RottenTomatoes.com
Log In | Register | What is RT?
Found a Bug? Squash It! Report Bugs Here
  • Home
  • Movies
  • DVD
  • Celebrities
  • News
  • Critics
  • Trailers & Pictures
  • CommunityBeta
  • Box Office
  • | Best Of
  • | Certified Fresh
  • | Showtimes
RT Search Powered by Google
help icon Enhanced RT
searches on Google
Click here to turn on enhanced search results from RT on your Google searches.
 
Movies / On DVD / Sahara
Sahara

Rate this Movie Help Icon

  • Write a Review
  • Read Reviews
  • Add to List
  • Buy Poster External Icon
  • Visit Official Site External Icon
Bookmark and Share

Sahara (2005)

  • T-Meter Critics
  • Top Critics
  • RT Community
  • My Critics
  • My Friends
  • DVD
38 %
Tomatometer
Template ImageTemplate Image

How does the Tomatometer work Help Icon

Reviews Counted:168

Fresh:64

Rotten:104

Average Rating:5.1/10

Consensus: A mindless adventure flick with a preposterous plot.

Rated: 12A [See Full Rating] for action violence

Runtime: 2 hrs 3 mins

Genre: Action/Adventure

Theatrical Release:08-04-2005

Synopsis: Dirk (Matthew McConaughey) and Al (Steve Zahn) have been friends since kindergarten, having also gone through college and the Navy together. The two now work for a former admiral traveling around... Dirk (Matthew McConaughey) and Al (Steve Zahn) have been friends since kindergarten, having also gone through college and the Navy together. The two now work for a former admiral traveling around the world and salvaging treasures from the sea with the National Underwater and Marine Agency (NUMA). In his spare time, Dirk is obsessed with the 150-year-old mystery of the Texas, an Ironclad battleship that reportedly disappeared from Richmond, Virginia during a Civil War battle and turned up in Africa. When a Confederate coin--allegedly one of only five minted--surfaces in Mali, Dirk and Al plan to travel there from Lagos, Nigeria on the admiral's yacht to investigate. Meanwhile, in Lagos, Dirk meets Eva (Penelope Cruz), a doctor for the World Health Organization (WHO) who believes that there is a plague building in Mali. Since the WHO is unable to find another way into the war-torn country, Dirk and Al give Eva and her colleague a lift up the river. Once in Mali, Dirk, Al, and Eva quickly find themselves embroiled in trouble as she pursues the source of the disease. Meanwhile, Dirk and Al search for the Texas. Based on a novel by Clive Cussler, SAHARA is a rollicking thrill ride through exotic locales, including everything from high-speed boat chases to helicopter pursuits to jeeps racing through the desert to camel rides. A warlord and a greedy French businessman prove to be formidable villains for the trio. McConaughey fits the bill as gentleman and adventurer Dirk, while Zahn holds his own as likeable sidekick Al. Cruz is feisty as independent Eva. Director Breck Eisner's theatrical feature film debut also features William H. Macy as the admiral. [More]

Starring: Matthew McConaughey, Penélope Cruz, Steve Zahn, Delroy Lindo

Starring: Matthew McConaughey, Penélope Cruz, Steve Zahn, Delroy Lindo, William H. Macy, Rainn Wilson

Director: Breck Eisner

Director: Breck Eisner
Screenwriter: Thomas Dean Donnelly, Delroy Oppenheimer, John C. Richards, James V. Hart
Producer: Howard L. Baldwin, Mace Neufeld, Stephanie Austin, Karen Baldwin
Composer: Clint Mansell
Studio: Paramount Pictures

[See More Credits]

  • Trailers
  • Pictures
  • Sahara Trailer
    >
1 of 1

See More Movie Trailers & Pictures

Reviews for Sahara

  • T-Meter Critics
  • Top Critics
  • RT Community
  • My Critics
  • My Friends
  • DVD
 
 
41 - 60 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | |< << 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 >> >|
Arrange By:Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
 
 

Sahara has lots of sound and fury trying to cover up for a hopelessly meandering story and a dull hero.

Full Review Source: Aisle Seat | comment Comment
04/13/05
Mike McGranaghan
Mike McGranaghan
Aisle Seat

McConaughney plays the role of dashing adventurer Dirk Pitt as if he were a party-hardy frat boy who ventured out into the real world after all campus kegs were tapped dry.

Full Review Source: Creative Loafing | comment Comment
04/13/05
Matt Brunson
Matt Brunson
Creative Loafing

Good-natured junk that amuses while it's onscreen, and evaporates almost immediately afterward.

