Susan Granger’s review of “Wrath of the Titans” (Warner Bros.)
The demigod Perseus faces his heroic destiny in this epic, action-packed sequel to “Clash of the Titans,” which generated nearly $500 million at the box-office in 2010.
Set a decade later, the half-god/half-human Perseus (Sam Worthington) is a widower, raising his young son, Helios (John Bell). Turning his back on the tortuous machinations atop Mount Olympus, he’s literally “gone fishing,” as his diabolically jealous brother Ares (Edgar Ramiriz) puts it. Problem is: the people of Greece are also ignoring their ancient gods and, when faith in these mythological deities disappears, they lose strength and power. Without prayer, they literally turn to stone.
But then Perseus’ father Zeus (Liam Neeson) is imprisoned by his embittered brother Hades (Ralph Fiennes) in the Underworld city of Tartarus, where fiery, lava-spewing Kronos – who fathered Zeus, Hades and Poseidon (Danny Huston) – is determined to drain the gods’ power and destroy the world. On a quest to rescue his father and restore right to the universe, Perseus teams up with Poseidon’s demigod navigator son, Agenor (Toby Kebbell), the warrior-queen Andromeda (Rosamund Pike) and humorous Hephaestus (Bill Nighy), who is not only serves as metallurgist/armorer to the gods but also knows the secret way into Tartarus.
Based on an improvised, obviously sketchy story by Greg Berlanti, it’s inanely scripted by Dan Mazeau and David Johnson, who create one-dimensional characters shouting solemn, stultifying dialogue. Visually directed by Jonathan Liebesman (“Battle: Los Angeles”), the most memorable moments emanate from the creative CGI team – like when Perseus races through the labyrinth and fights the monstrous Minotaur. But that’s only one of his battles. And so much more could have been done with Pegasus, the winged horse.
FYI: For a far better sword-and-sandals experience, rent the British-cast “Clash of the Titans,” made in 1981, starring Laurence Olivier, Claire Bloom and Maggie Smith.
On the Granger Gauge of 1 to 10, “Wrath of the Titans” is a fantastical 4, but – bottom line – it’s tediously bland and banal, lacking the excitement and suspense that this kind of adventure should have.
