Clash of the Titans (2010)

Clash Of The Titans (2010)

What is it about classical gods that makes some of the world's finest actors abandon all sense of grace and decorum? We saw Sean Bean, Pierce Brosnan and Uma Thurman hamming it up as Greek monsters and deities in Percy Jackson & The Lightning Thief, and this remake of 1981 classic Clash Of The Titans proves even more offensive to fans of intelligent cinema everywhere.

There's no reason why an all-action reimagining of the swords-and-loincloths epic shouldn't be a roaring success, but Clash Of The Titans achieves nothing beyond a sinking feeling that modern cinema has somehow lost its way among all the 3D rendering and CGI effects. If they'd spent half as much time on the chores of acting and plot-writing as they did in front of a computer screen, we might have been saved from this turgid mess.

As it is, Clash Of The Titans is a wearying testosterone-filled plod through all-too-familiar territory, unenlivened by anything as taxing as character or emotional engagement. This makes Avatar look like the subtlest film of the decade.

Sam Worthington proves once again that he's the current abs-flexing posterboy for fantasy geeks everywhere as he picks up sword and shield and goes to war against the gods themselves - as well as every cornerstone of big screen acting. To say that he's dull and characterless is an understatement, as he does his best to make Schwarzenegger's Conan look like a finely nuanced piece of method acting.

Those of you who remember the 1981 original will already be familiar with the story of Perseus and his quest to defeat the Kraken - and the gods of Mount Olympus - but you'll be dismayed to see that this new take strips away every memorable scene and character. Even Pegasus is relegated to a cameo appearance, and all of the joy and high spirits fade into the background as director Louis Leterrier (The Transporter, The Incredible Hulk) pursues his story with ill-advised severity.

Worthington may not manage a credible performance, but he has a crack at the World Record for brow-furrowing.

What's more remarkable than Sam's heavy brow, however, is the fact that the likes of Liam Neeson, Ralph Fiennes and Danny Huston agreed to sign on for such a stodgy slice of sickly hokum. Clearly every esteemed actor wants nothing more than a flowing beard and his own toga.

Clash Of The Titans should have been a highlight of the summer's brainless action schedule, but instead it sinks beneath its own self-importance. Even a last-minute 3D conversion can't save this classical monstrosity.

1/5

Clash of the Titans

Clash of the Titans - Directed by Louis Leterrier, starring Sam Worthington, Gemma Arterton, Liam Neeson, Ralph Fiennes, and Mads Mikkelsen - Rated PG-13

Only the Kurgan could take on a beast like the Kraken.



I don’t have a nostalgic feeling towards the original Clash of the Titans (1981). I re-watched it recently and just couldn’t get past the cheesy stop-motion animation. Some people may a have a special place in their heart for the campy film about Perseus and the Greek gods, but not me. I was very excited to see a big budget remake of this film and I suppose I’m glad they did it.


Clash of the Titans is about demigod Perseus (Sam Worthington) and his quest to stop the dreaded Kraken (a mindless and extremely powerful monster) from destroying the city of Argos and its princess, Andromeda. His quest takes him from peril to peril, with the gods interfering and helping out along the way.
That’s really all you need to know. Clash is basically a Greek mythology action movie and it certainly delivers on the action. The best moments of the film are when Perseus and his crew and battling giant scorpions, Medusa, and other assorted monsters.
The action is pretty easy to follow for the most part, but I thought the 3D hindered it at times. 3D is great for the slow motion moments, but when a fast sword fight is going on, it’s hard to stay focused. Generally, a ton of slow motion is a negative aspect of a film. With Clash of the Titans however, I wish there was much more.

The 3D is what really bothered me, I guess. I’m not a true believer in the format just yet. Yes, Avatar looked great and I was definitely impressed with the use of 3D in that film. But Avatar was shot in 3D. This film, like Alice in Wonderland (another film I had a lukewarm 3D reaction to), was converted to 3D and it shows. For the most part, I think 3D is a gimmick and I hope it passes soon. I don’t think you’ll be missing much if you see this in a regular 2D presentation.

So the action is great and the last half hour is very entertaining, but there’s really not much here. I don’t expect a great character driven drama when I go to see a movie like Clash, but there should at least be a little bit of character development. Perseus is a pretty bland character. He has determination, but aside from that, he’s just there, screaming and killing everything he sees. I was actually more interested in the soldiers traveling with him, especially Draco (Mads Mikkelsen, Casino Royale). But that may be because I find Mikkelsen to be a much better actor than Worthington.

Don’t get me wrong, Worthington has screen presence, but there’s not much beneath the surface. If he’s wise, he’ll stick with action films. The rest of the cast, however, does some decent work. Liam Neeson is a great choice for Zeus. I think he may be the only actor out there that can yell, “Release the Kraken!” and be taken seriously. Ralph Fiennes makes a good Hades, as well. His raspy delivery enhances every scene he is in. The one bit of casting that made no sense to me, however, is that of Danny Huston as Poseidon. Huston is not exactly an A-list star, but he’s a fine actor and all he gets to do in this film is stand next to Zeus. I think he has one line of dialogue. All I can assume is that he gave a performance that ended up being cut due to time.

Acting isn’t terribly important in a film like this, though. The computer effects are what matter the most. Think about it, what is more important: Worthington being a convincing Perseus or a realistic Kraken? I can get past a bland performance, but I would have a problem with a crappy Kraken. Thankfully, Clash features some decent effects. They aren’t groundbreaking and some of them come close to being cartoonish, but they work.

I mentioned that I’m not a fan of the original film, but there is at least one reference to the original film that made me laugh. Bubo, the mechanical owl from the 1981 film does make an appearance in the film. The owl doesn’t factor into the film much (thankfully), but it’s still a funny little nod to the original.

Speaking of funny, this film makes quite a few attempts at comic relief. The previews lead you to believe you’re going to see a brutal epic along the lines of 300. This film is not nearly as serious as that blockbuster. The soldiers with Perseus try to lighten the mood throughout and I was fine with it. Some people may find it a bit too goofy here and there, however.

Clash of the Titans is not a great action epic, nor is it a campy look into the world of Greek mythology. It is a pretty standard action film with some impressive moments. I suggest checking it out if you want to get your action fill before the big summer movies start rolling out.

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Eric Harris - www.canneltoncritic.com

Clash of the Titans

I was against the remake of Clash since it was announced, i'm a fan of  the original and love Ray Harryhausen and love stop motion animation,  but i have to admit, i had fun watching the cgi filled remake, and in  3-d none the less. Now i've read alot of reports saying the 3-d looks  horrible in the film, which i don't agree with, mainly because there  wasn't a whole lot of it. It was done in post production so it was  needed in the first place.

The story is jumbled but so was the  originals, the cast is solid, so was the originals, but the original  seemed to have the greek mythology down better, even though the remake  brings a bit more gods in to play. The original had alot better  character development too, but the remake was a fun adventure flick.

The  remake follows Perseus(sam Worthington) who was born of a quuen & a  god. The god in question is Zeus(Liam Neeson) who seems very facist in  the film. Hades(Ralf Fieness) the borther of Zeus had killed Perseus  family who found him as an infant. He swears revence & has to stop  Hades, this includes slaying lobsters, medusa & the kraken. He lacks  the love of the original and seems cold & distance without his  family, which is actually very understandable, as i'm sure i'd feel the  same way had my family been killed. Would i buy the dvd like i would a  Harryhausen flick? No, but would a rewatch the film, yes yes i would,  which is more than i can say for 300, which put me to sleep twice.

Clash of the Titans: An Action Movie All The Way

When I saw the trailer for Terminator Salvation I very nearly peed my pants with excitement.  When I saw it in theaters I very nearly fell asleep during that snooze fest.  This made me temper my emotions when I saw the trailer for Clash of the Titans.  Seeing Sam Worthington allowed me muse over about what could have been…
 
In this remake of the 1980’s cult hit of the same name Sam Worthington steps in as Perseus to challenge the Gods.  Perseus and his adoptive family are coasting along the fishing lines when they see a group of soldiers trying to desecrate a statue of Zeus in defiance of the Gods.  This turns out to be a bad move as Hedes (Ralph Fiennes) appears out of the ocean and wipes them all out.  Hedes then goes after Perseus’ ship, wiping out his whole family. 
 
Washed up on shore and the only apparent survivor Perseus is brought back to the soldiers’ town of Argos.  There an arrogant king and queen croon about how much better they are than the Gods.  Again, bad move.  With the blessing of his brother, Zeus (Liam Neeson), Hedes appears and comes with a warning.  For their insubordination the people of Argos are to sacrifice their princess, Andromeda, or watch their city be destroyed by the Titan killing beast known as the Kraken.  After their encounter with Hedes it is revealed that Perseus is a demi-god and son of Zeus.  Against his will he is recruited to find a way to defeat the Kraken. 
 
