On general release from Friday 2nd April "Clash of the Titans" is set to be the latest Box Office smash from Warner Bros.
Being lucky enough to have a ticket for the media preview I attended a night screening at The Empire, Leicester Square in the heart of London's West End. The Empire itself is an impressive building with luxurious decor which retains a genuine art deco feel just like the old picture houses. The Auditorium is a lot bigger than my local cinema with plenty of seats, a huge screen and an audio setup which is worryingly loud at times.
The storyline is set in mythological ancient Greece and begins at a point when humans wage war against their gods. In Olympus the king of the gods Zeus, played by Liam Neeson, appoints Hades, the god of the underworld played by Ralph Fiennes, to unleash his dreaded creation the Kraken to smite the humans; Hades plans to betray Zeus and take the Earth for his own hellish purpose.
The main character Perseus, played by Sam Worthington is a demigod and the illegitimate son of Zeus and his human mother. Perseus forges his allegiance against the gods when his adoptive family are killed; joining a small army of daring warriors lead by, Draco, Mads Mikkelsen and acquires the beautiful Io, a spiritual guide, played by Gemma Arterton, to help him on his quest.
With his supernatural sword and Pegasus his flying steed, Perseus and his companions defeat many monsters on their way to the underworld looking for Medusa, the only creature powerful enough to kill the Kraken. Once Perseus had slain the gorgon he takes her head to use in the final showdown with the Kraken; turning it to stone and sending it crashing into the sea. With Hades' beast dead, he is blasted back to Hell as punishment and peace once again reigns between the gods and the world.
Based on the original 80's classic there has been plenty of graphic material for the production companies to work with. Benefitting from special effects like modern CGI, prosthetics, animatronics, design and new Dolby3D it certainly packs a punch. Impressive computer animation really bonds the story together with detailed landscapes, flight sequences, rampaging monsters, fight action and general carnage and does well to provide a strong sense of visual realism and dimension through new 3D technology.
The dialogue with its comic book form is easy to follow but sometimes lacks detail and oversimplifies the plot. I found it hard to learn about the lesser characters some of whom I recognised and have liked from other films and TV shows and they seemed to me to be killed off prematurely. The sound effects especially during fight sequences was at times frighteningly loud and made me feel slightly uncomfortable. The incidental music and film score I didn't feel was very memorable but did the job of creating the atmosphere.
To sum up, the director Louis Leterrier, producers Basil Iwanyk and Kevin de la Noy, all the actors, actresses and other key filmmaking staff have produced a film with plenty of bangs, jumps, slashes, monsters and laughs which should appeal to fans of all ages who enjoy a fantasy quest set in the area where gods, monsters and mortal men dare to roam.
Senegal unveils colossal statueSenegal has unveiled what it calls the world's tallest statue during a lavish ceremony held amid reports of criticism over the monument's construction at a time when the western African nation is struggling financially.
