Sahara

Movie review by Nell Minow, Common Sense Media
Sahara Poster Image

Common Sense says

age 13+

Exciting action can't mask thin story, iffy representations.

PG-13 2005 120 minutes
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Parents say

age 14+

Based on 20 reviews

Kids say

age 12+

Based on 13 reviews

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A Lot or a Little?

The parents' guide to what's in this movie.

What Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that Sahara (based on the book by Clive Cussler) has lots of action violence, including chases, explosions, peril, weapons (mostly guns), deaths, and a mysterious illness that kills many victims. There's also some swearing ("hell," "damn," etc.), flirting, a kiss, drinking, and smoking. Despite the fact that it includes some positive Black characters and a female doctor, the movie has an unpleasantly retro approach to women and minorities, approaching racism in its casual attitude toward killing Africans. Matthew McConaughey, Steve Zahn, and Penelope Cruz co-star.

Community Reviews

Weston C.
Weston C. Adult
August 13, 2020
age 18+

It swears

I watched this when I was younger when I really didn’t pay attention to swear words because I don’t sweat myself while other people do. Now that I have children myself I pay attention and don’t want them exposed to it in their own home. 15 minutes into the movie it swore twice like it was the normal way to talk for them. Huge Bummer, it would be great without the swearing.

This title has:

Too much swearing
Ken R.
Ken R. Adult
June 8, 2020
age 15+

Sahara – Not Even A Grain Of Good Sense!

Another McConaughey fiasco, all bluster, no brain and a huge loss of money. Hard to believe that people starve while multiple millions are wasted on junk like this. Great locations, big-budget effects, big music score all wrapped around a trite, silly violent script. No wonder the disappointed novelist sued the movie makers for this mess but to no avail, everybody lost money on this non-event. Seems to be a lot of silly folk in movieland to let this even get past the scripting and production stages. Stay away from this desert if you’re looking for a good story - if looking to fill an empty head with a lot of hot air and sand, you’ve come to the right place. For very easily pleased adults who mislead their kids. If you like McConaughey, try 'The Free State Of Jones' for a more honest approach to storytelling and action.
See all 20 parent reviews

What's the Story?

Based on one of Clive Cussler's popular novels, SAHARA follows the adventures of former Navy SEAL Dirk Pitt (Matthew McConaughey) and his wisecracking best pal, Al (Steve Zahn). They work for steely-eyed former Admiral Sandecker (William H. Macy), seeking sunken treasure, rescuing beautiful doctors, and expediting regime change. The beautiful doctor is Eva Rojas (Penelope Cruz) of the World Health Organization. She's a neurologist seeking the source of a mysterious disease that's killing people in Mali. No one takes her seriously except for her dedicated colleague (Glynn Turman) and a mysterious man who's stalking her. Pitt is also on the hunt for a Confederate Civil War ship that he thinks made it all the way to Africa as the Confederacy was falling and is now buried in tje desert. In the middle of all this is corrupt French industrialist Yves (Lambert Wilson).

Is It Any Good?

Sahara feels more like a 1940s serial than a book written in 1991 -- or a movie made in 2005. The characters are too thin, the violence too careless, the suspension of disbelief required too strenuous, the treatment of non-Whites too stereotyped. Which is a shame, because it all get in the way of some terrifically exciting stunts and spirited action.

This movie would be good popcorn fun except that as you try to put your brain to sleep to sit back and enjoy the action, the careless carnage ruins it. Dirk and Al have no hesitation in blowing away battalions of uniformed troops without any real justification. The African villain says that "No one cares about (killing) Africans," but no one making the movie seems to have got the memo about how that's a bad thing. One saintly Black doctor character certainly doesn't make up for portraying other Africans as evil, ineffective, or, worst of all, expendable.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about the violence in Sahara. How does it compare to what you've seen in other action movies?

  • Did you notice any positive representations in the film? Any negative portrayals and/or stereotypes?

  • If you've read the book the movie was based on, what changes did you notice? How does it compare to other book adaptations you've seen?

Movie Details

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