10,000 B.C.

Not since Raquel Welch sported bleached-blonde hair and donned her animal-skin bikini for One Million Years B.C. has the screen played host to a more ridiculous (and inaccurate) depiction of prehistoric times. What we might laughingly call the “plot” of 10,000 B.C. boasts not a single new concept, situation, or character type. Requisite orphaned outcast (Steven Strait) driven to prove his mettle? Check. Long-bearded mentor (Cliff Curtis) fated to die in the story's second act? Check. Beautiful and improbably well-groomed damsel (Camilla Belle) in distress? Check. Assorted savages, witch doctors, and high priests? Check, check, and check. What is new, however, is production quality: shot in three countries (as opposed to Southern California's high desert) and boasting state-of-the-art CGI effects (including saber-toothed tigers and rampaging elephants), 10,000 B.C. dresses up its campy narrative with eye-popping visuals. Undiscriminating viewers looking for eye candy will be able to satisfy their craving here, but those hungering for something more will find themselves as ravenous as the saber-tooths when the end credits finally roll in director Roland Emmerich's (Independence Day, The Day After Tomorrow) latest SFX-laden exercise. Not a necessary purchase. [Note: DVD/Blu-ray extras include both widescreen and full screen versions on the same disc, 10 minutes of additional scenes, an alternate ending (3 min.), and trailers. Exclusive to the Blu-ray release are two 13-minute production featurettes: “A Wild and Wooly Ride” and “Inspiring an Epic.” Bottom line: a paltry extras collection for a lame SFX spectacular.] (E. Hulse)