Eragon **
Cast: Ed Speleers, Jeremy Irons, Sienna Guillory, Robert Carlyle, John Malkovich, Garrett Hedlund, Djimon Hounsou
Director: Stefan Fangmeier
Running Length: 1:40
MPAA Classification: PG

17-year old Eragon (Spleers) lives a fairly peaceful life with his uncle. One day he comes across what he believes to be an odd looking stone. Soon, he discovers it is a dragon egg, and once that egg hatches, he seeks out the village bum/storyteller Brom (Irons). He seems to know a lot about dragons, and begins to teach Eragon the ways of Dragon Riders. Meanwhile, the evil King Galbatoris (Malkovich) sends his minion Durza (Carlyle) to find the dragon and destroy it.

“Eragon” is sub-par on almost all levels. The worst aspect is that the story parallels “Star Wars” almost exactly. I cannot help but wonder if George Lucas is getting a paycheck for this ripoff of a story. To be fair, I am told that the film differs quite a bit from the book. Spleers is adequate as Eragon. Malkovich is fun to watch as always, but he gets very little screen time. The saving grace in the acting department is Irons, who seems to be having fun despite the film he is in. If you must see this, wait until it comes out on DVD.