Sounds cool enough right?  Well it is.  This is an action movie through and through, heavy on the killing and light on the explaining.  Clash of the Titans is very good at the former.  This is a five star CGI buffet of monsters with an art direction that makes me reminisce for Jim Henson’s The Storyteller. While fighting a deformed man named Calibos his hand is cut off.  That hand turns into a claw creature and every drop of blood that drips from the open wound grows into a gigantic scorpion.  Seeing that the action picks up after all the exposition is given that’s where my interest picked up as well.
 
I was concerned that I was getting a similar performance from Worthington that I got in Terminator: Salvation, a complex character which is rendered two dimensional by boring deliveries.  I was right.  It doesn’t help that a third of the maybe twenty lines he spoke in the film were just repeating what he had said before.  How many times can the guy say he doesn’t want to use a sword before you believe him?  I guess about three times because he winds up using it.
 
If you’re disinterested because of the subject matter then this film holds little hope for you.  Clash definitely requires a suspension of believe and a fancy for Greek mythology.  It’s hard to take Hedes seriously when he looks like he was kicked off the set of Repo: The Genetic Opera.
 
 

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Recommendations: Shutter Island, District 9 (Neill Blomkamp, 2009), Morning Glory

Last updated: 2010-04-12 19:03:19 by jpgreenb

Clash of the Titans

Does anybody remember the absolutely terrible, eye-gougingly awful, suicide causing debacle that was10,000 B.C.? The one where the filmmakers decided that if you throw in enough CGI people would like it? The one where the best part of the movie was when I was leaving and saw some little girl coming out of a horror flick and she had quite obviously peed her pants? Yeah, thats what Clash of the Titans was like, only no little girl peed their pants (unfortunately). 

Here is the plot summed up in 11 words: Humans hate the gods, gods need human prayers for immortality= Clash! But for the sake of consistency I'll flesh out a bit further. Perseus (Sam Worthington) is the son of Zeus and some mortal woman, but he is raised by a fishing family because of some subplot where he is thrown in a casket with his mom into the ocean but only she drowns. Quite ridiculous. Anyways Perseus' family is killed by Hades in a fit of rage. Perseus is pretty mad about this and after being captured by some soldiers of the city of Argos, which is cursed by the gods and will be destroyed by the Kraken in ten days (that giant monster in the poster). Perseus and a band of soldiers head off to fight some mythical beasts in order to learn how to beat the Kraken and save Argos, and maybe avenge his family along the way.

There are so many things wrong with this movie that I might just have to go into every single one of them and make fun of this movie in every way possible. In fact, lets count how many problems I have with this movie.

1. Sam Worthington is a decent actor, and I have a bit of respect for him in holding his own in all the recent movies he's been in. But his skills are horribly distorted in this film. After his family dies, with him miraculously surviving, he lays on a piece of driftwood and starts going, "ARGHh GRAHHARGH GRAGGLE ARGH." Horrible sounds that I'd only associate with hernias being extracted without anesthesia.

2. Sam's Australian accent pops its head a lot in this movie and annoyed the hell out of me since he is supposed to be Greek.

3. Perseus has this immortal girlfriend that follows him around protecting him. She is the most annoying woman on the planet, and when she finally dies (Thank you God) they flipping bring her back to life (NO). Her acting consists of reading the script as skillfully as a chimp throws its feces.

4. Everyone dies. All the people who are trained for battle, die. Whereas Perseus, who was fishing until the night before, grabs a sword and kills everything in sight.

5. There is some sort of magic character that looks like a walking piece of burnt wood with blue eyes.

6. Liam Neeson is the all powerful Zeus but can't seem to figure out that his brother Hades has it out for him. And when he does, he's like, "Nah I'll let Perseus figure it out, I'm too busy chilling in my glittery armor for this."

7. There are no Titans. And they kill whatever monster they face fairly easily, well Perseus does, everyone else just stands around waiting to get killed or to get saved by Perseus (Which doesn't help, because they all die anyways).

8. You know the Kraken? The giant sea monster that they spent the entire movie hyping up as the end of the world? Yeah, well they kill it in about 3 minutes. It comes out of the water, and then it dies. It was about as threatening as a flock of butterflies.

There has to be a ton more points but I am so angry right now I'm seeing spots. Rage flashes at how poorly this movie was executed. Clash of my head against the wall should be its new name.

Half a star out of four

-Christopher O'Connell

Clash of the Titans

“The war between the God’s rages on with Man playing the part of just another pawn in their bitter quest for power “
Don’t you just love the mellow drama of it all? Greek and Roman mythology reads like a modern day soap opera in scripted form. There was intrigue, adultery, deception, and men fighting to prove that they were the most powerful. I love it and I absolutely love the 2010 remake of the classic MGM film Clash of the Titans. This was definitely an upgrade from the campy stop motion cinematography of the 1977 version. I was absolutely right in my earlier prediction when I said that this remake of would be an awesome example of today’s cinematic prowess.  The CGI was absolutely exquisite.
What I love most about the film is the updated story line.  Yes our beloved Hero Perseus still retains his title as Demi-God but his character is completely layered now. The internal conflict that arises in side of him when he learns of his true identity is classic of Greek Mythology, as he struggles with his newfound Lineage as the Bastard son of Zeus (Liam Neeson) and his ties to the race of man. Whom might I add, are being terrorized by the God’s, as per usual.
The real battle begins when Perseus is thrown in the middle of the fight between man and God after Hades (Sam Worthington) decides to retaliate after the Kingdom of Joppa destroys an image of Zeus. The great attack on their city by Hades kills the only family that Perseus knows and his hatred for the God’s grows from here. He is immediately thrown into the fight when Hades demands the blood of the Princess Andromeda or the fall of the city. Ultimately the battle leads Perseus on a perilous quest to find a way to destroy the Titan known as the Krekran (the pet of the hated Hades). It is basically his stand against the father that abandoned him and the family that he feels separated from. It’s all very psychological, and Freud would have a field day with this whole thing.
Of course you know there is a whole hidden story line in the movie, because Hades is just avenging his estranged brother Zeus King of the God’s out of brotherly love. Hell no honey, Hades is pulling some underhanded stunts to over throw the mighty Emperor of Olympus. What do yawl think this is? Mythological God’s always have an underlying agenda. It is the classic story of the battle for Olympus as praised King of the God’s Zeus and his poor slighted brother Hades fights for the power. Awe the sibling rivalry.
The special affects in this movie were done well. The graphic CGI affects really made me believe that the hated Medusa was attacking Perseus, and the fantastic make up made me cringe when I saw the three Oracles. It was a drastic improvement on the earlier version of the film and for once I was proud of my Hollywood for reaching back into film nior and taking on the task of updating a film for our entertainment. This movie is a magnificent testament to what can be done when great screen writers, awesome special affects, and exceptional actors are congealed. I loved this movie and I give it a passing grade of B+.

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Rafael Solece

Crash of the Titans

Well no one will ever be able to accuse Hollywood for not going ‘green’ with the amount of recycling that has been going on lately. Once again, BabbleOn witnessed a classic, campy gem forcefully thrust into the modern, 3-D era with predictably miserable results. This incarnation ends up being less clash and more ‘crash’, with a loud thud. 

The plot more or less follows the original writings and movie from the 80’s. Perseus is on a quest to save the city of Argos from the legendary Krakken by way of defeating a various cadre of ancient beasts. In this version, Perseus is a reluctant hero (as expected from Sam Worthington’s other characters) but somehow is transformed into a sword wielding and combat flipping warrior upon the news that he is the bastard son of Zeus. Argos is saved (Oh, spoiler alert!) and Perseus rides off or rather flies off into the sunset on the back of a peguses. There is so much wrong with this film that I almost don’t want to waste my digital ink- but here goes.



Although the story is familiar and predictable, it’s not really the problem here. Director Louis Leterrier (Transporter 2, The Incredible Hulk) does nothing to build any tension or suspense. They explain the plot at the very beginning and it follows through exactly with not one ounce of creativity. This was like playing a generic adventure video game- but not as fun. The action was clumsy and all too familiar from other recent action films. Leterrier brings nothing new to this genre that the original version didn’t do better.

Even with capable actors like Liam Neeson and Ralph Fiennes, they are given poor dialogue and nothing to do but skulk and pontificate. Interaction and chemistry is bland and only serves to get from one action scene to the next. Perseus’ merry men are a collection of 2-D cannon fodder which he can careless (as do the audience) when they are lost. Sam Worthington,…oh Sam Worthington. How do you land in your third big film without having to actually ‘act’ is beyond me. Worthington is like a mirror, he simply reflects the tone, mood, and action of his environment. He seems incapable of generating anything original and is basically a puppet in the hands of others. He is an avatar for Directors to play out their fantasies all the while producing mediocre results. 



