Prince of Persia Evolves from a Simple Scrolling Game to Big Screen Reality

Do you remember the first Prince of Persia video games? The first one (Prince of Persia) came out in 1989 and was developed by Broderbund for the Apple II. Prince of Persia 2: Shadow of the Flame came out in 1994, also by Broderbund.

In 2003, Ubisoft took over production and came up with Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time and Prince of Persia: The Warrior Within. The pervious one is where the prince takes a new look. From the turban-wearing figure, he became a more real character rendered in 3D. The character-rendition for The Warrior Within took criticism for making the prince too heavy metal.

The original Prince of Persia was created by Jordan Mechner, who was inspired by scenes in George Lucas's Raiders of the Lost Ark. That's the reason why there are lots of caverns, traps, and jumping in the game. Instead of a whip, though, the prince uses a sword. Mechner used rotoscoping to match the actual movements of his younger brother who he asked to perform the actions the prince has to do in the game. That is why the prince's animation in the original game is so smooth and realistic.

Prince of Persia came out on many platforms, including DOS, Amiga, Atari, and SNES, among the early ones. The 3D versions work in the X-Box. With new motion-capture technology, the game may soon use the player's own body movements to make the prince jump, crawl, dangle, and do all manner of acrobatics in the game. The later versions of the franchise give a new look to the prince, who used to wear a turban, a vest, and loose "Sindbad" trousers. He didn't really have a face in the game. Now, he's done away with the turban, sports straight, cropped hair, and has a goatee. He's the epitome of the ancient Middle-Eastern swashbuckler.

There's a good future for the Prince of Persia franchise and now there's a movie based on the game using the character design of the 3D versions. The movie, The Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, stars Jake Gyllenhaal as Prince Dastan. He partners with a rival princess Tamina (played by Gemma Arterton) to stop an evil vizier from unleashing the power of the sands of time and dominate or destroy the world. The quest is a tough one and the prince also has to deal with the princess who's more than a handful.

If you've played Prince of Persia before, you definitely have to watch this movie. It's from Disney and Jerry Bruckheimer, so it has to be just as good, and maybe even bette,r than Pirates of the Caribbean.

Another Action Film for Michelle Yeoh in Babylon AD

Lots of movie stars shine for a few years and then disappear, but Michelle Yeoh isn't one of them. Her movies are released one after the other and most of them are now action adventures, where she does martial arts, like in The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor. Here she is again starring with Vin Diesel and newcomer Melanie Thierry, as the girl in trouble, in a movie laden with special effects.

See a young Michelle Yeoh in a rarely-seen sexy, temptress pose

Watch the trailer of Babylon AD

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Shoot 'Em Up Will Get You Shooting

Yes, for an action movie that neverl lets up in machismo tension action, the only thing that it needs is Monica Belluci. Never mind Clive Owen (Mr. Smith) who plays the leading guy who partners with Belluci's character to protect a baby hunted down by an evil someone (Paul Giamatti).

Picture by Spielberg of Indiana Jones as Harrison Ford at Sixty

Just look at this picture taken by director Steven Spielberg (left). It's Indiana Jones playing Harrison Ford at 60! Or is it the other way around? So this is how the famous archaeologist-character will look like in the latest Indiana Jones movie of creator, George Lucas. Do you think this will suck? Unlikely. It would be just like the way Spielberg took the picture of Ford... Perfect!

What's in In Dr. Jone's crate? Yes indeed! There's an artifact hidden in every one of these paper weights with magnetic whip and fedora. Order now to find out what it is! But beware, there are also things in there Indy wouldn't like!

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This Transformers movie poster has director Michael Bay's signature all over it. It's got his signature warm colors with the setting sun in the background; a dramatic and intimate scene of a couple caught in the middle of epic events beyond their control; a monster of a machine (in the form of Optimus Prime) that promises on screen mayhem and action... What more can a Michael Bay fan ask for in a Transformers movie?