Clash of the Titans Review

Considerably departing from both the original myth and its 1981 cult classic progenitor, Louis Leterrier‘s remake of “Clash of the Titans” proves a disheartening disappointment. Flat and inconsistent, there is considerable effort on display here but no clear sense of where it is all meant to go or what it truly hopes to achieve. The result is a few admirable elements are lost amidst a cacophony of digital set pieces, horrendous scripting, and a grim self-serious tone that's more laborious than engrossing…read more [DarkHorizons] Nostalgia is a strange and powerful thing. Take the 1981 adventure epic Clash of the Titans, for example. For years it sat on the shelves, a film of interest only to A) those who'd seen it as children, B) those who want a really silly refresher course on Greek mythology, and C) hardcore movie nerds who worship at the altar of special effects legend Ray Harryhausen. Titans was neither reviled as insipid nor adored like a Jason and the Argonauts (deservedly) is — but Clash of the Titans certainly had its place among the swords & sandals epics… read more [Cinematical]

Jason Flemyng stars as Acrisius and Ralph Fiennes stars as Hades in Clash of the Titans

In Clash of the Titans, Vessel is Perseus: Half fisherman's (adopted) son, half bastard son of Zeus. After his fisherman family become collateral damage in a fight between mortals and one of the worst CGI creations in the history of big-budget film, Ralph Fiennes' Hades, Perseus takes up arms against the Gods, carrying around one of his father's last inspirational salvos: “Enough is Enough!” Man and the Gods are pitted against each other, of course, because of some absurd circular logic: The Gods aren't giving men the bounty of food and wealth they'd prefer to have, so men aren't paying their proper respects to the Gods, and so the Gods aren't giving them the bounty they want. The Gods, you see, feed off of the power of Man's prayer — the more prayers they receive, the more powerful they are — but since man has won the jackpot of suck, they refuse to drop their prayer cards in the collection plate and have decided instead to take up arms. Against immortal deities. Who could eviscerate mankind with a sneeze…read more [Pajiba]

Clash of the Titans Wallpapers

Even so, the visuals are less murky and gratuitous than the script. Taking mindless liberties with the original (and I'm not just referring to the 1981 version that was the great f/x pioneer Ray Harryhausen's last, and perhaps worst, movie), this new edition from Louis Leterrier begins with jealous Acrisius (Jason Flemyng) tossing his wife and her newborn son, Perseus (Sam Worthington), into the sea in a big box. She's dead, but a fisherman saves the kid — who was sired on the sly by Zeus (Liam Neeson) — and raises him as his own until Hades (Ralph Fiennes, making Voldemort look as artful as King Lear) in a pissy fit drowns Perseus's surrogate family while raising hell against the city of Argos for knocking over a statue of Zeus…read more [The Phoenix] Sam Worthington stars as Perseus and Liam Neeson stars as Zeus in Clash of the Titans CLASH OF THE TITANS A decade too old to convincingly be called “boy,” Sam “Mr. Greenscreen” Worthington is badly cast as reluctant-demigod Perseus — as was Harry Hamlin in the '81 Clash of the Titans — but the appeal of sumptuous blockbuster Hellenism remains with the Gods (Liam Neeson as Zeus, Ralph Fiennes as Hades) and their miracles (3-D CGI replacing analog). This Clash provides frequent occasion for awe, as Perseus and company, men in rebellion against the tyranny of Olympus, embark on a tour of hodgepodge theme-park antiquity, rendered in button-by-button detail: I especially liked the warped ferry to Hades, with oarsman Charon replaced by an outboard motor. Transporter director Louis Leterrier is sure-footed when battling Gorgons and giant scorpions, but he muddles the comic-grotesque opportunity of the Stygian Witches…read more [LA Weekly]

Clash of the Titans Photos

There are too many Greek gods for me to keep straight, since as a child I didn't have action figures as a learning tool. I was prepared to take notes during “Clash of the Titans” but only wrote down a single one: “Release the Kraken!” — Conan O'Brien. I know I was intended to be terrified by the release of the Kraken, but all I could think of was O'Brien shouting “Release the bear!” and then some guy in a bear suit runs out and sits on the lap of a guest. In this case, the Kraken is the nuclear option for Zeus, who has been persuaded by Hades to put down a revolt by the upstart mortals of Argos. The mortals are fed up with the whims of the gods. It would be one thing if they stayed on Olympus and killed time leaning on pillars and addressing one another in thundering ultimatums. Now they meddle in the affairs of men. King Acrisius of Argos declares war, and enlists the aid of a demi-god who has been found at sea. This is Perseus (Sam Worthington), son of Zeus (Liam Neeson) and a human mother. He didn't ask to be a savior but would be happier as a simple fisherman. You know the type…read more [Roger Ebert] Polly Walker, Vincent Regan and Alexa Davalos in Clash of the Titans Leterrier shows no interest in untangling these thorny knots, content to leave the audience sputtering in bewilderment while the monster mash kicks into high gear. Even then, Clash of the Titans might had prevailed if said monster mash displayed any sense of grace or timing. But the fight scenes are edited into pointless sound and noise, defined only by the particular CG beastie which Perseus and his pals are fighting at any given time. The Pegasus shows up to aid him at one point–black instead of white to emphasize how much more bad-ass this version is than the original–but Leterrier has no sense of how to properly set up such a concept. The horse just gets thrown into the mix haphazardly until it becomes indistinguishable from the other sights onscreen…read more [Mania] Gemma Arterton stars as Io and Sam Worthington stars as Perseus in Clash of the Titans Technically, in fact, the effects are too frequently muddied by the pace at which they flash by, limiting opportunities to appreciate the combined animatronic, computer-generated and motion-capture visuals. The most satisfying creative element, actually, is Ramin Djawadi's operatic score. Given the mythological nature of the violence, were the movie a bit less dark it actually could have been pitched more to “PG” territory than to young adults, inasmuch as there's limited bloodletting and scant mushy romance to distract from the adventure. Once state-of-the-art, Harryhausen's work is surely dated from a technical standpoint compared with the magic CGI can conjure; still, this “Titans” reboot merely demonstrates that building a more elaborate mousetrap doesn't necessarily produce a more entertaining one…read more [Variety]

Clash of the Titans Posters

The biggest 3-D feature since last week, “Clash of the Titans” 2010, proves to be a roaring old-school action adventure for kids, with as many mythical beasts as a year at Hogwarts and a healthy dose of smiting without the crazed bloodlust of “300.” (The third dimension adds nothing, though. Save yourself five bucks and see it in 2-D.) Its fight scenes are more than competently staged and some of the dialogue is surprisingly crisp. Still, it would be disappointing if the movie were entirely without splashes of excellent camp, and though director Louis Leterrier has toned down the ADD ways of his “Transporter” films, he obliges with some scenes that are so serious they're quite funny…read more [New York Post]

Clash of the Titans Red Carpet

Clash of the Titans Video Review [IndyMogul]