Biggest problem is Clash is the special effects. The creature design is not only uninspired but the CGi is lifeless and dull. I was really surprised at the lack of realism that was accepted for this film. The big build up was for Medusa’s sinister reveal. When our hero finally faces her, she looked like she stepped out of a SyFy channel ‘movie of the week’. Great for SyFy but bad for any big budgeted movie. The creatures didn’t look like they inhabited the same space as the actors. It was pitiful. The Krakken could have been a truly climatic moment, but because of over exposure from the trailer it barely raised an eyebrow. I think I would have prefered the artificial and sticatto movement of Ray Harryhausen’s stop motion effects from the 80’s than this superficial and sophomoric CGI. Because of the success of Avatar, 3-D was also tacked on and it looked it. Since it wasn’t shot in 3-D the effect was annoying and pointless. What Cameron did so masterfully, an army of directors will ruin in the coming years.

Again, Hollywood managed to desecrate yet another icon of my youth. There is no sign of letting up with A-Team and Tron around the corner. We can always hope. In the meantime, rent the original Clash of the Titans and get a good laugh. Laughing is always better than crying, which is what you will get if you see this modern version.

Dear Hollywood, please stop worring about the environment. Drop the ‘green’ and be more wasteful when it comes to new movies. I promise you that no one, even the envionmentalist, will complain. 

You can read more of my reviews at www.BabbleOn5.com

Last updated: 2010-04-12 10:50:53 by tonybkim

Clash of the Titans - **

Review:  If I could explain this movie in one word it would be: blah.  For all the money and all the special effects in this movie it is uninvolved and anti-climactic. 

The movie centers around our hero Perseus as played by the uninterested Sam Worthington.  Perseus is a demi-god (half man, half god) and he is the only person who can lead the human race against the gods and destroy their evil pet the Kracken.

The movie follows Perseus and band of men from Argos as they race around the world impossibly fast on foot to find what they need to defeat this Kracken.  Along the way Perseus is helped out by the men he brings with him, a being he finds along the way, and the scantily clad and very attractive Io who somehow is easily able to follow these men, even though they are going to a place "nobody has ever returned from."  These are the kind of plot elements that make this movie fall flat.

Io has been following Perseus ever since he was born and she is a demi-god herself.  She seems to always find a way to be in the right place at the right time to help Perseus in his journey.  She even gives him some training on how to defeat Medusa before they arrive at her lair.  This, of course, brings them closer and some "sexual tension" is there.  It is written that it supposed to be there anyway, but we do not feel it as neither actor is really interested in what they are doing or interested in their character's motivations. 

Io being the love interest is misguided.  Perseus is on his quest for two reasons, one to avenge the death of his family at the hands of Hades (he is going to kill a god....riiiiight), and the other is so that the princess of Argos, Andromeda, won't have to be sacrificed to the gods.  Hades has demanded Andromeda is sacrificed so he wont have to release the Kraken and destroy Argos.  This is another point of contention I had, I kept waiting for the moment when, after the city rises up in revolt against the royalty for saving Andromeda, that she would offer herself up as a sacrifice.  This could have been a great plot device, as the day of the Kraken draws near they could cut between Perseus' quest and the castle at Argos where Andromeda and the royalty are debating her sacrifice as they get closer and closer and haven't heard word from Perseus' quest.  The tension that would've developed from that would have been palpable and would've had added a sense of urgency to Perseus' quest.  However, this was not even remotely looked at, Andromeda had about 3 lines the entire movie.

One of the aspects of the original was that it was Perseus' love for Andromeda that drove his quest; however, that love doesn't exist here, his only motivation is revenge and he ends up falling for Io, who I originally thought was more of a motherly character.  This makes his attempt to rescue Andromeda seem less believable.  What does he care if Andromeda dies?  He doesn't even know her and his end goal has nothing to do with Argos, but simply "killing" Hades.  Everything also comes too easy to Perseus.  Just because "there is god in him" he can do anything and take on anyone/anything on his own.  Never having wielded a sword before in his life he is somehow able to defeat the leader of the soldiers from Argos in his first ever sword battle.  I would've even rather seen a training movie montage to explain his prowess over the cop-out "there is god in you" angle.  Not to mention he randomly finds a sword gifted from the gods on the ground while taking a walk and a black pegasus is sent to him that "no man has ever ridden" but he can for the first time with no problem.  All of these just make the audience roll their eyes and take away from the fun part of the movie.

The movie does have some enjoyable elements.  Although the special effects and 3-D were underwhelming, there were some good character designs and interesting elements.  The character of the fallen king whose wife had infidelity with Zeus causing the birth of Perseus, he was played well and designed well.  The bark people of the desert were especially interesting and I wish they would've been dealt with in more depth.  I also wish they would have had more interaction between the gods on Mt. Olympus.  It would've been much cooler to see them really struggle with releasing the Kracken on Zeus' humans.  All in all, the movie just failed and I would say it's not worth your time.

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A Titanically Boring Clash

I really needed a break this week and managed to catch the remake starring Sam Worthington last Thursday but boy was I disappointed. I have pretty good memories of the original movie and this one didn't have any of the magic of the original. I must say that the old stop motion creatures were more memorable compared to the CG ones in this one. In fact, I must say that the original stop-motion Medusa was a lot creepier compared to the new one.
 
Most of the characters where 2-dimensional and by comparison to other fantasy movies I've seen in recent years; this one bored me to death. The only thing I liked about the movie was Liam Neeson & Ralph Fiennes who played Zeus and Hades. Other than that the movie was run of the mill which I can sum up in 3 bullet points:

1. The hero suffers a great tragedy
2. The hero is introduced to his party of warriors and they go on a journey
3. The hero defeats the monster & main villain then lives happily ever after with the love of his life

"Clash of the Titans" is the kind of movie where the plot's pretty obvious. You know how it's gonna play out and as a movie-goer the way the journey is told is just as important as the special effects. The journey from Point A to Point B is really ho-hum compared to movies such as "The Lord of The Rings Trilogy" or "Troy". Sam Worthington's Perseus doesn't build any bond whatsoever with his companions and when each of them die, you just don't feel anything for them especially the two hunter dudes.

Sadly even though I didn't expect much out of this one I was still very disappointed by it. Even "The Wolfman" was better than this one. Don't bother watching it, you'd definitely regret it as much as I did. I give this version of "Clash of Titans" a very disappointing ONE out of FIVE.

Rating: 1 Star (out of 5)

Check out my blog at http://wengyuen.wordpress.com for reviews and more. 

Last updated: 2010-04-10 06:31:49 by chrisleow

"Clash" is a decent action movie, but it's no epic

I don’t have a nostalgic feeling towards the original Clash of the Titans (1981). I re-watched it recently and just couldn’t get past the cheesy stop-motion animation. Some people may a have a special place in their heart for the campy film about Perseus and the Greek gods, but not me. I was very excited to see a big budget remake of this film and I suppose I’m glad they did it.

Clash of the Titans is about demigod Perseus (Sam Worthington) and his quest to stop the dreaded Kraken (a mindless and extremely powerful monster) from destroying the city of Argos and its princess, Andromeda. His quest takes him from peril to peril, with the gods interfering and helping out along the way.

That’s really all you need to know. Clash is basically a Greek mythology action movie and it certainly delivers on the action. The best moments of the film are when Perseus and his crew and battling giant scorpions, Medusa, and other assorted monsters. The action is pretty easy to follow for the most part, but I thought the 3D hindered it at times. 3D is great for the slow motion moments, but when a fast sword fight is going on, it’s hard to stay focused. Generally, a ton of slow motion is a negative aspect of a film. With Clash of the Titans however, I wish there was much more.

The 3D is what really bothered me, I guess. I’m not a true believer in the format just yet. Yes, Avatar looked great and I was definitely impressed with the use of 3D in that film. But Avatar was shot in 3D. This film, like Alice in Wonderland (another film I had a lukewarm 3D reaction to), was converted to 3D and it shows. For the most part, I think 3D is a gimmick and I hope it passes soon. I don’t think you’ll be missing much if you see this in a regular 2D presentation.

So the action is great and the last half hour is very entertaining, but there’s really not much here. I don’t expect a great character driven drama when I go to see a movie like Clash, but there should at least be a little bit of character development. Perseus is a pretty bland character. He has determination, but aside from that, he’s just there, screaming and killing everything he sees. I was actually more interested in the soldiers traveling with him, especially Draco (Mads Mikkelsen, Casino Royale). But that may be because I find Mikkelsen to be a much better actor than Worthington.

Don’t get me wrong, Worthington has screen presence, but there’s not much beneath the surface. If he’s wise, he’ll stick with action films. The rest of the cast, however, does some decent work. Liam Neeson is a great choice for Zeus. I think he may be the only actor out there that can yell, “Release the Kraken!” and be taken seriously. Ralph Fiennes makes a good Hades, as well. His raspy delivery enhances every scene he is in. The one bit of casting that made no sense to me, however, is that of Danny Huston as Poseidon. Huston is not exactly an A-list star, but he’s a fine actor and all he gets to do in this film is stand next to Zeus. I think he has one line of dialogue. All I can assume is that he gave a performance that ended up being cut due to time.

