Not much spark in the magic

Cage’s energy can’t save ‘Apprentice’

July 13, 2010|Wesley Morris, Globe Staff

There’s no magic to speak of in “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice.’’ I mean, there’s the stuff that happens when an effects crew works to provide the impression of magic. At least once, Nicolas Cage waves his arms and Alfred Molina goes flying across a bathroom (why do so many action sequences involve urinals?), and the Merrill Lynch bull statue stampedes around Wall Street. (Hey, who said “Jumanji’’?)

But a movie in which spells are cast is not the same as a movie that casts a spell. To be fair, the sight of Monica Bellucci swaying and chanting mumbo jumbo on a fountain near Battery Park is a little hypnotic. What’s she doing here? What, really, is this movie doing here? “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice ’’ is a flavorless family-friendly action-adventure that doubles as memory exploitation. It has nothing to do with either the Mickey Mouse broom sequence of the same name from 1940’s “Fantasia’’ or the 213-year-old Goethe poem that inspired it.

“Fantasia ’’ and “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice ’’ both belong to Disney, which tries to justify the latter movie by tossing in a quick homage to the former. This time the broom sequence stars a bunch of mops. It feels cynical, despite being the only interesting thing in the movie. The three credited screenwriters — Matt Lopez, Doug Miro, and Carlo Bernard — plunder Arthurian legend for the rest of the story.

Balthazar (Cage) fights to save mankind (or Manhattan) from Horvath (Molina), who wants to destroy it. Apparently, they’ve been at this for centuries, ever since their days as Merlin’s underlings. A coup against Merlin left Balthazar’s lady, Veronica (Bellucci), trapped in an extra-strength nesting doll called the grimhold, sharing a body with Morgana le Fay (Alice Krige). Veronica’s liberation depends on the discovery of an enchanted being called the Prime Merlinian, presumably because the Last Airbender was taken. If freed, Morgana plans to gather an evil army to destroy the world. Her frivolous plans to raise the dead around the area of ground zero is almost beyond the pale.