Perseus must battle both Medusa and the Kraken to save the Princess Andromeda.Anyone who loves fantasy or classic genre film knows Ray Harryhausen and loves his work. Never will you ever hear, "That Harryhausen! What a rube!" And this film, more than any other, is probably the definitive showcase of his work -- from Pegasus to the owl to Medusa to the kraken... it is just so many iconic figures in one film.And what a film! Certainly epic in scope, it is possibly the best Greek myth captured on film. I mean, really, what even comes close? Those endless cruddy Hercules movies? Nope "Jason and the Argonauts"? Maybe, but still nope. If there is ONE must-see, this is it.

Maggie Smith has won more awards and nominations than anyone else I know, so it's a shame to find her giving the most amateurish performance of her career in this movie. Admittedly, she was pressed hard by an incredibly woeful line-up led by Sir Laurence Olivier of all people. To add insult to injury, the hero is wet and the heroine offers little more than the charm of youth. This general thespic malaise even extends to Burgess Meredith. Admittedly, his is easily the most capable performance in the whole show, but why didn't he seize the opportunity to turn his role into a comic character? Admittedly, the whole movie improves truly dramatically in its last half-hour, but by that time all this really good stuff is totally wasted because most of the audience has frittered away. The preview theatre was packed to the doors at the start. Two hours later, at the end of the movie, there were just over fifty of us left!

Clash Of The Titans comes from a special magic place in time, the early 1980's. Before cgi ruled the cinematic world, film makers and their special f/x crews relied on craftsmanship and creativity to get their fantastical visions on the screen. Ray Harryhausen's hard work and intense imagination bring the Greek mythology to life and it is a sight to behold. Of course, the special visual f/x are a major part of the film, but Desmond Davis directed this and did a fine job in keeping this cohesive and exciting. The film itself looks great, is well acted and sounds great with the uplifting and triumphant score by Laurence Rosenthal. Harry Hamlin is excellent as hero Perseus and does a great job in carrying the film. Judi Bowker is the gorgeous Princess Andromeda and love interest for hero and super stud Perseus. I'm sure most guys in Perseus place would have little problem rising to the occasion to fight the forces of evil to gain the favor of our super hot princess. Most dudes would die trying, which is why Perseus is the man. The rest of the support cast(mostly British) is great also. Plus Burgess Merideth, Ursula Andress and most importantly Laurence Oliver brings down the thunder as Zeus. The early 80's were a great time for movies like this and Clash Of The Titans has long been a favorite of mine since I was a kid. As an adult, I still find it enjoyable but it is also is a very well made and classy movie as well.

You wonder why this stinks so much , I mean, Haussen's "Jason and the Argonauts" was older, maybe less accomplished, and magical. This thing is a groan fest. Olivier, Bloom, Meredith - these are superlative actors, why are they in this thing? It's not an Actor's movie - the point is to tell a story, entertain kids, and kids don't need to know Olivier is Zeus, just get on with the action. But the action seemed so laboured, totally lacking the flair and intrigue that marked Ray's earlier films. Were they trying too hard to make an epic in the great style with all this talent? Then they should not have had all these toy monsters flying around, it's an imbalance in genres, and as for that owl, you just want to shoot it, honestly.