In that way, the film -- a sequel of course to 2010's Clash of the Titans -- is much like the cavernous Underworld where our heroes are questing. The realm of Hades (Ralph Fiennes), this is where the souls of the dead spend eternity. Only there are virtually no such shades to be found once our hero Perseus arrives there. Yes, his A-list counterparts are on hand for some soundstage histrionics, but the depth, the flesh of the Underworld of legend just isn't present. This doesn't feel like the sad, blighted home of countless generations of forgotten souls so much as it does the inside of a computer artist's workstation.
The inert Sam Worthington is back as Perseus, the demigod and son of Zeus (Liam Neeson). He just wants to live a simple life as a mortal fisherman with his young son, who he's been raising alone ever since Gemma Arterton's character was written out of the script after the first film. But as Michael Corleone once mused, just when he thought he was out, they pull him back in. Though unlike Michael, whose dad never wanted him to join the family business, Perseus' pop fully expects his boy to take to the Titans-clashing lifestyle.
In fact, Zeus desperately needs it to happen. As mankind's belief in the ancient gods continues to wane, Zeus and his ilk are losing their power. As a result, the even more ancient gods -- the titans -- are threatening to break their not-so-eternal bonds and escape from the quite literal hellhole where Zeus and his brothers Hades and Poseidon banished them. Of course, Perseus ultimately has no choice but to join the fight when the battle comes to his very home and puts his son in jeopardy.
Like its predecessor, Wrath of the Titans offers plenty of CG-tastic creatures and exploits: giant cyclopes; a two-headed, fire-breathing chimera; magical, swooshing walls that open and close around you at a frightening pace; and so on. Much of this stuff has been seen in the film's trailers already, though, and unfortunately there's not a ton of new treats that are left for the actual movie. Additionally, I screened the film in IMAX 3D and found much of the action very difficult to make out on the oversized screen. (This may not be the case on a regular-sized format.)
Rosamund Pike (Die Another Day) joins the franchise as Andromeda, who was played by Alexa Davalos in the previous film but has been transformed into essentially a whole new character here anyway -- that of a warrior queen who quests with Perseus. And RocknRolla's Toby Kebbell offers up some fun as the roguish Agenor, Perseus' cousin and fellow bastard son of a god. (Kebbell seems to be the only thing able to draw Worthington out of his shell, as the two spar playfully.) Bill Nighy also has a part as the fallen god Hephaestus, who lives with Bubo, the R2-D2-esque golden owl from the original 1981 film. Bubo is now silent to all except for Hephaestus, who has gone a little batty in his exile.
Odd then, isn't it, that the hushed Bubo left more of an impression on me than the rest of these characters? Yes, there is something here to think on regarding Perseus and his half-brother Ares (Edgar Ramirez), a God who has turned villainous because of a perceived favoritism on the part of their father towards Perseus. And Neeson and Fiennes also share some brotherly love/hate. But it's all undercooked, with the film's surprisingly swift running time of around an hour and 40 minutes certainly not helping in this regard.
A particularly telling moment comes when Wrath's main threat is unleashed -- Kronos, the mountain-sized titan who's made of lava, fury and revenge. Kronos also happens to be Zeus and Hades' father, and Perseus' grandfather, but there is no attempt -- either by the characters or the filmmakers -- to communicate with the creature; no interaction, other than the typical kill or be killed by pixels one expects. Kronos is therefore not a character at all, but just a prop. And the film's themes of familial discord and generational responsibility are more or less dismissed. Kronos looks awesome, but the emotional scope of his scenes is practically nonexistent.
It's disappointing, because director Jonathan Liebesman (Battle: Los Angeles) has a keen eye and he gives the film some nice visual touches. But that's not the only altar that movie fans pray at.
Movies Editor Scott Collura has been reading the Greek myths since he was eight. Follow him on Twitter at @ScottIGN and subscribe to his Facebook updates for random Odyssey references.
2 out of 5 Stars, 4/10 Score
