Friday, April 09, 2010

Now Playing: Clash of the Titans

Oh, dear. There I was, looking forward to watching Sam Worthington redeem himself in a good old-fashioned Ancient Greek throwdown, but alas. Poor scripts seem to plague this man. Sadly, Clash of the Titans did not live up to my expectations. It was a barely-there plot, that had us wondering exactly where Olympus was and why these Gods even give a shit. Sorry, Hades, I don't buy your humans-feed-our-immortality-schtick. (Also, Ralphie boy, get another voice… I've heard this one before). Wooden acting and so-so special-effects aside, I had at least thought they would stick to the origins. I mean, if the Greco-Romans do anything right, they do a good tragedy.

Again: disappointed. As I leaned over to tell JC halfway through the film: "I don't think this movie mythologically accurate." He laughed at me. I was not impressed. First of all, Perseus doesn't need to have a jealous would-be stepfather… he had a psychotic grandfather and step-uncle already. He didn't need to be all tragic with a dead family and all that rage - his own mother was stupid and sold him out to her husband. Anyway, because of the tampering with the original* story, there's all sorts of dropped story arcs and random disposable characters.

Finally, no I didn't watch it in 3D, taking the advice of many a professional reviewer. Despite some lovely effects (Kraken! Medusa!), it still fell flat. In fact, the whole thing felt a bit blah. Rent it, if you must. 2 out of 5 stars.

*EDIT: I am referring to the original myths, not the 1981 Laurence Olivier vehicle.

13 comments:

Unknown said...

Awe :( I was really looking forward to this one... seems like they're focusing more on scenes that look good in 3D then a story lately. Meh.

Malecasta said...

I was looking forward to it, Mags, I truly was. I mean, I LOVE Liam Neeson and Mr, Fiennes and Ancient Greece... but year, blah. And while I'm certain the emphasis was on the effects over the script, we can't blame 3D for this one - the 3D was done after it was finished shooting 9to try and cash in on some Avatar dollars).

Anonymous said...

You have seen the original? And I suprised you missed having a plot since almost every movie you watch is without one ;)

DK

Malecasta said...

ooohh, DK, below the belt!

I rarely watch "thinking" movies in theatre (as it doesn't justify the price tag) and keep the blow-em-ups on the big screen where i can appreciate a good SFX romp.

I have not watched the original movie (any movie prior to 1996 has some sketchtastic special effects) - I was referring to the actual myths.

Anonymous said...

Okaaay. . .not watching the original leaves you at a loss. The myths are losely interpreted and the result is a campy, fun ride which doesn't really serve any purpose other than to provide the opportunity for the hunk-of-the-minute to bear his chest. Not a lofty goal, but not completely without merit.

I like Titans because the effects were kept campy, in line with the original. I have to say that special effects ain't what they used to be and I mean that in a bad way. When you actually had to build scale models and figure out film projection techniques that made things look semi-authentic - it was an art.

Plus, how do you justify pleasure in special effects when most represent mass death and destruction for humankind? If any of the said "blockbuster" scenarios had happened, it wouldn't have been a thing to cruch popcorn to. Ask the cats in Haiti or Rwanda - how was mass death? Was it believable?

Give me The Station Agent any day.

DK

Taylor Clark said...

Hi there, would you mind giving a listen to my music?

taylorclark.bandcamp.com

Anonymous said...

Get lost Taylor Clark!

Taylor Clark said...

Thank you.

Malecasta said...

I like camp as much as the next person (Evil dead, ftw!) but I'm not going out of my way to watch the stuff. I find it silly and kinda stupid.

And yes, I also like mass death and destruction in a popcorn-muncher because, as a a few old Platonic-types once observed, the experiencing of tragedy in
"play" form makes us more sensitive to the real life version. Besides, I don't feel like I need to justify my watching of CGI genocide. I'm not going to mire myself in "serious" movies all the time just so I can be a "good" person or whatever... my cinephilic tastes have nothing to do with my moral core. I'm not an impressionable 8-year-old, after all. ...If I watch Titans, does this mean I can't somehow feel horror at Rwanda/Haiti/etc? I don't buy that. But hey, if you feel it does, you should avoid the movieplex between the months of May and August - nothing but soul-numbing blow-em-ups there.

Also: if watching make-believe death makes me somehow immune to the plight of real tragedy, does watching a lot of romances make me numb to love? or do scripted comedies make me immune to real life slapstick? and if not, why not?

Oh Taylor Clark, where did you ever get the impression that I was an adventurous audiophile? Honestly.

Anonymous said...

I now realize I am officially old since I now have a long distant cultural context which the young'uns don't share. It is very demoralizing ;)

Avoiding the theatres in the summer is generally my strategy. I suspect Plato did not anticipate CGI ;) At most, maybe 10 cast members can "die" on stage? But, you are right, watching does not equal participating.

P.S. Phew! I thought you knew this Clark kid!

DK

Taylor Clark said...

I am overwhelmed by your kindness.

Malecasta said...

I don't believe I do know this Clark kid, and while I wish him all the best in his endeavours, I would suggest that he avoid Scarlett's motto and not rely on the kindness of strangers. or their candy.

Taylor Clark said...

I'm sorry.