Thiel-a-Vision Review: Clash of the Titans

1/2

Clash of the Titans is both veteran stop-motion animator Ray Harryhausen's final film, and the one which is probably most familiar to modern audiences, due to its frequent cable television airings. While it's something of a return to form for Harryhausen, it's also a bit of a disappointment. 

In both subject matter and style, it's reminiscent of his Jason and the Argonauts. It recounts the story of Perseus--a son of Zeus, the king of the gods--and his battle with Medusa, the snake-haired gorgon whose gaze could turn men to stone. Along the way, Perseus encounters a variety of animated monsters, some from Greco-Roman mythology, but some not.

One thing the film gets very right is its portrayal of the gods of Mt. Olympus, particularly Zeus. As played by Sir Laurence Olivier, Zeus is a complete ass: a serial seducer who capriciously punishes mortals while protecting his human son to serve his own pride and vanity. As in Jason, the gods literally play games using men, women and monsters as their pawns.

If I have a complaint about Harryhausen, it's that he tended to compromise his stories with the incorporation of creatures that were alien to their settings. Sometimes it was for artistic reasons--perhaps a particular beast concept appealed to him--but sometimes it was simply a matter of time/money. (Granted, all of his work predated the era of CGI, which meant that everything was done by hand, a frame at a time.) 

Hence, instead of the three-headed dog Cerberus guarding the Land of the Dead, we get the budget-friendly, two-headed "Dioskilos." Meanwhile, Perseus is menaced by a decidedly non-mythological giant vulture and several oversized scorpions. The sea serpent of the legend is recast as the Kraken, appearing more than a thousand years prior to the time of its first historical mention.

The worst offender of all is Bubo, Ancient Greece's entry into the International R2-D2 Look-Alike Competition. Bubo is a mechanical stand-in for the pet owl of the goddess Athena, sent to aid Perseus in his quest. It whirs, bleeps and behaves in an oh-so-cute manner completely at odds with the tone of the film. I hate this sort of obviously out-of-place pandering to young audiences. Flying horses and snake-headed monsters aren't enough--bring on the robot!

Still, Clash of the Titans does feature some of Harryhausen's best work. The flying steed Pegasus is smoothly animated, and the Medusa sequence is eerily effective. Not content with a women with snakes for hair, Harryhausen makes her snake-bodied as well, and arms her with a deadly bow and arrow. 

The animation is marred only by some terrible process photography, particularly during the scorpion fight. It's painfully obvious that Perseus and friends are projected behind the models.

So, why give the film a mild recommendation? For one, it's the last gasp of a certain kind of storytelling and a form of special effects that worked wonders for some sixty years. The large budget allows for some beautiful locations and a group of terrific actors including Burgess Meredith, Maggie Smith and Claire Bloom. And as a bonus, Clash of the Titans comes from an era in which it was still acceptable to drop gratuitous nudity into a family film, and for that I am grateful.

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