For its time and on the big screen what's not to like? Fun, adventure, myths, monsters and good versus evil rules the screen and more. Watching this is not hard but if one wants to get critical, the magic comes into question. I watch to be entertained and this movie has good, pure motives. Made on the cheap, it paid for itself and was worth the price of a movie ticket. Furthermore, it was worth seeing more than once for the memorable scenes. The gods ruled everything and if you didn't believe in them you got your comeuppance. If you did, you got your destiny and if the gods argue, anything goes. Here, you get it all plus a delightful little fellow called Bubo who comes in handy. Sort of like a flying crystal ball in the shape of an owl, if you could understand this thing you had a good friend. I was surprised at the nudity that showed up in this movie. Interesting for the eighties but of course who would have known we are just getting started here. The actors had fun, made some money, special affects wowed us, there was a love story, a hero and a solid ending. Too bad they didn't sequel this. Have snack and tasty drink but nothing heavy especially when Medusa gets hers. Not appetizing but doable. By the way, the remake was disappointing but still captured your interest enough to go see it and from the producers/investors point of view made sense. However it leaves the viewer holding the bag but that's Hollywood a business first and whatever happens second..

Inspired by the figures of Greek mythology, "Clash of the Titans" tells the tale of Perseus (Harry Hamlin), the mortal son of the god Zeus (who else but Laurence Olivier). In order to meet his destiny, Perseus will be made to face one challenge after another. Zeus and other gods offer assistance at every opportunity, although Perseus's mission will be hindered by the vengeful god Thetis (Maggie Smith), whose son Calibos was turned into a freak for his misdeeds.Yes, "Clash of the Titans" '81 is most likely to appeal to the young and young at heart, who should experience a fair amount of wonder. It might not be meaty enough or intense enough for more adult viewers, but overall it's still an engaging, well produced, well shot (on locations in Spain, Italy, and Malta) fantasy adventure. Production design, cinematography, and music are all assets. It does have some mighty fine sequences, especially the taming of the winged horse Pegasus, and the terrifying showdown with the gorgon Medusa, the hideous beast who turns living things to stone if they look at her face.This has a first rate cast of veterans. Olivier is somewhat hammy, but not unbearably so. Also appearing are Claire Bloom, Ursula Andress, Jack Gwillim, Burgess Meredith, Sian Phillips, and Flora Robson. Some don't get to do a whole lot, but Smith is fun as one of the antagonists of the piece. Then-newcomers Hamlin and beautiful Judi Bowker as his love interest Andromeda aren't great actors, but they have enough appeal going for them. Neil McCarthy is quite good, buried under heavy makeup as the evil Calibos.The real star of the movie, though, as anyone would tell you, is special effects legend Ray Harryhausen. His stop motion visuals are once again a joy to behold, and his characters have a charm that even the best CGI can't touch. The one "immortal" for whom some viewers may have little to no patience is the mechanical owl Bubo, who's just a little too precious.It may not be terribly faithful to actual Greek mythology, but one shouldn't really expect history lessons from escapist entertainment like this anyway.Seven out of 10.

Fantasy adventure classic that tells the story of the Greek hero Perseus (Harry Hamlin) and features the last film work of legendary stop-motion effects wizard, Ray Harryhausen. In a way, it's a loving tribute to a kind of movie that had died out by 1981. We still have attempts to make these types of movies today (even a remake of this film), but the results are not the same. I'm not saying they aren't sometimes enjoyable in their way but CGI just doesn't have the charm and appeal of old-school special effects. The focus today is on realism, not imagination. Frankly, trying to tell a story that involves gods, winged horses, and Medusa "realistically" makes no sense to me. Embrace the fantasy or just avoid it altogether and make another movie about cops or drug dealers. The cast here is good, even Harry Hamlin. Yes, some of these great older actors appear to be slumming but they all treat the material seriously and refrain from hamming it up. There's a lesson that could be taught to today's cynical thespians, I think. Mini-rants aside, this is a very fun movie for those who enjoy old-fashioned sword & sandal movies and classic special effects. Fans of Greek mythology should have a field day with it, as well.

Every culture has their own legendary stories or epics. The most common of cultures that writers and filmmakers look at are from early Roman and Greek mythology. There's something about the ancestry of man at that time, in that location, of which intrigues peoples. It could be as complex as the pagan beliefs and laws or as simple as the way clothing was worn. The reasoning behind the gravitation towards this culture is less clear than the subject at hand itself (which is quite honestly weird). Nevertheless, there have been adaptations to the screen before this one based on this topic, but this particular adventure film is different for a number of reasons. It's still not perfect but is hard not to like.Viewers will be introduced to Perseus (Harry Hamlin), an abandoned boy who is saved by Zeus, king of the gods. Apparently, Perseus is also the son of Zeus, which kind of puts the story of Hercules into question. As Perseus grows up, Zeus informs him of his journey that'll make him great and forever make him a staple in history. The weird thing is, Perseus just accepts this. Obviously, the belief of signs and omens were highly regarded back then, but not even a hint of doubt comes into his mind. You know this could all be a trick Perseus? Besides, before being told about his possible future, Perseus lives the life of luxury as it was. What if he was lazy and decided that he didn't feel a need to take on this opportunity that the Gods presented to him? Then what?There are also several other little things that clearly were not verified in the screenplay that Beverly Cross wrote. Cross was also behind the more popular Jason and the Argonauts (1963). This is not to say that all of the writing doesn't make sense, it just contains strange truths that aren't confirmed until after the claim is made. The story does however have good pacing and keeps the spirit of adventure and discovery high. Surprisingly there are also a couple of parallels that can be drawn to Disney's Hercules (1997). Some being that Hercules and Perseus fight giant creatures, ride a flying horse named Pegasus, were the son of Zeus and most visible are the three blind witches that look into an all seeing eye (and they sound like them from Hercules (1997) too!). Did Disney take inspiration from this movie? The cast is another element to make note of - some went on to be known for other roles or were already known, while others disappeared completely. The completely vanished group belongs to the main stars, Harry Hamlin and his love interest played by Judi Bowker. These two do contain a filmography history but didn't bother go on to anything big even though this movie performed well. But the section of cast that did flourish or was already well known were Maggie Smith (who plays in the Harry Potter series), Ursula Andress (she didn't move on far but was known for her 007 roles) and Burgess Meredith (from the Rocky series). However, these are not the only stars on the screen. One of the key highlights to the film is effects master Ray Harryhausen's creature stop-motion animation. Of course by today's standards it seems out of date but that's because of the limited technology at the time. In fact, there's a good portion of the film that still looks rather decent as old as it is. The most memorable scene of the film would be the battle of Perseus Vs Medusa. My favorite was Bubo the mechanical Owl. As Mr. Harryhausen's last film, it shows he went all out in effort to impress. Harryhausen also was the guy behind the effects in Jason and the Argonauts (1963). Timothy Gee, although doesn't have a big resume for films, effectively edited the film so that it cuts between live- action and stop-motion without losing the illusion. Finally, I was surprised in Laurence Rosenthal's score. For a composer who spent most of his time doing TV music, is not half bad. It had a theme to Perseus and it sounded very heroic. It wasn't memorable but it did match the mood of the film easily. Watch more for nostalgic reasons if nothing else.It lacks clarity for certain truths and its main character seems to have no humanity for he just follows what the Gods say. But as a whole, the special effects, although now considered old, are still great to watch, it has a decent cast and it's a steady moving adventure.