Wrath of the Titans

Wrath of the Titans is Spectacularly Epic!
by Reymundo Salao

WRATH OF THE TITANS is the sequel to the 2010 movie Clash of the Titans. In this movie, the gods and goddesses of Olympus are dying and losing their power, while Titans that have long been imprisoned are about to rise and have their revenge against the gods and goddesses, and unleash their chaos against mankind. Perseus must travel deep into Tartarus to save his father, and stop the wrath of the titans.

The 2010 movie Clash of the Titans was battered by critics so much that there was really a conscious effort to make the sequel far more impressive than just better. And this movie did indeed meet those expectations. Great story, impressive action, and jaw-dropping visuals; WRATH OF THE TITANS is enjoyably epic.

What makes it better than your average Hollywood summer blockbuster movie is that this one seems to take its time to tell a story. Sure there is plenty of action, and mindblowing creatures that will flood your eyes with hot molten lava… But in between the gaps, it never wastes time on lame jokes and unimpressive romance; instead, it cleverly utilizes this gap to effectively tell a story. A story which is the conflict between god brothers Zeus and Hades, and of the relationship between Perseus and Ares. Its story may not be based on an existing story in the Greek mythology, but really does embody the characteristics of it and does make it seem like part of the existing mythology. It feels like an unofficial, but acceptable, final chapter to all the tales in the Greek mythology in general.

I can feel some sense of subliminal message behind the movie’s storyline and its subplots. In the movie, the world is facing dangerously apocalyptic catastrophes because the Gods and Goddesses are weakening; they are weakening because nobody prays to them or worships them anymore. I could not help but wonder if the writer had intentionally injected some kind of subliminal religious message about the modern state of the world and the gradual decline of religion. In one scene, Andromeda makes a short speech about how humans are unique beings because in their darkest moments, humans can have faith in what many might think is ridiculous. Is this a subliminal argument against atheist ideas? In numerous other instances in the movie, there seems to be subtle theological ideas injected. There is also an emphasis of the virtue of forgiveness; Such as in the moment where Zeus is being tormented by Hades, yet he says to Hades that he (Hades) is forgiven for his actions. This seemed like an obvious reference to Christian virtues. And while this seemed a bit out of character when you read up on who Zeus is, it works well with the context of the movie, since they are indeed dealing with what is going to be the end of the world.

I loved how the story seems to have some elements of Percy Jackson and Tarsem Singh’s Immortals; but this one seems to have been consciously done in a far more superior manner. It felt like it has the same degree of honesty as those old mythology movies of the 70’s and 80’s; of course, only with grandiose visual effects this time.

It is visually awesome! The creature designs and the special effects blend extremely well. It was so enjoyable to see creatures from Greek Mythology come to life in this movie! I was blown away in barbaric delight to see the Chimera and the refreshing way it portrays how it spews fire from its mouth. I loved how they show that his saliva is as flammable as gasoline (come to think of it, Chimeras could have solved our gas crisis). The Cyclops and the Minotaur were also fun to watch. But my favorite creatures were the Makhai and the supremely stunning Kronos. I should also note the other interesting bits of visual marvels in the movie such as the way Zeus was being drained of his power, and also the labyrinth of Hephaestus. And speaking of Hephaestus, I cheered to see Bill Nighy for this role; he was just absolutely fun to watch. Even though his appearance was brief, he made each second of it count.

The only nitpick demerit that I could find is found at the final scenes with Zeus and Hades; and how Zeus’ actuations and one corny line he blurt out in that scene felt out of place. Aside from that, I could say that this movie is a high-rater for a blockbuster spectacle.

In the level of your typical, summer blockbuster movie, it is a solid perfect movie. I personally judge it as a movie that is above the average eye candy action-adventure fantasy epic. The kind of movie that will leave you talking about it afterwards, and makes you remember its many sequences and its many visuals. This is indeed Greek Mythology done by Hollywood, at its epic best.