Sam Worthington in Clash of the Titans (Warner Bros.)

As those who know me, and if such a person exists, cyberstalk me know I created this blog after writing on another site, which shall remain nameless, for a while. The point is, I have material sitting around waiting to be re-used on occasion I will re-post them here. Some of those articles or reviews may have been extemporaneous at the time but are slightly random now, hence the new title and little intro, regardless enjoy!

I had planned on seeing the original Clash of the Titans by streaming it on Netflix but I did not get around to it, which is just as well. This film cannot only be measured against that or Greek Mythology in general but it should be looked at like any other adaptation and judged on its own merits.

It is a film that definitely passes the popcorn test. Fans of Eddie Izzard will know precisely what I’m talking about; it’s an action-packed film that holds your attention and keeps you scarfing popcorn (or pick your poison) incessantly while still keeping your eyes glued to the screen. It is a film that is very well paced and you won’t feel the time go by at all.

Any film in this day and age can engender a lengthy discussion of its technical aspects and merits. Technically speaking this is a solid piece of filmmaking. The cinematography and editing are both very good. There are only two technical aspects in which this film is in any way deficient.

The first would be in 3-D, now as I stated previously I did not view this film in 3-D, however, watching it in 2-D I cannot see how that would’ve enhanced the experience at all. Having bogus rotoscoped dimension added to the mix wouldn’t make it look any better and it does look pretty darn good.

The second deficiency is pertinent to all viewers of the film regardless of their dimensional preference and that is the CG. Now some of it is quite impressive such as The Kraken, the giant scorpions and for the most part the Pegasus almost looks real, however, there are weaknesses particularly Medusa who never really rises above a video game quality of rendition. Treating Medusa similar to how Percy Jackson did would’ve been preferable.

The film, as can be expected, builds its characters briskly and without too much characterization. It’s a plot-point-to-plot-point kind of tale that lets you know just enough to keep you engaged and never goes the extra mile to fully immerse you.

For example, we get a quick little introduction about how and why the people got disillusioned with the gods and about the birth of Perseus and his miraculous survival. Then we skip ahead 12 years. We see a young Perseus, who somehow is unjustly uncredited in this film, play a scene and when Hades attacks his opinion of the gods is cemented. He has no knowledge of his demigod status at this point. Skip ahead eight more years and he is now in his final incarnation played by Sam Worthington, who at this point if not known by name to all should be recognizable as “The Avatar Guy” and is very capable.

We follow and understand the rest of his struggle and he’s a good protagonist who eventually figures out when he needs to take the advice given but this film never wants to, in the words of Phil Collins, get “in too deep” and to further quote people “Not that there’s anything wrong with that.”

It’s still a fun enjoyable time which is elevated by great actors like Ralph Fiennes and Liam Neeson playing parts they could play in their sleep.

The climax is rather good and well executed and just be warned that the title doesn’t tie in to the plot at all. It’s brainless entertainment in a good way just don’t seek to have any life’s unanswerable questions addressed and go along for the ride.

7/10