Acting isn’t terribly important in a film like this, though. The computer effects are what matter the most. Think about it, what is more important: Worthington being a convincing Perseus or a realistic Kraken? I can get past a bland performance, but I would have a problem with a crappy Kraken. Thankfully, Clash features some decent effects. They aren’t groundbreaking and some of them come close to being cartoonish, but they work.

I mentioned that I’m not a fan of the original film, but there is at least one reference to the original film that made me laugh. Bubo, the mechanical owl from the 1981 film does make an appearance in the film. The owl doesn’t factor into the film much (thankfully), but it’s still a funny little nod to the original.

Speaking of funny, this film makes quite a few attempts at comic relief. The previews lead you to believe you’re going to see a brutal epic along the lines of 300. This film is not nearly as serious as that blockbuster. The soldiers with Perseus try to lighten the mood throughout and I was fine with it. Some people may find it a bit too goofy here and there, however.

Clash of the Titans is not a great action epic, nor is it a campy look into the world of Greek mythology. It is a pretty standard action film with some impressive moments. I suggest checking it out if you want to get your action fill before the big summer movies start rolling out.

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Eric Harris - www.canneltoncritic.com

Best of the Worst

On my blog (http://random-babbles.blogspot.com/), I've set out to work my way through Rotten Tomatoes' list of the 100 worst movies of the last decade. As I've talked to many people about my "quest," I've mostly gotten interest. Only a very, very few people have not really understood why I was choosing to subject myself to these officially awful films. I consider myself a bad movie aficionado, but I don't think I'm entirely unique in that way. Maybe I like them more than most, but it seems like nearly everybody I talk to enjoys a bad movie here and there. Whether it's the built-in comedy, the chance to mock, or the camaraderie that can be built by watching these movies in a group, people actually have fun watching movies panned by the critics. And those critics...

I believe that few critics understand what we want out of them. I absolutely want to hear someone discuss the literary themes behind Aronofsky or the constant homages by Tarantino, but I also want to know if something is just entertaining on its own merit. When one grades on a scale, it becomes difficult to take the other movies out of a rating. I may give, say, Ocean's Eleven five stars (it's as entertaining as a movie can be, totally rewatchable, great for background), but I gave Schindler's List five stars. Can I really say that Ocean's Eleven is as good as Schindler's List? I'm choosing two good movies, but I hope you get my point. Besides, that's at one extreme. It's even tougher when you look at bad movies, which brings me back to the point that it seems that most people enjoy a bad movie now and again.

Most of these enjoyable bad movies are now called "cult classics." Rocky Horror Picture Show? Indecipherable. Attack of the Killer Tomatoes? Ridiculous. The Warriors? Awful. Some or all of us enjoy these movies -- The Warriors made the list of my 100 favorite movies (see my site for the full list)  -- to the point that we're fanatical about them. And that brings us to one of the great bad movies of my childhood, one that many people my age are fanatical about, and a movie that is downright awful: Clash of the Titans.

Clash of the Titans came out in 1981 and I don't remember if I saw it in the theater or not, but I know I watched it a number of times on cable and video. The four movies I remember watching the most when I was a kid are Star Wars (duh), Raiders, Rocky III (also not so good), and Clash of the Titans. The movie had special effects that probably weren't even that good for 1981. The acting was way over the top. Did I mention the special effects -- and it was an effects-driven movies -- were awful? Yet I, and many other people my age, remember it fondly because it was exciting and it made me love Greek mythology. A great movie for a kid. An average, at best, movie for an adult. So five-year-old me loves the movie even though I watched a few minutes a year or so ago and was horrified at its quality. And now thirty-three-year-old me hears that Hollywood has decided to make a new Clash of the Titans with digital effects and they even got the lead from freaking Avatar to play Perseus. Uh-oh, right?

On the way to the theater today (to see it in 2D so as not to waste my money), I read in Entertainment Weekly that the goal of the 2010 version was to be a remake, not a reimagining or reboot, of the 1981 version. This is an important distinction and potentially a dangerous one for the filmmakers. By doing this, they basically begged me to compare the 2010 version (v2010) to the 1981 version (v1981). In my eyes, there's only one way that this works out well for v2010 and hear my reasoning out. If v2010 is well-made then it makes me regret my enjoyment of v1981 and I'll resent v2010. If v2010 is boring or stupid then I'll hate it for trying to be v1981. The only way this works out well for v2010 is if it captures the cheesiness of v1981. Sure, the effects have to be better than the original, but can they fit into the movie without making it seem like a The Day After Tomorrow-esque film where the effects overshadow everything else? Can it, in spite of the money behind it (a reported $70 million budget), not take itself too seriously? Tall orders because I'm asking for them to, essentially, have made an enjoyably bad movie, which is not only difficult but unpredictable, because you can never tell when one of those is going to pop up and anyone who shoots specifically for that outcome ends up making unwatchable, pretentious garbage. Followed the reasoning? See where I'm coming from? Okay, enough! The verdict!

Epic win.

Didn't expect that, huh? Me either. I was ready to hate it and I ended up with a huge grin on my face. It had everything I needed for it to work. The dialogue: cheesy. The acting: over the top. Maybe the filmmakers didn't shoot for those things, but they did succeed in one thing they set out to do, "dumbing down" the special effects so that the effects didn't overtake the movie. The effects are pretty -- the final battle scene with the Kraken is actually quite a good action sequence -- but they don't seem fake. The best analogy I can come up with is how Lucas had his effects people scratch up the models for Star Wars so that the universe looked authentic. I don't know what's so authentic about giant scorpions and snake-haired Gorgons, but they fit with the rest of the movie.

The dialogue is your classic movie Ancient Greece/ Rome talk with big words and clumsy sentences and British accents, so much so that it made me resent 300 a little bit for being equally cheesy. The actors that play Perseus' group so overact and are congenial about it that you can't help but love their failure to be believable. On the other hand, the main gods, Zeus and Hades, are played by Liam Neeson and Ralph Fiennes, respectively, and they absolutely succeed in their aim to do homage to the cheesiness of the original. No way that two great actors like that are going over the top unless they mean to do it. And that brings us to the one thing that almost -- thankfully, it was only "almost" -- ruins the movie: Sam Worthington.

Worthington takes himself too damn seriously. There's a little joke about the mechanical owl from the original and Worthington apparently threw a fit over even that little scene because he thought the owl's mere presence would make a joke of the movie. There are a number of scenes where you see the other warriors hamming it up and the camera pans to Worthington's Perseus, who is either scowling or stone-faced (not literally). Whereas the others overact, Worthington shows next to no emotion in much of his line delivery, as if he's collecting the paycheck and biding his time until Avatar 2 starts production. But, I said he "almost" ruins it. He does laugh it up a little bit and, much like in Terminator: Salvation (which was not enjoyably bad in any way, it was just horrible), his Australian accent creeps in every so often even though he's supposed to have an Ancient Greek (read: British) accent. So even though I was worried at times about his sincerity ruining my enjoyment, I was still able to mock him enough in my head.

Almost every critic hates the new Clash of the Titans, with the only exceptions I've seen being Roger Ebert and Entertainment Weekly. Almost every critic also, much like Sam Worthington, takes themselves and their work too seriously. The reviewer for EW loved the 1981 version and used that to couch his review, much as I've done here. Ebert was able to enjoy the movie for itself, in disregard for how it compares to anything else other than the original. In his review, he kept using the words "entertainment" and "goofy." Indeed. It's the kind of movie that a kid is going to eat up with a spoon, much like I did with the original.

It's also the kind of movie that those many of us who enjoy a bad movie will have a great time with. Don't bother going to the theater. Not because it's not worth the money (even the early, early matinee price I paid), because I enjoyed myself. Wait because it's the kind of movie that Mystery Science Theater 3000 was made for, where you get the DVD, throw a party for people who aren't film snobs, and mock the hell out of it. If that sounds like fun, and movies are supposed to be fun, then how can you hate this movie?

Last updated: 2010-04-07 21:11:17 by Random_Babbles

Clash of the Titans: Movie Review

Finally, "Clash of the Titans" is here. Since seeing its sneak peek last year, we have really been excited to see the end product with our own eyes. It seems the movie is action-packed from end to end and with Sam Worthington and Liam Neeson at the helm, the 2010 remake of the classic 80's film seems to be going to be a huge success. "Clash of the Titans" touts to be another film that is going to use 3D, for better or for worse With all the Greek Mythology-themed films coming out recently, can "Clash of the Titans" make a distinction of its own or is it just another riding with fads (both as a 3D film and a mythological film)? Read on to find out our verdict. 

Perseus (Sam Worthington), half human half god is out to kill Hades (Ralph Fiennes), the god who murdered his adopted family. Hades, the brother of Zeus (Liam Neeson) threatens to release the monster Kraken to destroy Argos, a city full of humans who have become disrespectful to the Gods of Olympus. Perseus more than willingly volunteers to lead the pact who will stop Hades as he finally gets a chance to exact his own revenge. He is joined by a courageous bandit of humans, all with the same hatred towards the Gods. They have ten days to find a way to stop Hades and the Kraken or else all life in Argos will end. 

