User reviews

1st watched 4/16/2021 - 4 out of 10(Dir-David Lister): So so drama involving Merlin being sent into the modern world - with an evil Morgana on his trail to get a magical crystal and the staff (also, known as the sword in the stone) to gain power over the world. On the modern side, it's about a young boy who likes magic, and has a struggling relationship with his father, and starts to take the liking to a neighbor named Milner who shows him unusual tricks. The human story is more appealing as Ben, played by Byron Taylor, is new to the neighborhood and is trying to survive at his new school. He is bullied and with the help of Milner and his girlfriend he starts to turn the tides. Morgana's pack - a cat and mouse turned human - start stalking Milner(who is really Merlin) and the kid trying to figure out where the crystal is. The evil characters are really what pulls this movie down. Morgana, played by Kelly LeBrock, is over the top and the mouse/cat combination just isn't that appealing or funny. The relationship that builds between Milner(Merlin) and Ben is good, but by the time it's improving we get to the finale with the battle between the good and evil folks. Kids might enjoy parts of this movie, but there isn't enough depth for others. It was watchable, that was about all.

He had a stink attitude. I didn't like him so it's hard for me to enjoy the movie the boy need a 👋

I'm quite sure that there are people that would like this movie. I am not one of them. 'The Sorcerer's Apprentice' is really bad. The effects are alright for a low-budget film like this, but the script, props, acting, and characterisation are all truly shocking.

Luckily, this makes for quite an entertaining ride as you can laugh at all the rubbish acting and ridiculous plot points. The concept isn't totally ridiculous, but it's executed poorly and there seems to be no real point to why anyone is doing anything and then everything just starts to get a bit silly. Which is funny.

Some kids will probably love it. The problem though is that its probably aimed at children who will be intelligent enough to know that it is badly-made movie. The only good thing I can say about this movie is that it's not very memorable so it won't stay with you for too long (except for one disturbing scene involving a milkshake).

If you want a decent movie, try and stay away from this. If you like to point and laugh at things, then this may prove itself a worthy target - especially if you already know about the legend of Merlin.

This is a very nice little family film - suitable for the whole family. And, with the current popularity of fantasy films - should prove popular. The highpoint of the film is the presence of the great Robert Davi in the role of Merlin. He makes a perfect wizard - both in the flashback sequences and in Merlin's modern incarnation. If you are looking for a pleasant evening with the family - this would be a great choice.

This film definitely was brought to us by the same South African country that gave us such whimsical fare as The Fairy King of Ar and The Little Unicorn about the biggest little unicorn ever! This one features Merlin and the exact same house used in The Little Unicorn to bring us a film about a kid moving into a new place and magic! Not much magic mind you, but there is a bit on display here if you consider the ability to make a bully dump a strawberry milkshake on himself a super magical event!

The story, a boy who may be bi-polar moves to a large estate cause his dad got a new job as a curator. Why do I say he is bi-polar? Because, he constantly yells at people that he hates them, doesn't want anything to do with him and then he is back within minutes saying he is sorry and didn't mean it. He tries to become friends with the neighbor who has the exact same problem and we are fraught with a movie full of go away! I'm sorry! Let me teach you magic! No, I will not teach you magic! Meanwhile, Kelly LeBrock who I hadn't seen since Hard To Kill is the villain.

The cast of these films always feature a star of note or two as the fairy king had Corbin Bernson and Malcolm McDowell and the unicorn one had George Hamilton and a couple of others. This one gives us Kelly LeBrock and Ray Davi, so it apparently had a smaller budget than the other two. Ray best known as one of the gang in Goonies and the big time cocaine dealer from License to Kill and Kelly Weird Science and Hard To Kill and being a model. Still, Ray does a fairly good job, I just wish he did not feel the need to sing in this one...

So we get bullying and the boy trying to make it with the local cutie while Merlin shows the kid like two spells that any magician can do and we have our movie with two action pieces to bookend the movie. Of the three films I have seen from this company, this is the weakest; however, it is not exactly like the others were way better or anything.

I could have so easily walked away and that is exactly what I should have done! This film stinks. Just because it was on TV I watched it and even then I had to break up the boredom by channel surfing. The professionalism of this film is minimal; set in the UK but all the buildings, road signs and car registrations (apart from the green range rover) are all RSA. The accents are all over the place; American, British, South African plus a few others I could not recognise. Halfway through I thought it was set in Sweden or somewhere, it really is so inconsistent that this is the main failing of the film. Your normally cant go wrong with King Arthur / Merlin stories but this one breaks the mould - yes you can!

It is watchable as a Rifftrax. This film needed a commentary.

If I had read the other reviews here before DVRing this, I would not have bothered. I was able to stomach fifteen minutes of it before I checked these reviews - and the overall rating - and realized I'd made a mistake. It is definitely for children, there's absolutely nothing to hold an adult's interest. Not that I don't enjoy a kid movie now and then - the Nicholas Cage film with the same name as this one was worth watching. I like stories about Merlin and magic, when they are intelligently handled and well produced. I found the first Potter film only mildly entertaining. And this film is not nearly as well written or acted - and certainly not nearly as well produced as those. It feels made-for-TV, very low budget. So if you are looking for something to keep your four-year old occupied for a while, this might work. Just don't expect to enjoy sharing the experience.

