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The story of writer Christopher Paolini and the route his self-published debut tome took to fame and fortune are well-documented and quite legendary (in some circles). For a young man to write a book, self-publish it, have it earn major attention from reputed publishers, become the first book in a trilogy and then have that first book become a film is the stuff that dreams are made of.
That said, the fate of Eragon the movie at the global box office hasn't been a proud one.
While the filmmakers were probably hoping for a fate akin to that of the Harry Potter movies, this one seems to have suffered the curse of other dragon-centric films.
The tale itself is simple enough. In a time where men rode dragons, a dragon rider betrayed his friends and colleagues, killed all the other dragons and usurped all the power to become King Galbatorix (John Malkovich, sleepwalking through his performance).
The story of the film begins when a princess named Arya escapes with a 'stone' belonging to the king. She escapes capture from the king's evil wizard Durza (Robert Carlyle) by transporting the stone away, into the hands of a simple farm boy who was out hunting one night.
That farm boy is Eragon (debutant Edward Speleers) and the 'stone' turns out to be an egg out of which the first dragon in ages is hatched. Eragon then becomes the new beacon of hope for people trying to overthrow the king and end his tyranny.
The trouble with the movie is that it looks like a compilation of scenes or characters from other movies. The young, unprepared hero is a cross between Harry Potter and Anakin Skywalker.
It doesn't help that Speleers bears a closer resemblance to the wooden Hayden Christensen than he does to the more charismatic Daniel Radcliffe.
The dragon Safira (voice by Rachel Weisz) brings to mind Sean Connery's turn as Draco in Dragon Heart (1996).
Jeremy Irons looks like he dusted off the threads he sported in Dungeons & Dragons (2000) for another go at this role.
The bad wig on Djimon Housou (with visible glue line, no less) harkens back to the terrible makeup effects on Michael Clark Duncan in The Scorpion King (2002).
And that's just the tip of the iceberg.
This is not a bad movie, just an unremarkable one. Some of the special effects sequences are breathtaking, like the battle between Eragon and the wizard, or the various scenes of the dragon flying through the air. The interactions between the boy and the baby dragon have a certain sweetness to them.
With such an impressive cast and a fairly large budget this movie should have been more impressive.
Strictly for time pass.
Rediff Rating: