read that article, I probably wouldn’t have seen Sahara, since I’ve read Cussler before (see my review of Inca Gold), and I found his work to be tedious, dull, and pretentious. But if Cussler wasn’t happy with the movie, I figured I might just like it. And, for the most part, I did.
Sahara’s story is a bit involved (probably a little hard to follow for the three-year-olds seated ahead of me in the theater). Dirk Pitt (Matthew McConaughey) is in Nigeria with the rest of the NUMA crew, diving to retrieve the tomb of an ancient king from the bottom of the ocean, when he’s given a clue that could prove his theory that an old Civil War ship somehow ended up in Africa. Determined to find the ship, he convinces his boss, Admiral Sandecker (William H. Macy), to give him and his friends, Al Giordino (Steve Zahn) and Rudi Gunn (Rainn Wilson), a couple of days to explore before heading off on their next adventure. Sandecker gives in—as long as Dirk agrees to escort two doctors from the World Health Organization to Mali.
Drs. Frank Hopper (Glynn Turman) and Eva Rojas (Penélope Cruz) are headed to Mali to find the source of a deadly plague—but it’s clear that someone wants to keep them out. After they’ve gone their separate ways, Dirk realizes that the doctors are in danger—so he puts his treasure hunt on hold to protect the doctors and help them stop the plague from spreading.
I can definitely understand why Cussler wasn’t satisfied with this movie—it’s not nearly as stuffy and pretentious as his books. In his books, Pitt and Giordino come off as middle-aged number-crunching adventurer/scientists. And while Cussler writes plenty of action, he draws it out and makes it so tedious that even the action gets boring. In the movie, on the other hand, Pitt and Giordino are a couple of goof-ball adventurers who know what they’re doing but have fun doing it. McConaughey is rugged, smart, and suave yet silly—almost a mix between James Bond and Bo Duke. And Zahn is the perfect partner—playing the goofy sidekick without being over-the-top. And as for the action, it’s almost non-stop.
I’ll admit, though, that the story is still a bit complex—while not necessarily unpredictable—and a little bit tedious. I would have been happier if the movie had been just a little shorter. And, of course, it’s not without its share of Hollywood cheesiness. But, in the end, Sahara is a fun adventure-comedy. McConaughey and Zahn make a great team—and they make the movie well worth a couple of hours of your time.
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