Hail Sci-Fi Fantasy fans and welcome to Day 4 of Sci-Fi
Fantasy Week. Thought we would go a bit
old school as if that has not been the theme thus far and head to the ancient
mythos of Greece. From petty and
wrathful gods to creatures of unspeakable terror, the lands are froth with
danger and wonder but one man dares to shake his fist in defiance against such
barbarism. No not that Kevin Sorbo guy,
I speak of Perseus. So grab your mystic
shield, DO NOT look at the Medusa and release the Kraken!!! This is Clash of the Titans.
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| Hiya folks, I'll have a virgin on the rocks! |
Zeus: Perseus has
won. My son has spoiled.
Hera: A fortunate young
man.
Zeus: Fortune is ally
to the brave.
King Acrisius of Argos proceeds to loathe his daughter Danae
for her beauty and has her imprisioned. Methinks the king is a bit of a
diva. When that dirty old god Zeus (Sir
Laurence Olivier of Othello, The Shoes of the Fisherman, Oh!, What a Lovely
War, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof and Dracula) comes around for a booty call
via Danae and impregnates her, Acrisius has both Danae and newly born grandson
Perseus sent to their deaths in a wooden coffin. Well Zeus took that poorly and calls down
the thunder for Acrisius and most of his kingdom by releasing the last Titan,
the Kraken to lay waste to all of Agros.
Danae and Perseus make their journey safely to the isle of Seriphos
where the child grows to manhood.
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| Lost my train of thought... |
Thetis, the sea goddess (Maggie Smith of Nowhere to Go,
Othello, The Honey Pot, Hook and Richard III) so proud of her petty and
cruel son Calibos (Neil McCarthy of Zulu, Where Eagles Dare and Time Bandits) is
engaged to Princess Andromeda (Judi Bowker of The Adventures of Black
Beauty, Brother Sun, Sister Moon, Ellis Island and Menace Unseen) of
Joppa ; in spite of destroying the Well of Moons and slaying several of Zeus’s
beloved flying horses with the exception of Pegasus. For these heinous acts, Zeus transforms
Calibos into some hideous devil and exiled by his own people. Probably through the aid of a few well placed
stones and pitchforks.
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| The land of Joppa is not "faun" of Calibos. |
Thetis whisks Perseus in the night with a wind transporting
him to an amphitheatre in Joppa where he is befriends by a kind old poet name
of Ammon (Burgess Meredith of Twilight Zone, Batman, Mr. Novak, Rocky and Grumpy
Old Men) . Perseus sees
Andromeda and is smitten by her but Ammon warns him of a curse she is under on
how she cannot marry unless a riddle is solved.
And if that doesn’t work maybe he can twist time like Prince of Persia
and start anew. To give his boy a leg
up, Zeus gives Perseus three magical artifacts, a helm of invisibility, a
shield and a finely crafted sword worthy of any warrior. Mutilating Calibos in the swamps, Perseus
is betrothed to Andromeda and momma Thetis does not care for this at all and
demands Andromeda is sacrificed to the Kraken.
Desperate to save his lady love Perseus and a handful of the king and
queen’s men go to search for a way to defeat the Kraken.
I’ve got just a few notes on this particular film. The stop motion effects are done by creature
FX and producer Ray Harryhausen (The 7th
Voyage of Sinbad, Jason and the Argonauts, One Million Years B.C., and Sinbad
and the Eye of the Tiger) with a series of scale models and super
imposing. Yes loads of blue screen
effects so I am sure the youngins are rolling their eyes but come on; Ursula
Andress was in this flick still looking yummy.
Give credit where it is due.
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| Just peepin',son. Prop me next to the bed for the real action. |
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