This movie should prove enjoyable for the pre-teen set, but there's nothing much here to appeal to adults or older young people. Acting is so-so, effects are pretty bad and story has plenty of holes. Older viewers will be interested to see once-famous actors like Robert Davi and Kelly Lebrock in major roles. I guess this is the kind of movie you do when your career is in a slump and/or you need the money. Families can watch this one with no qualms: there is no objectionable material other than occult elements (as you would expect with a movie called The Sorcerer's Apprentice).

Supposed to have been set in Wales.

No-one seems to have taken any care about accents (like saying BOY-O with a South African accent), scenery (no greenery), acting (God help the acting profession) or directing (absent).

It is as if the film was made to fulfill a contract and not to entertain.

They have a nerve charging admission for this film.

Of course, "The Sorcerer's Apprentice" does not play in the same league as, let's say, "Harry Potter". It's not a fair comparison anyway, if you consider the budget available to a production like "Harry Potter". If you take "The Sorcerer's Apprentice" as what it is and don't dwell too much on its weaknesses, it will be enjoyable to watch.

All in all, David Lister's directing is solid, certainly not outstanding. Byron Taylor does a good job playing young Ben Clark, and he is far less annoying that the average American child actor. The highlight of the movie clearly is Robert Davi in the part of sorcerer Merlin, who is allowed to show another facet of his talent in this movie. And he obviously enjoys it.

"The Sorcerer's Apprentice" is nice entertainment for kids and the whole family on a rainy Sunday afternoon.

Similar to Merlin The Return, it's mixture medieval and modern times. Sorcerer's Apprentice is of medieval England and very early 21st century Wales. You'd have to keep in mind this is a family style film if you chose to watch. It's geared more for the kids rather than for the entire family, so the kids might like it while the adults could become quite board with it. I still enjoy some of the family films, but only for occasional viewing but this film is way to geared towards the kids for me.

I will admit, I had to watch this one in fast-forward. That doesn't mean it's an awful film for the kids but I, at my age, became board with the all the modern day stuff going on between mother and son, the boy and the kids at school and with the "bad guys". I think the film left out the "bad guys" more often and had a bit more focus on Merlin training the boy then I might have liked the film a lot better.

2/10

The Sorcerer's Apprentice is a great family movie!

It has many good points, one being the special effects and the other the characters and story line!

This movie will appeal to any child who enjoys a fun, entertaining, magical film!

This is perfect material for Rifftrax. The one question I have for the movie is, for a 2001 movie made in South Africa, their are no black actors.

The Sorcerer's Apprentice is yet another adaption of the battle of good vs evil involving Merlin and Morgana. For the most part, it's a wholesome family movie. The acting is decent and the script is fairly well written. However, there are some things that detract from the entertaining qualities of the movie. The lead character comes across as more irritating and annoying than anything else. Kelly LaBrock's performance is rather lackluster. The cinematography and effects in the film is more that of the late 1970's rather than a film done in 2000. The style might even be considered reminiscent of the many Disney movies of the late 60" to mid 70's. Despite it's shortcomings, I still believe the movie was entertaining.

This is one of my favorite Robert Davi films. I think he was marvelous in his part as Merlin, and the interaction between Ben and Himself is magical in itself. It just goes to show how talented Robert is and can handle any part or accent. I loved it! The South African country side was beautiful as well, and those houses were charming. Children and those young at heart should like this film, makes you want to believe in magic. And shows children that you can do anything you put your mind to. Children will come away from this film, learning to stand up for themselves and the difference between good and evil. and the women in the theaters will come away with dreams of Robert as Merlin making all their dreams come true- sigh!

I really love this movie. I like every scene....., It is one of my most favorite movie of all time. The actors are really good. The story is very wonderful, the sound effect....., pictures effect and everything!

And oh Ben Clark......He is veryyyyyyyyyyyyyy handsome! Beside that, He acts really good too!. And nicole..... she's so pretty too! i like her.

This movie inspires me........ this is one of a kind.

THIS MOVIE MUST SEE!

I didn't give this film a rating because I feel this was for kids only and as such, they might enjoy it.

Adults won't find much entertainment here but they will probably have fun watching the kids enjoy it.

What is there to say about a film that has been done 3 or 4 times, except that this the WORST of the adaptations I've seen.

It lacks any coherent storyline (although most of us know the storyline), and I'm afraid the performances of any of the actors (including the usually good Robert Davi) is dismal. Kelly LeBrock was picked because she's pretty, not because she can act. Sad to say, I see why her career foundered early on. The actor playing the boy is vacant-eyed for the entire movie (is he the child equivalent of the "dumb blonde"??), and I wonder if he even had a career after this.

And, another movie where everyone talks as though they were born in 1992 (Morgana: "Enough of this. Are we gonna fight now?" Just what I would expect of a sorcereress born 1500 years ago: she sounds like she was born in Southern California. Poor screenplay, poor writing.

The movie is hardly watchable. If I was 10, I might enjoy it. Unfortunately, I'm closer to 100 than to 10, so it has very little appeal. I wanted to like it, but it just didn't. Happen. Maybe you will have more luck!