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A DVD Review of...
  
Images (C) Warner Home Video |
Genre: Fantasy/Adventure
Cast: Harry Hamlin, Judi Bowker, Laurence Olivier, Burgess Meredith, Maggie Smith, Ursula Andress
Synopsis: Film version of the Greek mythological tale of Perseus. In Ancient Greece, the city of Argos is destroyed by the gods
as punishment for the tyrannical leader who has thrown his wife and son into the sea (the son actually is that of Zeus). Years later when the son had grown up to become
the young man known as Perseus, the goddess Thetis takes him from home and drops him in Phoenicia where he discovers a beautiful princess
Film Review: As a kid there are many films we fall in love with so much that coming back to them
years later you're either left impressed at how well it held up, or devastated at how bad it was. For me "Clash of
the Titans" was the big adventure movie I fell in love with as a young boy. "Conan", "Sinbad" even "Jason and the Argonauts" I thought were fine films but never endeared themselves to me the way 'Clash' did. In my pre-high school days I had a huge thing for Greek and Egyptian mythology, and the Perseus tale was one of my favourites - combine that with a decent knowledge of the gods and legends in a film filled with exposition that's discernible only to those familiar with the subject, and you had an adventure carved perfectly for European historical fantasy loving young boys like me.
Now all grown up and looking back, 'Clash' is a very dated movie that's full of too many holes to count, and yet there's still some admirable stuff here of both a serious and (very) camp nature. Harry Hamlin's no thespian (his nipples get more screen time than his face in this), but he's got the look and charm to him that meat-headed clones like The Rock can't even begin to approach. Bowker holds up well as the babe-a-licious princess with a bit of fire behind her, and Burgess Meredith lends welcome support. There's all this talk that a remake of this will omit the Mount Olympus scenes which is a real shame as they're one of the highlights. A collection of stunning actors as the Greek Gods range from the overbearing Zeus (Laurence Olivier whooping it up) to the radiant Aphrodite (Ursula Andress) and the always delightful Maggie Smith as the scheming Thetis. The clay statue voodoo-esque theme still works quite well and it'll be a shame to see this go if the remake happens.
Other segments hold up quite well. To this day the seven-minute Medusa sequence remains a fantastic suspense sequence. Harryhausen's serpentine female creation is benefited by the stop-motion animation to give her a more otherworldly feel, same goes for the creepy Charon the Ferryman and the majestic Pegasus. The scorpion battle, Argos destruction, and the Kraken itself are still exciting set pieces but more in idea than execution. The two-headed dog, the fight with the demonic looking Calibos and some of the earlier action pieces more than ever feel like unnecessary filler which is a shame. The wonderous orchestral score plays the unforgettable theme tune with resonance at every turn, production values are surprisingly high quality at times, and in the end it remains a great 80's light fantasy piece. As an objective reviewer I'd probably score this lower than I have but this is one film I can't really be objective about. Call me corny or cheesy, but this very B-grade effort means a lot to me and that's one opinion that time and an expanded knowledge of film won't change. - Garth Franklin
"Clash of the Titans"
DVD Details In Brief (Region 1)
Rating: PG
Runtime: 118mins
Versions: 16:9 Enhanced Widescreen, 4:3 Letterboxed
Aspect Ratio: 1.85: 1
Sound: Dolby Digital 5.1
Language & Sub-Titles: English, Spanish, French
Documentaries: A Conversation with Ray Harryhausen Featurette, Interactive Map of Myths and Monsters
Other: Trailer, Filmographies
Region 1 vs. Region 4: Standard NTSC/PAL Differences. |
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DVD Review: 'Clash' comes to disc in rather unspectacular fashion. The video does look better than VHS but colours are flat, specks and dirt appear on the print every now and then and edges are a little soft. On the upside certain sequences hold up and look far better than ever before on disc (incl. the Medusa scene) whilst other scenes look so good it makes the FX shots seem very dated (such as Neptune walking under the sea). Audio is only stereo surround and whilst the strong score shines through, this is a release that really calls for a strong 5.1 surround mix. In a 12-minute featurette, FX god Ray Harryhausen comments on various things such as his influences, the plot changes, the casting (incl. the Britishness of the gods), the locations (including Malibu, Spain, Italy, Malta and Pinewood), the music and of course the legacy he's left behind with the projects. "Maps of Myths and Monsters" has seven very short featurettes talking about how each FX character (eg. Medusa, Kraken, Bubo) were carved, molded and shot to look as they were incorporated into the action. The extras cap off with filmographies and the ok trailer. Its good to see 'Clash' finally in a decent quality format as till now most of us have only had access to very worn out VHS copies, but seriously this is one film that deserves better treatment than it has received here. - Garth Franklin
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