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“Avatar” star Sam Worthington stars as the demigod Perseus in the fantasy action remake of 1981’s “Clash of the Titans.” |
On the sandaled heels of the last silly Greek mythology-themed movie – “Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief” – comes yet a sillier, clunkier, and more dramatically laughable new Greek gods adventure called “Clash of the Titans.”
It’s a frenetic, humor-challenged, computer-animated remake of a semi-beloved 1981 Ray Harryhausen stop-motion fantasy in which Laurence Olivier postures as Zeus while handsome Harry Hamlin proudly sports the togs of the heroic Perseus.
Harryhausen’s original possessed more than its share of dopey moments, including a cheesy, pre-Potter mechanical owl (used here as a throwaway inside joke) and a severely hokey Pegasus “flying” through the air.
In this new titanic “Clash,” every moment is a dopey one, from the dumbed-down screenplay that often drones on like a dry history lecture to Sam Worthington’s “ancient” Greek buzz-cut hair style and overtly Australian accent.
The story begins when a poor fisherman (Pete Postlethwaite) discovers a baby floating in the ocean. He adopts the baby and names him Perseus, not realizing he is the son of Zeus, who seduced a human queen.
As Perseus grows, his angry father rails against the gods of Mt. Olympus for their oppression and unfairness. (Read more…)