Cast: Matthew McConaughey, Penélope Cruz, Steve Zahn, William H. Macy, Lambert Wilson, Glynn Turman, Delroy Lindo, Rainn Wilson, Lennie James.

Like Clive Cussler’s hugely popular novel of the same name, Sahara opens impressively with ‘the last American Civil War Ironclad’ running the Union blockade under cannon fire and explosions.

The cut to modern day is done smoothly with a clutter of naval instruments in a ship’s cabin, newspaper cuttings headlined “Fanatical Search for Lost Battleship”, mounted photos and other clippings of our heroes Dirk Pitt (Matthew McConaughey) and his long-time best mate Al Giordino (Steve Zahn) – “From Navy Seals to Salvage Hunters” – and another photo of them smiling happily with the NUMA (National Underwater and Marine Agency) logo. To a soundtrack of jazzy modern music, the camera pans around the cabin showing chemical laboratory equipment and various technical screens, monitors and laptops. Before it comes to rest on a globe of the world, zeroing in on Lagos, Nigeria, and in less time than it took to read this paragraph, we know a great deal about Dirk and Al and their history, that they currently have a great many interesting things going on, and where they are at the moment. Such an up-beat and packed opening is a sign that we are in very competent hands with director Breck Eisner and can relax and enjoy this light-hearted and fast-paced adventure.

Most of the plot involves the convergence of two plotlines – one is Dirk’s obsessional search for the lost Ironclad (in Nigeria, yes, well, you have to see the movie, or read the book, or both) set within the contract salvage work he is doing for NUMA and its principal Admiral Sandecker (William H. Macy). There may or may not be treasure, but there is definitely mystery, as ancient records relate to a ship of the Ironclad’s unique description as a “Ship of Death” – carrying sickness, before it sank in waters long since dried up and covered with metres of sand dunes. The second plotline involves the World Health Organisation in the persons of Dr Eva Rojas (Penélope Cruz) and Dr Hopper (Glynn Turman), investigating what at first looks like a virulent plague that is mysteriously killing numbers of people in Nigeria and perhaps has its source in civil-war-torn Mali.

When Dr Rojas is almost assassinated she is saved from the flashing curved blades and the baddies are dispatched by Dirk, who happens to be doing a spot of diving near the lighthouse where she is looking for further evidence (and another grisly victim) of the plague. When she recovers consciousness on board Admiral Sandecker’s boat she and Dirk ignite some agreeable chemistry.

Various shenanigans occur involving guns, explosives, fast boats and slow, in water affected with suspicious ‘red tide’ red algae. There are aggressive Malian soldiers under the orders of an out-and-out villain, namely Mali’s military dictator General Kazim (Lennie James) and a more subtle one, the suave Solar Energy millionaire Yves Massarde (Lambert Wilson).

There are shenanigans in copious amounts of desert sand as well involving evil Tuareg who are not really Tuareg and there are some real Tuareg who are very, very good. Especially on horseback.  There’s a vast, spectacular solar power plant in the middle of desert nowhere and more explosives. There's some crazy inventiveness: a sand yacht cannibalised from a lost 1930s plane (with the song 'Magic Carpet Ride' accompanying), and a spectacular swansong from the cannon of the Civil War Ironclad.

Apart from sterling performances by McConaughey and Zahn, who are convincing as high-energy Indiana Jones-type adventurers ably complementing each other and who can cope with just about any contingency, Cruz brings an equal amount of energy to the team and fits in well when their paths coincide. William H. Macy is wonderful and funny as Admiral Sandecker and Rainn Wilson (the quirky mortician intern from HBO’s Six Feet Under) is just lovely as the nerdy Rudi. The rest of the cast are equally enjoyable.

The dialogue includes some gems. Picture this: Dirk, Al and Eva are on camel-back, silhouetted against the desert sky like the three Magi. They are approaching an ancient stone structure that they last saw depicted on a cave wall next to a drawing of their lost Ironclad. Al starts talking laconically about that guy we all know from high school in a dead-end job, with a harpy wife and three kids and no options – and wonders, “When do we get to examine our decision-making paradigm, huh?”

The main differences with the book are in the interests of brevity to fit the faster medium of film with little if any loss. The action is fast, the plot filled with intrigue, the characters are terrific, the baddies are very evil indeed, the acting good, the suspense lightly held and the surprises well-timed. Add to that some snappy dialogue, magnificent desert scenery and a very neat ending – it’s a winner all round.

© Avril Carruthers                                        31^st March 2005