Clash of the Titans


Borrowing from several Greek stories and compounding them into one feature, the screenplay, written by Beverley Cross (
Jason and the Argonaughts) takes Perseus from he and his mother’s place of exile to Jobba where he meets up with Ammon (the ever charming Burgess Meredith), a scholar and playwright.  Ammon, playing the part of the mentory, guides the young Perseus as he battles Calibos (Neil McCarthy) and Medusa in order to save Andromeda from the curse that threatens to unleash the mighty force of the Kraken.  While stop motion and meant for children, the fantasy elements of the script - and its use of Joseph Campbell’s insight on the journey of the hero - keeps this feature smart and nearly untouchable; this is the marker most epic narratives strive for.From out of the misty vapors of another time – a time when Gods ruled the ancient lands of Earth and, throwing caution aside, mingled with the more desirable of their fleshy devotees for one night stands – comes a heroic narrative about a young man, once banished by a jealous King, who finds his true calling (and heritage) against all things monstrously stop motion with a little help from a magical sword, shield, helmet, and mechanical bird.  Welcome to 1981.  The film is, of course, Clash of the Titans starring Sir Laurance Olivier as Zeus and Harry Hamlin as the young Perseus.  While directed by Desmond Davis and featuring the inspiring beauty of Judi Bowker as Andromeda, the key note to focus in on with this feature is stop motion guru Ray Harryhausen, as this would be – unbeknownst at the time – his last feature before retiring from the business of all things clay.

Harryhausen, a champion of all things fantasy and ancient, and his creative team absolutely deliver on the requirements of Clash of the Titans; the monsters are memorable, timeless, and scary as hell.  Harryhausen, who inspired Lucas, Spielberg, Cameron, Burton, and Jackson, creates some of his best work with Cross’s screenplay.  In fact, his effects provide a certain texture missing from today’s CGI output; there is more physical movement for the eye and the actors to connect with and, in doing so, creates a look of authenticity to the film’s special effects.  Now, I am not going to be so bold as to suggest that Harryhausen is better than a computer, but certainly there is a fleshy movement to his creatures that is simply missing in today’s computer generated output.  Don’t believe me?  Compare the earthiness and downright creepiness of his stop motion rendering of Medusa to the one seen in Leterrier’s already forgotten remake and you will see the layered difference; the overall quality of this film – on a very limited budget – is simply the result of patience and months of Harryhausen’s hard work.

In light of the 2010 inferior remake - in which CGI experts had their chance with the material and failed - there is simply no knocking this classic; no amount of criticism over its use of stop-motion in 1981 or the mostly wooden acting from its leads could ever topple this monster of a B movie.  Even criticisms of the film’s pacing are rendered insignificant because of the fun involved.  Arriving post-Star Wars, Harryhausen’s final feature was never meant to be taken seriously, but audience loved it, making it one of the top-grossing films of that year.  As a result, Clash of the Titans can be enjoyed on an almost ethereal level as a throwback to a bygone era of filmmaking.


Component Grades
Movie
 
DVD
5 Stars
 
4 stars
     
DVD Experience
4.5 stars

Blu-ray

Blu-ray Details:

Available on Blu-ray Combo Pack, DVD, On Demand and for Download - May 25, 2010
Screen Formats: 2.39:1
Subtitles
: English, Spanish
Audio:
English: Dolby Digital 5.1

Freshly new on Blu, Clash of the Titans delivers a timeless quality that was simply missing from this year’s remake.  There really are no octane-fueled additions to the film, but the stereo mix absolutely brings to life what slapping a standard Dolby Digital Track wouldn’t have because of the condition of the original mix.  While not one the best examples of picture remastering due to the limitations in the original source, Clash of the Titans is certainly a worthy addition to any film library.   The only complaint is that the features are a tad too light and frothy.  There is a worthless sneak peek at Louis Leterrier's remake plugged in when the disc starts (it can be skipped).  The rest are as follows:

Supplements:

Featurettes:

  • "Conversation with Ray Harryhausen” (12 minutes): an all-too short interview with Harryhausen as he discusses the making of the film and its history.  Fun, but much too brief to be of any real value to a Harryhausen enthusiast.
  • “Special Effects Overview” (10 minutes): This seven-part feature is an extension of the interview conducted for the first feature. This time, Harryhausen specifically discusses the creation of the Kraken, Medusa, Calibos, Pegasus, Bubo, Dioskilos, and the Scorpions.

 

{pgomakase}