Wrath of the Titans (2012)

When it comes to the original (remake) Clash of the TItans, I was largely indifferent to it. It had some cool visuals and ideas, but overall it felt a little bit undercooked and clumsy. But whatever…it’s fantasy. So when the inevitable sequel landed on the scene, I expected more of the same. Which is what I got…only better. Yep, Wrath of the Titans mildly surpasses it’s predecessor in nearly every way. Which isn’t to accuse it of being a masterpiece, but it is a better-presented film with a (somewhat) filled in story…that actually feels like 3 Acts instead of 2 and a Half(shakes fist at original)! Speaking of the story, it goes a lil somethin like this. Sam Worthington (yep…him again) once again portrays Perseus, the half man/half god son of Zeus and celebrated hero of the events of the first film. Turning his back on his divine legacy, Pers has decided to live the high life…as a human fisherman. What ambition, huh? Along the way, he fathered a kid that seems genetically predisposed to have sand kicked in his face, snivelling little wuss that he was. Meanwhile, Zeus is betrayed and imprisoned in The Underworld while his glowing power sap is drained and ‘IV’d into the Titans slumbering deadbeat (and REALLY dangerous) dad, Kronos. Guess who has to save the day (AND friggin mankind). That’s right…your buddy and mine…PERSEUS! And thus begins the epic quest. Undeserved sarcasm aside, ‘EPIC’ is one area that an effort was made in this flick and often works. A good fistfull of shots and concepts are awesome in their fantasy grandeur. Shots of a marauding Kronos or a monstrous, automated stone labrinyth are pretty damn sweet in their scope, easily rivalling LOTR for visual magnificence. Occasionally a lame green screen shot or two will creep through but so much of the CG is surprisingly solid. As I’m sure the theatrical 3D would’ve been too. And speaking of solid, most of the cast steps up to plate to keep the story moving…as much of a ‘story’ as it is. It’s another ‘who’s who’ of talented people. You’ve got Liam Neeson, Ralph Fiennes, Bill Nighy, Danny Huston, Edgar Ramirez and a flying horse. One character who I felt should be fed to the Kraken was Queen Andromeda, played by some Rosamund Pike chick. She was SO dull, making virtually NO impression on me whatsoever, despite being a main character. I couldn’t have cared less about what happened to her.But it was great to see Fiennes and Neeson ‘Gandalf’ it up again as rival gods, Zeus and Hades. There’s a great sequence where the two of them lay down a divine ass kicking on the battlefield. I do everything I can to keep Schindlers List out of my mind when I see these two acting gods on screen together. Sometimes it works…sometimes it doesn’t. (shrugs) Overall, Wrath of the Titans was an entertaining burst of big-budget fantasy and it did exactly what it needed to do. It’s not a complex or challenging story but it is ‘pretty’, with some surprisingly imaginative shit on its visual resume. I fired it up with next to no expectations and that worked in its favor…and mine…and maybe yours. Feel the Wrath!!!