Jewel of the Sahara (2001 Video) User Reviews

I was pleasantly surprised!

[PhilauraJ · 8/10 · 30 November 2002]

I am a huge Gerard Butler fan, so I tracked this film down and got a copy of it. The only thing I knew about it, besides Gerard was in it, was that the plot summary had a strong similarity to an old joke that I had heard. My first thought was how could they make a film out of a joke? I didn't expect much. But I tell you what, these folks put together a great little movie. The script was fun, the acting was good, and it had a great look to it - especially Gerard Butler. And even though I knew the punchline, the way the story unfolds and is presented makes for a very entertaining time. I hope we see more from these folks in the future.

Hilarious!

[hobbes3 · 8/10 · 28 October 2006]

If you have the chance to see this little "gem", by all means, jump at it! This is some of the funniest fifteen little minutes of film I've ever seen. It's a bad camel joke put on celluloid and it is hilarious! I was laughing out loud from the opening scene to the last. (Don't worry, no camels were harmed in the making of this film. LOL) And it's a must for Gerry Butler fans. This is one of the few comedies on his resume and he's terrific, literally throwing himself into the proceedings with abandon! Don't miss the end credits either. I'm dying to know just what a "Gerry Butler Wrangler" gets paid to do! Hopefully we'll get to see more from director Ariel Vromen as well.

Very funny, well done.

[importer · 27 February 2003]

I found this short film to be very funny. Well put together. Fifteen minutes is not long to tell a story, but they made all their points well. I suspect we will be seeing more movies by Ariel Vromen and company.

Gerard Butler demonstrates he has a sense of humor, and great comedic timing. I don't think many actors could have done justice to this story, as he did. The "behind the scenes", alone is worth the cost of the DVD.

Butler pre-fame

[Horst_In_Translation · 4/10 · 18 February 2016]

"Jewel of the Sahara" is a 17-minute live action short film from 15 years ago starring Hollywood big name Gerard Butler before his major breakthrough with the industry. The co-writer and director is Israeli filmmaker Ariel Vromen. It's always disappointing for me to see so many people work on the script of such a short film and still come up with something so irrelevant and bar any significance. This tries to be so much: comedy film, drama, fantasy movie... but it is not elaborated properly in any of these areas and that's why it is a major disappointment I have to say. Then again, I am not the greatest Gerard Butler fan, so I may be a bit biased. But i also found the cinematography lacking. From a (short) film set in the Sahara, I really expect more beauty in terms of the locations used in the film. As a whole, not a complete failure, but not a good film at all either. Thumbs down.