"Clash of the Titans" will make you wish you did not get too excited about it and even more if you paid a premium price for the 3D version. It was not hype that killed the movie but because it was made at a really sub-par level. To summarize it all up, "Clash of the Titans" was just mediocre both as a 3D film and mythological film. 

The action sequences were outstanding as expected but it left us wanting more battles and more monsters. Heck, even "Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief" had more monsters than this. Maybe some will say it was a remake and it might have followed the original story but we beg to differ because we think some key plot elements were changed already in the first place. Worse, the film's story was sloppily made and very outlandish in our opinion. We even found ourselves yawning several times. Also, Greek mythology fans will really hate the film for sure. Finally, the 3D version was not worth it. What's will all the film outfits being starve crazy in making films into 3D? With what's happening, the industry will surely suffer in the long run. We just hope the fad stops already. We like 3D no doubt but for those films that truly utilize the technology - not just as a cash making scheme. "Clash of the Titans" was a film with action sequences but nothing much. Our suggestion - skip the 3D version and save some moolah or maybe you could just skip the whole film and save more money still. 

Rating: 2 reels 

source: http://www.reeladvice.net/2010/04/clash-of-titans-movie-review.html

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Recommendations:

Last updated: 2010-04-07 12:33:51 by FadingMemory

Clash of the Titan's Remake: A Hopefully Failed Attempt To Start A Franchise

The Clash of the Titans remake mostly  follows the story of the original.  It opens with a voice over about how  the world was ruled by Titans until their children Zeus and Hades  overthrew them and now reign as gods, staying immortal through the  prayers of man. Down on earth a child has been cast out to sea and found  by a fishermen. This baby is Perseus, who is in fact a demigod, part  man part god, his father being Zeus.

Perseus as a boy wonders if his parents will still love him as his  adoptive mom is expecting. His father assures them that they will. Cut  to adulthood and man is growing arrogant, tearing down a statue of Zeus,  which brings the wrath of Hades. In the process of this wrath Perseus’  boat sinks and his family dies, and he’s brought to the city of Argos.
The Queen of Argos boasts that her daughter Andromeda is more  beautiful as the goddess Aphrodite, provoking Hades (As opposed to  Aphrodite in the original) to declare that in ten days the Kraken (big  giant monster) will crush the city unless Andromeda is sacrificed to it.  However in this version it’s all a cover for Hades’ plot to overthrow  Zeus.

Anyway somehow everyone finds out Perseus is the son of Zeus, seemed  like a big plot hole to me. Some demigod lady
shows up confirming the  story, and the quest begins to find out how to beat the Kraken. They go  to Medusa’s lair, cut her head off, and Perseus of course uses her gaze  to turn the Kraken to stone.

There are some minor good points about this remake. Of course the  effects are great, but these days great effects are par for the course.  The beginning (as opposed to the end in the original) notes how the gods  story’s are told in constellation’s. There’s really great effects of  showing the starts and galaxies forming the shapes of gods and of the  Kraken. I liked that a lot.  Perseus struggles with his identity, at  first refusing any help from Zeus. (Namely refusing a magic  sword/lightsaber and the winged horse.) His demi-goddes aid tries to  train him to combat Medusa, that was neat. The Kraken reveal was real  good and slow. For a while we only saw it’s tentacles, then legs and  arms, and finally the full body. I liked its design except the head,  which reminded me of Return of the Jedi’s Rancor monster. The head was  too small.  Andromeda was not so much a damsel in distress, but was  actually willing to go through with the sacrifice, feeling guilty that  so many should die for her. There’s also an added element of a Hades  cult that wants her dead anyway, but they don’t add much to the story.

What I didn’t like was I mostly didn’t care about anybody. Perseus  was ok I guess, but some of the supporting cast just kind of showed up,  came and went. There’s a relationship brewing between the lead and he  Demi-goddess, but it’s real weak. Medusa’s reveal was way to fast, no  build up for tension. Plus they made her an attractive monster, there’s  nothing about her that’s frightening.  Also when Zeus and Perseus have  their first face to face meeting it’s so sudden and almost devoid of any  emotion. (Again, they’re FATHER AND SON, and it’s the first time they  met) Also the King of Argos dies and there’s a Conan esque scene where  Andromeda offers him the crown, which he refuses. This scene was very  rushed, and I’m not even sure if Andromeda could have known her father  died.

On another note I saw this in 3-D, it was the first time I’d seen a  3-D movie since I was a kid. I have to say the 3-D effects weren’t all  that impressive. Nothing jumped out at me or anything. When I was a kid I  saw the Captain Neo show, or whatever that was called at Disney World.  It was this 3-D science fiction movie with Michael Jackson. I remember  ducking as things flew my way and the film’s villainess being right in  my face. How is it possible that 3-D effects from 20 years ago are more  effective than they are today?

I haven’t seen the original Clash movie since I was a kid, so I won’t  state if the remake was better or worse. That wouldn’t be fair. I will  say though that to everyone who says the original was cheesy and corny,  what do you think people will say about Avatar 30 years from now.

Finally in this day and age everything is set up to be a franchise.  That’s not always bad but when your foundation isn’t solid it gets  annoying. Hades is dispatched off very quickly, but somehow Perseus just  magically knows he’s alive. Demi-god wisdom I guess. So father and son  have that set up for sequel scene that’s only found in these kinds of  movies. Zeus tells his son that Megatron, I mean the Joker, I mean Darth  Vader, I mean Cobra, I mean Skeletor, I mean Mr. Smith, I mean Hades is  still out there. But when he comes back we’ll be ready.

Hades may indeed return to threaten the world again, but if he does, I  won’t return to see it. 6/10.

http://jemurr.wordpress.com/<br />
<br />
http://www.youtube.com/user/murmanpoet

Last updated: 2010-04-05 21:44:03 by jemurr

Film Review: CLASH OF THE TITANS (2010)

RATING 5/10

BOTTOM LINE: Buried underneath the mechanical and arbitrary special effects sequences lies some resemblance to a good story, but not even a valiant attempt by an excellent cast cannot rescue this film from the utter bore that it is.

THE GOOD: The original “Clash Of The Titans” is considered an 80s classic and featured some of the great work of special effects maestro Ray Harryhausen. This modern update of the film seeks to use the latest in digital technology to recreate the Greek myths and in many respects, the visuals are quite stunning, particularly Mount Olympus, the haven of the Gods. Sam Worthington plays Perseus, the son of God Zeus (Liam Neeson), who finds himself on a journey to save the city of Argos from the monster the Kraken before the gods unleash it on humans for their failure to worship the gods. With this somewhat simple setup, director Louis Leterrier cuts loose with the computer work to create some visually impressive scenes. In many respects, these visuals at least transport you to this mythical time. The cast Leterrier has assembled is first rate, with Sam Worthington lending some much needed depth to his character, as does Liam Neeson in the role of Zeus. Ralph Fiennes looks predictably creepy throughout as the lord of the underworld, and ex-James Bond villain Mads Mikkelsen plays a very good soldier supporting Perseus. “Clash Of The Titans” is visually engaging, and has some interesting points to it.

THE BAD: Strip away the visuals and you have all the usual problems of a barely thought out Hollywood blockbuster. The script and subsequent direction do not give you a dramatic point of entry in to this story. Everything seems arbitrary. We have to accept that the humans have good reason to defy the gods. We have to accept that Perseus is hell bent on avenging his family’s death, despite the clunky and all to brief setup with his family. Despite all the impossible dangers the characters face, you never get the feeling they are in any real danger, and are far from surprised when Perseus in particular always comes out on top in any given situation. The amazing cast is dramatically under-utilised; it is quite amazing that they got so many good actors together and did nothing with them. Liam Neeson looks good in his shining robes, but is not given anything to do. Ralph Fiennes looks like he is repeating his performance from the Harry Potter films, and Sam Worthington really looks like he is trying hard to give dimension to his one-dimensionally written character. All of this combined makes the experience of watching this film rather dull and boring; a go-through-the-motions experience that barely registers a heart-beat. One other thing: do not go to see this film in 3D. The last minute decision by the producers to convert it from its original 2D has yielded some shoddy, and sometimes barely noticeable results, and is definitely not worth the inflated ticket price.

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Todd Murphy <br />
http://www.allaboutmovies.net

Clash of the Titans: A Joy-less Waste of Two Hours.

What a pointless 2 hours this was.  And I am glad that--knowing better--I simply snuck into it rather than pay for it. The 3D is non-existent to say the least. About 5 minutes of movie actually look like they were retrofitted with the 3D gimmick, everything else look like any other movie, and I even kept looking with glasses and without to make sure it wasn't just my eyes. So avoid paying for 3D because it is just a rip off to make more money, especially now that movie prices went up. Unless a movie was made from creation to be seen in 3D, don't bother.

