Clash Of The Titans: Movie Review

Clash Of The Titans: Movie Review

Rating: 6/10
Cast: Sam Worthington, Liam Neeson, Ralph Fiennes, Gemma Arterton, Alexa Davalos, Mads Mikklesen
Director: Louis Leterrier
So, winter blockbuster season is upon us.
First cab off the ranks in the blockbuster stakes is this remake of the 1981 classic Clash of the Titans - this time, it stars Avatar's Sam Worthington.
It's set in ancient Greece and sees Sam Worthington as Perseus, the son of the ancient Greek god Zeus (a bearded Liam Neeson). Perseus is your average kind of guy; rejected by his human stepdad because his wife slept with a Greek god, he was cast out and given to human parents. But when they're killed by Hades, Perseus swears vengeance for them.
And with a background of mortals turning their backs on the gods, war is on the verge of breaking out between the immortals and the humans. Perseus finds himself on a quest to stop Hades (a whispering Ralph Fiennes) unleash hell on earth as payback for man turning their backs on the immortals. But Hades is hell bent on revenge - and not only on mankind but on his brother Zeus as well.
Will Perseus follow his fate - or will he save the day and the ancient world?
If you're au fait with Greek mythology (I'm holding my geek hand up here - and proudly I may add) then you'll appreciate the way the characters have been brought to life; there's all the subtle layers of hubris that the likes of Homer imbued his characters with; there's also the jealousy and the pettiness of the gods on full display here as they threaten to destroy the world because they're being ignored. It's a nice nod to the source material of this film (and even in one scene the original) which makes this version of Clash of the Titans so appealing. Coüpled with the fact that the story zips along nicely and doesn't bog you down with too much backstory, Clash is a fairly affable night out at the cinema.
Although judging by the amount of manly men on display here, certain sections of the audience will be wowed by Sam Worthington's performance (the majority of which appears to be spent scowling and glowering). The rest of the cast are okay but they're simply there as window dressing (Gemma Arterton as Perseus' protector Io, particularly is not the strongest and appears to have been brought in for her dusky looks) to the creatures and the story. Most disappointing is Ralph Fiennes' hammy Hades - he's whispering and doesn't really do much to convey menace (although the effects for Hades are pretty good).
The CGI in the film isn't too bad either (it's not earth shattering)- director Leterrier (The Transporter) does a good job of bringing some of the mythical creatures (such as the Pegasus, the Kraken, Medusa) to life - and some are given a nightmarish touch which may frighten some of the younger end of the audience.
But the biggest misfire on this film is to release it in 3D - it's a completely pointless decision. The decision was made retroactively after the film was made so it doesn't actually bring anything to the table by being converted to 3D - it's not been filmed with this in mind, it adds nothing to the stunning recreation of the Greek world they've created and it's a real let down.
Fans of the original 1981 version of Clash of the Titans (compelte with its stop motion animated creatures courtesy of the genius which was Ray Harryhausen) will enjoy this remake; that said, though, you don't have to be a fan of the original to come on board because this is simply blockbuster entertainment in its purest form. If you check your brain at the door and just fancy scenes of mythical creatures and testosterone fuelled fight scenes, then you're in for a good time because it's disposable fun. It won't win any major awards and won't leave you with masses to talk about after it's over, but that's not a bad thing.

Which sometimes is really all you want in a blockbuster after a long week at work.