Released: December 15, 2006
Director: Stefan Fangmeier
*****
It is appropriate, looking at the movie version of Christopher Paolini's Eragon, to know the original novel was started when the author was only 15 years old (it was published in 2003). The film, all 104-minutes, seem ripped from other fantasy epics far better and adventurous than anything on the screen. An egg is stolen from evil King Galbatorix (John Malkovich) and put in the care of a young farmboy, Eragon (Edward Speleers). When the egg hatches, a baby dragon is born, the last such creature in the world. It instantly bonds with Eragon. Together, picking up allies along the way, the Saphira the dragon and Eragon find their way to the rebel base in an attempt to stop Galbatorix once and for all.
If movies were made in a vacuum, Eragon would undoubtedly be a hit. Fantasy creatures, a far off world, action, a little bit of romance, armies fighting each other...the problem is we've seen all this before done 100% better. Themes from Star Wars and The Lord of the Rings, not to mention Dragonslayer and Dragonheart are lifted wholesale with little regard for a cohesive story. The plot comes directly from A New Hope, to be perfectly honest: a creature needs to get into the hands of rebels in order to defeat the controlling ruler. Sound a bit familiar? It should.
At under two hours, the film never properly develops any of the characters or gives the adventure an epic feeling. There are no sweeping vistas akin to Peter Jackson's Middle Earth adventures, nor world-changing stakes. We're told Galbatorix is a bad man, he snarls and shouts, sits shrouded in darkness and fire...and that's the extent of his actions. A potential romance between Eragon and Arya doesn't get off the ground while Djimon Hounsou, playing the rebel leader Ajihad, is wasted with three lines of dialogue and a laughable wig.
For its part, though, the special effects are as seamless as they can be in the film. The CGI Saphira taking flight in the finale is gorgeous to behold, never betraying her computer origins. There is detail and texture to her body, leathery wings flying through the air as fireballs and strands of energy rush to capture her. Even the on-set dragon models are better than expected, though not as good as the computer creation. Eragon can't rise above the intentions of the its author because he doesn't know any better. A generation raised on Tolkien, Lucas and other fantasy epics plunders from them instead of creating a new world for us to explore. A missed opportunity.