Anthony Mackie's historical epic Desert Warrior, which was made for $150m four years ago, has just received its world premiere at the Zurich Film Festival. Reviews are now in for the historical action drama which was subjected to many delays.
Directed by Rupert Wyatt, who co-wrote the screenplay along with David Self, Erica Beeney, and Gary Ross, the film stars Mackie alongside Aiysha Hart.
In the film, which tells the story of a pre-Islamic battle between the Persian-Sasanian Empire and Arab tribes, Mackie plays a bandit named Hanzala who rescues an Arabian Princess named Hind (Hart) from the clutches of the evil Emperor Kisra (Ben Kingsley).
After refusing to become Emperor Kisra's concubine, Hind and the Bandit rally the tribes to take on Kisra's army in an epic final battle.
The synopsis reads: "An honorable and mysterious rogue, known as Hanzala, makes himself an enemy of the Emperor Kisra after he helps a fugitive king and princess in the desert."
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The film, which was announced back in November 2021 encountered a number of delays following a gruelling shoot on location in the Saudi Arabian desert.
As Deadline reported, Desert Warrior faced delays after Wyatt exited the project over creative differences with MBC Studios over the length, tone and pacing of the movie. The director later returned to helm the film after a few months away.
The film reportedly faced more delays after an early screen test of the movie revealed a disconnect with audiences, leaving some major US studios feeling unconvinced about the early version.
Following its premiere, the first reviews for Desert Warrior are now in, with Deadline writing: "What starts with a very lean and entertaining B-movie gradually becomes something of a slog; after setting up a very simple, almost Sergio Leone-esque scenario — a bandit (Anthony Mackie) and a bounty hunter (Sharlto Copley) — Wyatt’s film somehow becomes a stodgy, sprawling, feminist, pre-Islamic Ghandi."
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Screen Daily said the film stumbled "in bringing depth and humanity to the rather sparsely drawn characters", while praising Kingsley's brief performance as a "Shakespearean display of quixotic malice".
Their review continues: "The lack of a satisfying human connection between key characters is a stumbling block, but Wyatt does deliver plenty elsewhere. The production clearly favoured practical effects rather than CGI, and it looks terrific as a result."
"Wyatt’s big-budget foray is an oddity, as it feels like it should be truly epic and a film for Hollywood studios to gobble up, but something went seriously wrong when making it. The troubled production history is palpable in the disappointment of this movie," penned Next Best Picture.
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Harriet is a freelance news writer specialising in TV and movies at Digital Spy.
A horror enthusiast, she joined Digital Spy after working on her own horror website, reviewing films and focusing largely on feminism in the genre.
In her spare time, Harriet paints and produces mixed-media art. She graduated from the University of Kingston with a BA in fine art, where she specialised in painting. She also has an MA in journalism from Birkbeck University.