It pretty much follows the cheesy, yet, great original.  Everything about this movie is subpar. Sam Worthington may have screen presence like say, a young Russell Crowe, but he's one empty pretty face. He can read lines, but he has no personality, no fire, nothing in that expressionless face, and those lifeless eyes. He's a robot.
I'm not going to waste time talking about the FX or the plot, it is all pointless and humorless, not even the action is great. And the muthafucking owl is not in the movie! That was the best part of the original! Apparently Sam didn't like it and made the director take it out. Idiot. Grade: D-

Last updated: 2010-04-03 19:53:27 by Nate13

Clash of the TItans Movie Review

April 2, 2010 
Pray to your God Father, Perseus!  You are a demi-god, son of Zeus and destined to slay the Kraken, all in slightly under two hours and in 3D!             
One Word Movie Review: Unbelievable
Clash of the Titans is, without a doubt, the greatest Greek tragedy this year.  I will admit up front that I am a sucker for myths and gods and heroic tales of the ancients.  These stories have been passed down for thousands of years and resonate within us so deeply that one cannot resist the appeal of Mount Olympus, the Underworld and ancient cities crushed by the petty whims of the gods.  I was raised on the great Ray Harryhausen, the miniature model maker and stop-motion animator of such special effects movies as Jason and the Argonauts, Mysterious Island, Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger and his last special effects movie, of which this is a re-make, Clash of the Titans. 
Although I remain in awe of the skeleton swordfights in Jason and the prehistoric monsters he created to chase Raquel Welch around in One Million Years B.C., the advances of technology available today allows for super-realistic and seamless co-mingling of actors and imagination far beyond anything Mr. Harryhausen could put on the screen.  I am happy to say the new Clash of the Titans delivers the goods in spectacular fashion and in the latest rage, 3D.
If you are a mythology fan, a player of the God of War video game series or have any desire to cast yourself back to the days of Mr. Olympus and the age of Zeus, Hades, Medusa and Pegasus, this is your movie.  With this as the reference point, I rate this movie a four-star experience and simply unbelievably good in what it tries to do.  Sure, you can complain about a lot of aspects of this movie but one day, somebody's gonna have to make a stand against these critics!  Some day, somebody's going to have to say "enough!"  Today is that day, to quote Perseus as he marches to certain death, echoing his father's words about the gods and their cruel ways.  Yes, enough!  This is a movie that reaches deep into our shared unconscious and rips open the myth-spirit inside us all.
If you have any spark of a kid inside you, go and see this movie and marvel at the sets, the creatures, the battles and the magnificent Kraken looming over the city of Argos, about to destroy all that is civilized in the world as Perseus flies overhead on the winged Pegasus, clutching the only force powerful enough to stop this awesome spawn of Hades.
The Story
The story starts in the stars and the cosmic clouds, as the narrator fills us in on the battle between gods and titans, the victory of Zeus, creator of man and able to remain immortal by feeding on their prayers.  From this lofty start, we reduce down to the discovery of a child in a submerged coffin, rescued from the arms of his dead mother by a simple fisherman.  The child is named Perseus and grows into a demi-god, for his father is really Zeus, coupled with a queen of Argos in an act of revenge on the King (you know that's how gods screw with us mortals, stealing that which we hold most dear). 
However, knowing full well that the gods are all-powerful and capable of mighty destruction, the city of Argos rebels against the tyranny and hardships of life under Zeus and topples his statue, raising Hades from the Underworld and causing no end of troubles for the royal family.  They must sacrifice their daughter or face total annihilation under the tentacles of the Kraken. 
However, Perseus happens to be in Argos, happens to be a demi-god and just so happens to have a destiny hanging over his head: he is the Kraken-killer!  What are the odds of that?  So, after a quest to talk to the ugliest coven of witches since Macbeth, Perseus discovers the secret to killing the great beast and sets out to do the impossible, with a little help from his friends.
So off they go, battling giant scorpions and snake-haired babes, flying harpies and desert demons, under the deadline of the impending eclipse of the sun when the fair Andromeda will be sacrificed or all Argos will be destroyed.   In between, Perseus pays the ferryman to cross the River Styx, debates the merits of gods and men with good old dad and enjoys the company of his beautiful guardian angel, Lo who is cursed to be ageless and thus, see all her loved ones die again and again.   
It all builds to the rousing climax and satisfying resolution where heroes triumph, evil is cast down and gods put in their place.  As Perseus joins the ranks of man, turning his back on a place with the gods, he sums up the world as entirely within the control of man.  The gods are not relevant any more.  "We live, we fight, we die for each other " and not for some vain god on high with a beard, shiny armor and a voice like Liam Neeson.
The Genre
There is a new genre of 3D movies emerging, as this new technology draws crowds to see the effects of stuff jumping off the screen, be they cartoon dragons, blue aliens or winged harpies.  It is a novelty, for sure and will wear off in time.  For now, movies like Titans will be upgraded to 3D for an extra $10 million and released to catch the wave.  The economics are compelling.  If you can release in 1,000 3D theaters, charge an extra $3 bucks minimum to get in, then you've instantly added millions to your box office gate.
Audiences will enjoy the escapism of the "extra dimension" and buy tickets for movies they wouldn't normally go and see.  In our showing, the trailer for Piranha 3-D, scheduled for release in late August, 2010 got a terrific response from the audience.  It just looked so goofy/funny in 3D, all those fish mouths ready to chomp down on innocent swimmers.  Of course, as we all know, the father of 3D, James Cameron (Avatar) got his start directing Piranha 2 back in 1982.  What goes around in Hollywood, comes around again.
So get ready to wear the glasses because the box office party has just started for Hollywood 3D.  Perhaps this was what it was like when the first talkies opened.  Jolson sings!  Piranhas bite!  Krakens crush!  You gotta see it! 

The Overall Quality
The original Clash of the Titans starred Sir Laurence Olivier as Zeus and this version has similar star power in the god roles with Liam Neeson reprising Olivier and Ralph Fiennes playing Hades, taking a break from his Potter role as big, bad Lord Voldemort.  Sam Worthington takes over the Perseus character from Harry Hamlin and does an adequately stoic and energetic take on the demi-god man with a BIG DESTINY.  The rest of the cast is suitably robust, attractive and over the top, with Mads MIkkelsen mumbling through his biceps as the cynical Draco and Pete Postlethwaite adding heft to his small role as the fisherman-father to Perseus and delivering the theme speech of the movie about it being time for somebody to say "enough" to the damn gods.
The acting is secondary to the action and the legacy of Harryhausen is well respected here, with the creatures looking superb and the directing of Louis Leterrier keeping up the pace of imminent peril throughout.  Leterrier grew up with the Transporter films and let loose with the latest Incredible Hulk so he's well placed to take on the titans and the gods and make it work.
The music is stirring and atmospheric, although forgettable once you leave the theater.  Like in the first film, the weakest parts of the movie take place in Mt. Olympus where the gods stand around looking dorky, circling around Zeus nodding whenever he talks and look down on us mortal insects with a tiresome and irritated gaze.  Why can't these pesky humans just do what they're told?
However, the epic scale of the story works and the 3D effects bring it all home in a satisfying way.  The look of the movie is also epic, with filming in the Canary Islands (when was the last movie you saw from there...think Star Wars III and Barbarella...great desert/volcano/rock locations) and the Danakil Depression in Ethiopia standing in for the entrance to the Underworld and doing a bang-up job.
Movie/Market Analysis
MarketBOB’s sentiment indicators, the GQS (Genre, Quality, Story) rate Clash of the Titans an emotional BULL.  This movie feeds our love of ancient myths and legends, where man defies the gods and takes control of his own destiny, damning the consequences.  As a genre flick, it exceeds expectations and delivers an consistently entertaining mix of heroism triumphing over overwhelming odds.  The battle scenes and destructive spectacles are of tremendous scale and power (even though it is all done with miniatures and computer trickery), enhanced by the 3D effects to bring all that mayhem into your lap with your popcorn.
Craig Forgrave (MarketBOB)
For the latest reviews and analysis of movies and their impact on market psychology, go to www.marketbob.com.  

