Wrath Of The Titans
- Year:2012
- Rating:M
- Director:Jonathan Liebesman
- Cast:Ralph Fiennes, Liam Neeson, Bill Nighy, Rosamund Pike, Sam Worthington
- Release Date:March 29, 2012
- Distributor:Roadshow
- Running time:99 minutes
- Film Worth:$11.50
- FILMINK rates movies out of $20 - the score indicates the amount we believe a ticket to the movie to be worth
This over-the top sequel is mindless stuff, but its keen sense of adventure will tide over those seeking cushy escapism.
Despite enduring the wrath of the critics, 2010's Clash Of The Titans made a killing at the international box office - raking in almost $500 million worldwide - so naturally Hollywood returns to the epic world of Greek mythology to grind out another cash-grab with this bloated sequel.
Set ten years after the events of the original, Perseus (Sam Worthington) strives for an idyllic lifestyle in a sleepy fishing village. Unfortunately for him, the gods are in a fragile state and there is an internal power struggle going on. Consequently, Perseus' father, Zeus (Liam Neeson) is betrayed by his own brother, Hades (Ralph Fiennes), and held captive in Tartarus (a dungeon buried deep within the underworld). Teamed with Queen Andromeda (Rosamund Pike, replacing Alexa Davalos from the first film), Perseus embarks on a rescue mission that sees him battling Cyclops, negotiating an ancient labyrinth, flying a Pegasus and fighting a giant lava monster...
Given the hatchet job the first time around, the bill of fine British actors attached to Wrath Of The Titans is quite bizarre. The usually luminous Rosamund Pike is stagnant as the bland Andromenda, but Ralph Fiennes hams things up nicely, and Bill Nighy provides memorable comic relief as the dithering Hephaestus. Worthington's Aussie inflection does tend to stand out, but he has a strong physical presence on screen. To their credit, the actors aren't given much to work from, with a puerile screenplay that follows a video-game like structure leaping from one elaborate set piece to the next - but with Jonathan Liebesman (The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Battle Los Angeles) at the helm, they're executed with a sense of clarity and campy fun.
Like its predecessor, Wrath Of The Titans has been converted into 3D in post-production, but thankfully technology has improved, sparing audiences the murky distortions often associated with the technique. The 3D isn't brilliant, but colour remains strong, and the picture quality is overall quite clear. The final sequence in which an enraged Kronos battles leagues of soldiers in the desert is almost worth the price of admission alone with dazzling CGI and effective 3D (the lava dripping from the monsters' limbs is particularly well textured).
It might be trash, but for those willing to forgive the bland narrative, Wrath Of The Titans is a relatively fun and spectacular adventure.
