Clash of the
Titans
Apparently they have completely run out of popular films from the 80s to
remake because with stuff like this and Tron Legacy they have
taken to remaking films that were huge box office disappointments
in their
day. Should we be
on the lookout for new versions of Flash Gordon, One
from the Heart
and Heaven’s Gate next?
At
least Tron had uniqueness going for it – it literally pioneered a
revolution in filmmaking as the first film to be nearly completely created
with computer animation. Of course, to today’s eyes Tron’s computer
animation looks antiquated, but that is no surprise considering the
film was made the same year that MS-DOS was first released. It took another
fifteen years before Pixar and Toy Story would make this type of
animation viable and popular, but Tron deserves props for being way
in front of the curve. Plus, Tron Legacy is a sequel, not a remake.
The
original Clash of the Titans, on the other hand, was a bit of a relic
even when it was released. It was the final film by stop-motion animation
legend Ray Harryhausen – who had used the technique to create classic 50s
b-movies like It Came from Beneath the Sea, The 7th Voyage of
Sinbad and Mysterious Island. Still, by the time Clash of the
Titans came out in the post-Star Wars era, the special effects in
the film looked horribly dated and precious. Despite the fact that the film
had performances by the slumming royal likes of Sir Laurence Olivier and Dame Maggie
Smith – as well as starring a pre-LA Law Harry Hamlin – the film was
considered a box office dud and when all the studios passed on a sequel
idea, Harryhausen retired from active filmmaking, only occasionally popping
up for acting cameos.
Clash of the Titans
was… and is… a
fanciful and somewhat action-packed take on Greek mythology. On Mount
Olympus, the Gods – mostly Zeus (played by Liam Neeson) and his evil brother
Hades (played by Ralph Fiennes) pass out judgments on the humans, demanding
the prayers and loyalty of people of the ancient land of Argos in return for
a good life.
I
will stop here to point out that this is the first time that Neeson and
Fiennes have worked together since Schindler’s List. Imagine that –
going from Schindler’s List to Clash of the Titans. Take a
moment to let the shudder of revulsion to pass and we will continue.
The
humans are tired of being play toys for the Gods and start a rebellion.
Hades, who has been stoking the fires of rebellion behind the scenes,
demands that the humans sacrifice the beautiful princess Andromeda or a
giant monster will lay waste to the town.
The
only hope that the humans have is Perseus – who is played by Sam
Worthington,
who apparently has become THE action star of the moment (also starring in
Avatar and Terminator Salvation) despite the fact that he has not
shown any great skill as an actor in any of the three roles. Perseus is a
demigod, the bastard son of Zeus who was conceived when the God apparently
essentially raped Perseus’
mother and left her to die at the hands of her jealous
husband. Yet, somehow, Zeus expects his son to be
happy to learn that Zeus is his father.
I
will give the makers of the current Clash of the Titans the fact that
they are now technically able to make the story look stunning. The effects
– particularly the evil Medusa and a huge mythical monster called a Kraken –
look amazing.
Still, it is more of a question of whether this specific story is worth
sprucing up in the first place. Just like the original, the new Clash of
the Titans feels like just so much mythological clap trap, piling on
adventures and stilted dialogue with little grace, nor much common sense.
The storyline is hackneyed and unrealistic – even in the film’s fantasy
world – and in the end the movie is really surprisingly dull for a film with
so many action sequences.
Just
because you can remake something doesn’t mean that you should.
Jay S. Jacobs
Copyright ©2010 PopEntertainment.com.
All rights reserved. Posted: April 2, 2010.