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Clash of the Titans- A Greek Epic Mess That Sacrifices the Original's Dedication to Character, Story, and Purpose for Special Effects Nonsense

To some who look back on the 80s and others who just happen to be falling on the films taking a retrospective look one might immediately conclude that with all of modern special effects one can really improve the originals as popcorn entertainment. While CGI might make a film look good it never means that it actually is good, because spectacle and fast paced action segments simply replace character, intention, and narrative and just delivers mindless imagery rather than practical imagery. Berkley Breathed, the author and animator of the comic strip “Opus,” wrote a great article on special effects and emphasized the “special” and how we remember things like the Star Wars Star Destroyer in the beginning of A New Hope or the Nautilus in the old 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea because of how they were used selectively. These effects complimented the story in delivering good spectacle for well developed and intended use in relation to the story. Despite what one might think of the incredibly corny 80s film Clash of the Titans, which featured some inventive and ridiculously unique animation from Ray Harryhausen, the characters from the demigod Perseus to the flawed gods of Olympus all had intention, reason, and understanding to what their characters meant for the story being told. The effects were a means of completing the difficult segments of the plot such as the battle with Medusa or the giant Kraken destroying the city of Agros. In Louis Letterier’s remake of this easy to improve story of love all we receive is a formulaic CGI mess without any consideration to plausible character development and eventually just reeks of being carbon copies of action/fantasy films that have been done numerous times in the past couple of years. Something that could have ignited a fresh and devoted retelling of a classic Greek mythological tale, one of the only ones with a happy ending, turns out to be too much of the same tiresome special effects injected nonsense that lacks the wholesomeness that was evident in the original.
            Well the plot doesn’t differ too much from the original except for structure, theme, and tone, which is to say it’s the same characters in a completely unrecognizable tale. Some exposition in the beginning informs those who aren’t familiar with Greek mythology that Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades were all brothers who defeated the Titans to claim their power over the world by the use of the ultimate weapon known as the Kraken. While there are some minor truths to this tale, and Greek mythology is open for creative freedoms, there is already an undercurrent of not being able to comprehend the basics of the mythology tales especially in Louis Letterier’s description of Hades and his personal vendetta against Zeus. This is forgivable to say the least but when one doesn’t truly understand the original source it’s difficult to try and build upon it with your own interpretation. We are then introduced to Perseus, our protagonist, who was saved by a fisherman from drowning with his mother. They were both sentenced to death by her husband after he finds that Perseus was the offspring of Zeus who had relations with Perseus’ mother, making him a demigod. Hades power is growing because of distrust in the god’s among the people, and after he kills Perseus’ family who had adopted him at an early age, Perseus vows vengeance against Hades by any means necessary. This drastically takes a tangent from the original for Perseus in the 80s Clash of the Titans Perseus does all of his heroic deeds because of love for Andromeda who isn’t even the love interest throughout this entire film. So instead of love we have vengeance, already sounding more and more like every other film that is produced in Hollywood. As if getting the Greek mythology wrong wasn’t bad enough, such as Hades not having pride as the guardian of the underworld, Letterier had to mix in Arab mythology with weird looking Mummy-esque characters known as the “Gin,” which are actually Genies in the Arab mythology. Everything here has been done before and even when compared to its extremely lower budget and non-celebrity equipped predecessor, this Clash of the Titans fails drastically as any sort of original take on the Greek myth.
            Perhaps story isn’t the reason you’re going to see this film and most people won’t even bother to keep the basic essential to a film on their list of film expectations. So turning to the graphics and the over the top display of modern special effects the film still has no original bone in its structure. Everything from the fight sequences, camera movements, mild attempts at humor, and dialogue are all generic to the point that the experience of your eyes rolling every five seconds because of a corny dialogue exchange will be drastically more nauseating than the actual cheap 3D experience. That’s another aspect of cinema that’s going in the wrong direction and that’s 3D. Why do people want their films to be more like theme park attractions? Sure attractions don’t have to have a good story because it’s about the exhilarating experience or the spectacle of the ride. However, a ride is about the feeling of the experience while a film is supposed to be a story that connects with the audience usually done through relatable characters, intriguing depictions of familiar themes such as love, perseverance, or jealousy, and perhaps with a moral or message that story is trying to ultimately convey. A tale of love at first sight and the tasks needed to be accomplished in order to preserve that love have been eliminated from this Clash of the Titans and been replaced with simple, straight to the point, vengeance. With all of the flawed aspects of Greek gods and their pettiness, weaknesses, and personal feuds that can be easily be applied to the story are non-existent here and all we have are caricatures of what we presume to be the gods. The film focuses too much on delivering high octane action rather than having that action compliment character, which there was no room for developing in this incessantly simple script.
            The cast is simply sub par at best and that includes comparing the overrated action star of the day Sam Worthington to the original Harry Hamlin. The original Clash of the Titans had incredibly known British actors such as the remarkable Laurence Olivier and the understated Maggie Smith, who made their characters understood if not trying to overstate their intentions. But can anyone really match the precision of Laurence Olivier? That would be unfair to Liam Neeson who seemed to be having a great deal of fun with his role considering that the script really didn’t offer much. As Hades there is Ralph Fiennes and it seemed the casting director when considering who should play the Lord of the Underworld immediately thought Voldemort and didn’t bother to venture past that train of thought. Sam Worthington is quite dry and unsympathetic if he can’t be labeled as completely bland, making it very difficult to really get through the entire film with a protagonist who has offered no reason to be connected with. Then the other roles are standard from the two eccentrics who offer bits of humor, to the no nonsense soldier who believes in you more than he lets on, as well as the woman who is incredibly beautiful and offers nothing to the screen except that beauty. All of the characters seem as though they’ve been stripped from all of Stephen Sommer’s or Roland Emmerich’s films and placed into a sword and sandal film, which does have the possibility of being something more than generic action when you consider Ben Hur and Quo Vadis.
            Of course in cinema retrospect one can glance at the effects of Ray Harryhausen and say they are simply just corny or even ridiculous when compared to now. But so can the effects of The Day the Earth Stood Still or The Exorcist, which doesn’t make them any less viable as a time in cinema history when artists and filmmakers resorted to their creative instincts amongst drastic limitations. Limitations can be freeing and force us to make considerations as to how we can tell a story making the narrative the first and foremost priority. Special effects are no longer special when they are used in every sequence of a film and are no longer used as a means to tell the story and instead the story is fit in with how we can use the effects. The remake of Clash of the Titans attempts to reference its predecessor with some cheap gags and remarks but never respects the honesty that was evident in the original’s restricted attempt at telling an epic Greek myth. All of the pieces are there yet the intention of the story is drastically missing.With all of the wonders of modern filmmaking at their disposal they still fail to bypass the priority of filmmaking, which is story. There is no intention of character here but rather a tiresome display of familiar grandiose CGI that only makes for a slightly entertaining experience and definitely not an original one.

Recommendations: Red Riding, Fish Tank , Mystery Team

Last updated: 2010-04-02 16:17:51 by GenerationFilm

Clash of the Titans (2010)

Director: Louis Leterrier~ (The Transporter, Transporter 2)(2)
Writers: Travis Beacham-(screenplay)
Phil Hay-(screenplay)~ (The Tuxedo)
Starring: Sam Worthington~ (Terminator Salvation and Avatar)(2)
-Liam Neeson~ (Schindler’s List, Star Wars: Episode 1- The Phantom Menace, Kingdom of Heaven, The Simpsons [T.V.], Batman Begins, The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe, Taken, and Five Minutes of Heaven)(8)
-Ralph Fiennes~ (Schindler’s List, The Avengers, The Prince of Egypt, Red Dragon, The Constant Gardener, Wallace and Gromit in the Curse of the Were-Rabbit, In Bruges, and The Hurt Locker)(8)
-Jason Flemyng~ (The Jungle Book, Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, Snatch, From Hell, Transporter 2, The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button)(7)
-Gemma Arterton~ (Quantum of Solace)
-Alexa Davalos~ (The Mist)
-Mads Mikkelsen~ (Casino Royale)
-Hans Matheson~ (Sherlock Holmes)
-Pete Posthethwaite~ (Alien 3, The Usual Suspects, James and the Giant Peach, Dragon Heart, Romeo and Juliet, The Lost World: Jurassic Park, Amistad, Animal Farm, and The Constant Gardener)(9)
Best Quote: Spyros~ "One day, somebody’s got to make a stand. One day, somebody’s got to say enough . . . "
Filming Locations: U.K.; Ethiopia; and Spain
Review:

I have always liked stories of Greek mythology because the event seem so impossible, but if you think about it the idea is not completely strange. In our ordinary lives we have heroes doing unbelievable things to protect people in danger and this world also has significant evil. Some of these stories sort of seem like metaphors for the way of our world. My favourite Greek mythology is of course Hercules. Another excellent one is the one of Odisius. Clash of the Titans is a story of Perseus (Sam Worthington) a demi-God and son of Zeus (Liam Neeson). Demi-God means not quite human and not quite God. Perseus’ adoptive father Spyros (Pete Posthethwaite) dies and he swears vengeance on the Gods, Hades (Ralph Fiennes) in particular. On Perseus’ mission he is accompanied by Draco (Mads Mikkelsen), Ixas (Hans Matheson), and IO (Gemma Arterton). Other characters include Calibos/Acrisius (Jason Flemyng) and Andromeda (Alex Davalos). Sam Worthington is becoming the action hero star of his generation with films including Terminator Salvation(2009) and Avatar(2009). Zeus I think could have only been played by Liam Neeson. I was totally not expecting Mads Mikkelsen to be in this movie. It took a bit to recognize him, but I did. I think Mads Mikkelsen did a great job as Draco. This movie had some great effects with certain creatures. I thought Olympus was represented really well where the Gods sit around what looks like a model of earth, which I assume they watch us from. The dialogue could have been better; especially, between Zeus and Perseus it seemed like a scene out of Batman and not the good Batman. I did not like when they ride the giant scorpions. It might have been part of the story, but it looks stupid on screen. The effects here might not have been too strong so they looked like something out of a cartoon. They could have done a bit more with Kraken monster. The whole movie talk about how powerful this creature is, but is killed of in like 5 minutes. I thought this movie was good, but it does have a few flaws to it. I recommend people see it in theaters because it looks good on the big screen. These movies are never as fun when they come out on DVD and you have to watch it on a small screen.
3/5
Rated: PG-13 (fantasy action violence, some frightening images and brief sensuality)

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Last updated: 2010-04-21 15:34:29 by themaninblack

Clash of the Titans

Genre: Fantasy Action
Director: Louis Leterrier
Starring: Sam Worthington, Liam Neeson, Ralph Fiennes, Gemma Arterton, Mads Mikkelson, Alexa Davalos
Running Time: 118 minutes (plus trailers)

“Release the Kraken!!!”