Full Review Source: Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC) | comment Comment
04/13/05
Ken Hanke
Ken Hanke
Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)

...an action adventure film, complete with implausible situations, and perfectly timed rescues and escapes. Who cares? It’s still fun, exciting and thoroughly entertaining

Full Review Source: Kaplan vs. Kaplan | comment Comment
04/12/05
Jeanne Kaplan
Jeanne Kaplan
Kaplan vs. Kaplan

..a rollicking, wild adventure in which a very buff Matthew McConaughey, and his able sidekick, Steve Zahn, have more fun than any movie pair since Mel Gibson and Danny Glover

Full Review Source: Kaplan vs. Kaplan | comment Comment
04/12/05
David Kaplan
David Kaplan
Kaplan vs. Kaplan

...will leave a parched sensation in one’s dry throat...a recycled buddy-buddy vehicle that’s about as welcoming as hugging a cactus tree

Full Review Source: Movie Eye | comment Comment
04/12/05
Frank Ochieng
Frank Ochieng
Movie Eye

While it doesn't rewrite the genre, it finds a way to deliver with style and humor everything adventure fans want.

Full Review Source: Film Journal International | comment Comment
04/12/05
Daniel Eagan
Daniel Eagan
Film Journal International

Sahara is many things, but it is not a movie. It is the skull-splitting cacophony of 21 producers and four screenwriters (that we know about, anyway) standing in the same room shouting into their cell phones.

Full Review Source: Village Voice | comment Comment
04/12/05
Jessica Winter
Jessica Winter
Village Voice

Otherwise dismissive reviews of Sahara have been forgiving it on the grounds that it’s entertaining. Allow me to counter that opinion: No, it isn’t.

Full Review Source: Coast (Halifax, Nova Scotia) | comment Comment
04/12/05
Mark Palermo
Mark Palermo
Coast (Halifax, Nova Scotia)

It ain't art, and it's dumber than I'd like, but I don't imagine you were expecting Kieslowski.

Full Review Source: Film Threat | comment Comment
04/12/05
Pete Vonder Haar
Pete Vonder Haar
Film Threat

Pitt seems to get by entirely on dumb ideas and reckless luck. In the end, he's an action hero in name only.

Full Review Source: Premiere Magazine | comment Comment
04/12/05
Peter Debruge
Peter Debruge
Premiere Magazine

It drove me crazy. It made National Treasure look like a documentary.

Full Review Source: Ebert & Roeper | comment Comment
04/11/05
Richard Roeper
Richard Roeper
Ebert & Roeper

It would have worked better with a funnier and more believable script.

Full Review Source: Laramie Movie Scope | comment Comment
04/11/05
Robert Roten
Robert Roten
Laramie Movie Scope

...the overriding lesson here is that if we don't go looking to Matthew McConaughey for gravitas, we'll probably have a good time.

Full Review Source: Tyler Morning Telegraph (Texas) | comment Comment
04/11/05
Mark Collette
Mark Collette
Tyler Morning Telegraph (Texas)

The adventures are non-stop but reality gets buried in the sand.

Full Review Source: jackiekcooper.com | comment Comment
04/11/05
Jackie K. Cooper
Jackie K. Cooper
jackiekcooper.com

[A]s delightful a bit of... hokum as we've seen in some time. You don't take it seriously for a minute... [Y]ou get a big bag of popcorn, sit back, and enjoy.

Full Review Source: Worcester Telegram & Gazette | comment Comment
04/11/05
Daniel M. Kimmel
Daniel M. Kimmel
Worcester Telegram & Gazette

Has enough humor and adventure that I’m almost willing to overlook the preposterous plot

Full Review Source: Sean the Movie Guy | comment Comment
04/11/05
Sean McBride
Sean McBride
Sean the Movie Guy

Someone had the brilliant idea to treat Sahara as a Hope and Crosby “Road” picture pasted onto a James Bond/Indiana Jones plot.

Full Review Source: Northwest Herald (Crystal Lake, IL) | comment Comment
04/10/05
Jeffrey Westhoff
Jeffrey Westhoff
Northwest Herald (Crystal Lake, IL)

Mindless, but fun and entertaining. It’s sort of James Bondish without the ridiculous special effects. I enjoyed it, mainly because of McConaughey and Zahn.

Full Review Source: tonymedley.com | comment Comment
04/10/05
Tony Medley
Tony Medley
tonymedley.com

The mindless Sahara is smart enough to keep the action and wisecracks at a fevered clip.

Full Review Source: Washington Times | comment Comment
04/10/05
Christian Toto
Christian Toto
Washington Times
 
 
41 - 60 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | |< << 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 >> >|
all

Latest News for Sahara

February 21, 2008: Box Office Guru Preview: Vantage Point Aims For #1 Debut
A terrorist attack is played out through multiple perspectives in the high-octane political thriller Vantage Point which leads the four-pack of new openers which also includes... More...

January 14, 2008: Nu Image/Millennium, Lionsgate Teaming Up for New Conan the Barbarian
It's been rumored for some time, and now it's finally official: Conan the Barbarian is heading back to the big screen. More...

