Harry Potter is a big franchise and caused a wizarding boom. Disney also tried to make a fantasy film with wizards in 2010. Despite a high budget, the film was a flop. And that was probably due, among other things, to Christopher Nolan.
What film is it about? In 2001, Harry Potter caused a wizard and novel boom with his first film. Everyone also wanted to establish a fantasy franchise. That’s probably what Disney thought with the film Duel of the Magicians in 2010.
The film is about Baltharzar Blake, who is played by Nicolas Cage. In modern times, he has to defend the city of Manhattan as a magician. The film’s villain is Maxim Horvath, played by Alfred Molina. To get help, Blake recruits young Dave Stutler, played by Jay Baurchel. He just has to teach him how to do magic in the shortest possible time.
Although you may not believe it, the film is based on a famous section of the 1940 Disney animated film Fantasia. In the said section, Mickey Mouse is the student of the legendary Merlin, who causes chaos through magic.
But Nicolas Cage, a high budget and a famous original couldn’t help the film. It became a flop.
Duel of the Magicians – Trailer for the Disney fantasy film with Nicolas Cage
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Moderate reviews and poor earnings
How did Duel of the Magicians go? Duel of the Magicians had a huge budget of $150 million. The film grossed just under $215 million worldwide (via Box Office Mojo). This barely made the budget, but it’s a very bad sign for a $150 million Disney film. 2 years later, another Disney franchise attempt also failed.
Things didn’t look particularly good with critics and fans either. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a critic score of 40% from 171 reviews. With over 100,000 user reviews, the film has a rating of 53%. That’s pretty bad for a big movie.
With a result like that, a possible sequel is out of the question. In the post-credit scene in the film, an open ending is at least hinted at.
No chance against Inception
Why did the film fail? There is no guaranteed answer to this, but there are indications. Probably the biggest point is Inception’s mediocre reviews and competition. Both films opened in the USA almost at the same time. Inception will have attracted many viewers, who were also the target audience for Duel of the Magicians.
If you have to choose between a moderately rated film and a fantastically rated Nolan film, then the answer is probably clear for many people.
Another problem could have been the main actor. Although Nicolas Cage is a well-known name, he was going through a difficult phase at the time. With films like Ghost Rider, Cage had already earned a bad reputation at the time, which he only later shed with extraordinary films.
The director Jon Turteltaub wasn’t exactly known for big films either. He previously made The Legacy of the Knights Templar with Cage. He then took a long break until he celebrated success with Meg in 2018.
The film is based on Fantasia, but apart from small allusions, it doesn’t really have much to do with the film, which was also aimed at families through colorful effects. Duel of the Magicians was simply unattractive for many families. A week earlier, Despicable Me appeared. A clearly successful film that is perfect for children and families.
Will there ever be a sequel? That’s pretty unlikely. Unlike other films, the film has virtually disappeared into obscurity. Cage now mainly makes more experimental films like Dream Scenario or Pig. Duel of the Magicians is also not a cult film that is loved today.
But what do you think about it? Have you seen the film and how did you like it? Write it to us in the comments. Just because you have a great actor in the foreground doesn’t mean that a film will work. The Mummy also learned this from 2017: A fantasy film with Tom Cruise was supposed to be the start of a big universe like Marvel – but it was a flop