With a budget of US$120 million dollars, one would’ve hoped that the people behind Clash of the Titans would’ve had a little money to spend on a script. If you have the cash to depict an enormous CGI Kraken rising from the ocean, to pay the salaries of Hollywood superstars like Liam Neeson and Sam Worthington, and to convert the entire film into 3D in post-production, surely you could have found ten grand or so to give to someone to focus on the plot. Or the characters motivations. Or the dialogue. Wishful thinking apparently – Louis Leterrier’s remake of the 1981 film Clash of the Titans is a woefully written, muddily paced film who’s greatest ambition seems to be to check all the minimum requirements of an action adventure film, likewise delivering only the bare minimum in entertainment and excitement, as well as the odd miss-placed chuckle and some very sketchy information about Greek mythology.

The film begins with a brief chronicling of “history”, in which the Gods of Mount Olympus defeat their creators – the Titans – with the help of an enormous beast of Hades’ creation: The Kraken. However, in a shocking turn, Hades (Ralph Fiennes) is betrayed by his brother Zeus (Liam Neeson) and tricked into taking dominion over the underworld, where he spends his time letting his hair grow out and plotting revenge. In the interim, Zeus creates human beings, seemingly for the sole purpose of raping them – the result of one such union is the birth of demigod Perseus. Perseus is raised by Spyros (Pete Postelthwaite), a fisherman, and grows up without any knowledge of his birthright. But just as you begin to think that Sam Worthington could not possibly look more out of place on a rickety old fishing boat, Hades shows up again and massacres his entire adopted family, leaving Perseus to swear his revenge against the Gods who wronged him.

The biggest issue Clash of the Titans seems to face is a total lack of respect for itself. The story moves from plot point to plot point with no real enthusiasm, as Perseus and his company of poorly developed rag-tag soldiers trek across plains, deserts, forests and mountains (all inexplicably within half a day’s Scorpion ride of each other) in order to reach their next uninteresting destination. The dialogue in the film is atrociously written – generally it’s the sort of stuff that seems badass in trailers, but just sounds ridiculous when actually spoken in the context of a conversation - and it is all delivered with minimal effort by unenthusiastic cast-members. This is Sam Worthington’s third major film roll following Terminator: Salvation and Avatar, and of the three he definitely gives his weakest performance here. There is no denying that the man has a strong screen presence, but his thick Australian accent (which he has apparently just given up trying to hide) makes the suspension of disbelief all the more difficult; truly, he is totally out of place in this role.

This movie also proves that casting A-list talent doesn’t do you a bit of good is the lines they’re delivering are rubbish; although Liam Neeson does manage to muster some gusto for his big declaration that the Kraken be released, and although King of the Underworld seems like the part that Ralph Fiennes was born to play, the two of them both end up giving some of the weakest performances of their respective careers, a tragedy that is compounded by the fact that they both look completely ridiculous in their costumes and hair pieces. This is another area where the film falls flat - almost all of the mythological creatures in this film, from Charon to Medusa to Hades himself, are incredibly poorly designed, coming across as pitifully funny instead of even remotely threatening.

However my biggest gripe with Clash of the Titans is the decision made to convert the movie into 3D in post-production, presumably to capitalize on the financial success of Avatar. Whilst this may seem like a good idea in theory, we see in Clash of the Titans the difference between a movie conceived and shot in 3D by a groundbreaking director, and a film hastily converted into 3D at the last minute as a cash grab. I payed an extra six dollars for a ticket, inflation that would be an absolute rip-off even if the technology had improved the film. But instead this movie looks awful in 3D, the motion blur making the hypothetically decent action indecipherable. Until directors are using this technology with respect, in a way that enhances their films, I plan on boycotting any and all 3D films that aren’t animated, or directed by James Cameron.

While it didn’t hold my attention every second, I will at least say that Clash of the Titans is rarely boring. Thanks to simplistic, cliché and extremely repetitive dialogue, it’s always clear what the characters want to achieve, and there are a few moments of swordplay here and there that aren’t hampered by the 3D. Now I should point out that the movie is playing on both 3D and regular screens, and if for some bizarre reason you do want to see it, definitely go with the later. But at the end of the day, be they in three dimensions or two, it just didn’t matter to me what happened to anyone in this film. Sam Worthington could have died halfway through; Argos could have been utterly destroyed by the Kraken and I just wouldn’t have cared.

3/10

Clash of the Titans in is theatres now

You can read all my reviews at http://tomclift.blogspot.com

Recommendations: Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire

Clash Of The Titans

Although the original "Clash Of The Titans" was among my childhood  fantasy movie favorites, my memories of it are dim at best. Though I've  seen enough clips of it in my adult life to be reminded of what the  movie looked like, it's general feel, and the state of special effects.  Because of this, I was able to make a few comparisons to the original  when I saw the 2010 remake, but not enough that the original, or it's  plot was constantly on my mind. I went to see the new "Clash" because  I'm a die-hard fan of fantasy sword and sorcery flicks and this looked  like it could be one of them. And it was. With both the good and bad  that comes with that sort of movie.

Despite the sometimes edgier dialogue and advanced special effects,  Clash Of The Titans feels much like several fantasy movies of the 70's  and 80's. The characters are 2-dimensional with Sam Worthington's  Perseus and Liam Neeson's Zeus being the only two with any discernible  traces of character development. The acting is generally shallow and the  plot extremely simple. But there are many classics in this genre that  share these traits. Nostalgia may cloud our judgment, but if we're  honest, these attributes were the rule, not the exception of fantasy  movies in the 70's and 80's.

The action sequences are very cool and have the visceral flair common to  fight scenes since "300", though without the same extravagance. The  creature effects look very much like CGI and the Medusa painfully so. To  my eye, this new Medusa looks just as artificial as the original, only  for different reasons. A considerable let down. However, the magical  effects in this movie were stunning in their best moments. Hades looks  awe-inspiring in the midst of his dark, smoky splendor, and this movie  may end up on my shelf someday for that reason alone. Make-up effects  are also fascinating to look at, the witches and the D'Jinn being among  my favorites. On the whole, this movie has a dark, slightly washed-out  feel that conveys a bleak despair uncommon to film portrayals of Greek  myth. A welcome change of pace from the sterile white togas common to  classic depictions of Greek mythology.

Despite these strong points, the movie needed 15 minutes more of  something. Either more character development, or more special effects  and adventure. After some exciting opening sequences, the movie slows  down and introduces characters without fleshing them out before they die  or leave. And although the giant CGI scorpions were cool, I would  rather have seen less of them and made more time for an additional  unique obstacle for the heroes to overcome.

Regarding 3D. I opted to see this movie in 2D when I learned that,  unlike Avatar and other recent 3D films, "Clash" was not intended to be  in 3D but was hastily converted to 3D in a mere 8-weeks. Multiple  reviewers (and my parents) mostly agree that it's not worth the money to  see it in 3D and some have said it even makes the movie worse because  of the poor conversion and the unintended side-effects it has on the  film. I apologize for not braving the 3D experience on your behalf, but  before a reviewer I am a geek first and foremost. I wanted every chance  to enjoy a new fantasy film as much as possible.

A very strong theme in the first act is that of "humanity verses the  gods". The gods are blamed for every ill that comes upon man and  deservedly so. The way the gods are portrayed in this movie likely  paints a good picture of how many people view God. I would wager that  for many people the only difference between the "Christian God" and the  gods in this movie is that all of the character traits split up between  multiple gods in this movie are present in one God in Christianity. A  great question on the drive home from this movie might be, "If God  exists, in what ways do you think we are like him and in what ways do  you think we aren't?" To a certain extent, we have to see God in human  terms, comparing his characteristics to human ones. But if this is taken  too far, we wind up with a view of God very much like the gods of this  movie. Impotent, needy, petty, and ignorant. In other words, more like  us than we'd like to admit. And by contrast, we view ourselves as  basically good. Maybe we even feel, as the humans do in this movie, that  a certain deity needs to learn a lesson and we are the ones to teach  him. "Clash Of The Titans" provides an easy springboard for finding out a  person's view of God's characteristics.

Rated PG-13 for fantasy action violence, some frightening images and  brief sensuality.

Quality: 8/10

Relevance: 8.5/10

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