February 05, 2007: Novelist and Producer Point Fingers in Court; Whose Fault Was "Sahara?"
Accusations are flying between author Clive Cussler and producer Philip Anschutz over who's to blame for the 2005 adventure stinker, "Sahara," which cost an estimated... More...

January 18, 2007: McConaughey is "Magnum, P.I."?
It's been in development so long, you may have given up waiting on any casting news -- or forgotten about it entirely -- but IGN Movies reports that "We Are Marshall"... More...

See All

More DVDs

Top Rentals
Tomatometer Percentage Movie
36% 36% Angels & Demons
25% 25% Four Christmases
68% 68% Funny People
95% 95% Star Trek
14% 14% The Ugly Truth

More Rentals…

New On DVD This Week
Tomatometer Percentage Movie
83% 83% Harry Potter and the H…
67% 67% Public Enemies
75% 75% Julie & Julia
95% 95% The Cove
85% 85% World's Greatest Dad

More New Releases…

What’s Hot On RT

Twilight Saga: Eclipse

Twilight Saga: Eclipse

5 facts straight from the cast.

Disney Animation

Disney Animation

We chart the studio's classics.

Avatar

Avatar

An exclusive look at the human hardware.

Eric Bana

Eric Bana

The Star Trek star talks cars with RT.

Other News

  • Top Stories
  • Popular
  • Interviews
 
 

Comments

 
 
Top Stories
Headlines Comments
  
  • Exclusive: The World of Where the Wild Things Are
12
  • Peter Jackson Talks Hobbit, LotR Blu-ray Source: Collider.com
13
  • Woman Jailed for Filming New Moon Screening Source: Chicago Sun-Times
13
  • McG Has Plans for Fifth and Sixth Terminator Movies Source: Gizmodo
144
  • Spielberg Hops Away from Harvey Source: Variety
22
  • Tarantino Could Have Directed Green Lantern Source: MTV
24
  • Will Duvall be Gilliam's Don Quixote? Source: Collider.com
26
  • No Hobbit Until 2012? Source: The Wrap
22
  • Don't Hold Your Breath for Hancock 2 Source: HitFix
42
  • Peter Berg Talks Battleship Source: CHUD
2
Popular
Headlines Comments
  
  • Total Recall: Natalie Portman's Best Movies
82
  • Five Favorite Films with Jason Reitman
56
  • Critics Consensus: Everybody's Fine Is Just OK
50
  • 10 Horrifically Profitable Films
46
  • Sundance 2010: RT's 10 Most Anticipated Movies
41
  • Five Favorite Films with Jesse Ventura
40
  • Weekly Ketchup: Tron Team to Remake The Black Hole
37
  • Awards Tour: National Board of Review Winners List!
28
  • Box Office Guru Wrapup: The Blind Side Takes the Lead
26
  • Friday Harvest: Iron Man 2, Harry Potter, and more!
24
Interviews
Headlines Comments
  
  • Director Ruben Fleischer Talks Zombieland
2
  • "I Don't Hate Women": Lars von Trier on Antichrist
17
  • Eric Bana talks Love the Beast - RT Interview
12
  • Fight Club Sound Designer Reflects on Film's 10th Anniversary
23
  • James Schamus talks Taking Woodstock - RT Interview
8
  • John Hurt Talks Harry Potter, Quentin Crisp and Alien - The RT Interview
15
  • Terry Gilliam Talks Doctor Parnassus
22
  • Wes Anderson Talks Fantastic Mr. Fox - RT Interview
9
  • Wolverine Creator Len Wein Talks About the Film
28
  • Gavin Hood Talks Wolverine; Possible Sequel
30
 
 

Sponsored Links

Around The Network

  • Sahara at Rotten Tomatoes
  • Sahara at IGN
  • Sahara at AskMen

Fresh Links

Featured
RT on YouTube
RT on YouTube External Link

Subscribe to RT's YouTube channel and don't miss a second of our cracking video content.

RT on Twitter
RT on Twitter External Link

Follow Rotten Tomatoes and join us as we tweet about the week's releases.

 
 
About| Site Map| Help| RT To Go| Contact Us| Critics Submission| Linking to RT| Licensing| Movie List| Celebs List| Newsletter
IGN Logo

IGN.com | GameSpy | Comrade | Arena | FilePlanet | GameSpy Technology
TeamXbox | Planets | Vaults | VE3D | CheatsCodesGuides | GameStats | GamerMetrics
AskMen.com | Rotten Tomatoes | Direct2Drive | Green Pixels


By continuing past this page, and by the continued use of this site, you agree to be bound by and abide by the User Agreement.
Copyright 1998-2009, IGN Entertainment, Inc. About IGN | Support | Advertise | Privacy Policy | User Agreement | Subscribe to RT's XML feed! IGN RSS Feeds
IGN's enterprise databases running Oracle, SQL and MySQL are professionally monitored and managed by Pythian Remote DBA
Certain product data ©1995-present Muze, Inc. For personal use only. All rights reserved.