Second in mythological series fails to build on character concepts
If anyone has ever wondered how the “Lord of the Rings” trilogy would play out if directed by a special-effects juggernaut like Michael Bay, they may very well get an answer after seeing “Clash of the Titans” (2010) and its newly released sequel “Wrath of the Titans.”
This franchise follows a similar faux-mythology concept seen before in “Immortals” (2011), and just like “Immortals,” “Wrath of the Titans” barely does anything spectacular with it.
The movie is a slight improvement compared to its predecessor in terms of campiness, showing humanity in some of its characters and the use of 3-D effects. But the negatives greatly exceed the positives as the movie suffers from completely stilted acting, an overwhelming pace and a plot as chaotic as the events in the film.
“Wrath of the Titans” begins the same way that its predecessor did: at an alarmingly fast pace that jumps to the overall plot without slowing down for the sake of character development or compelling storytelling. In fact, there is absolutely no development at all.
The action takes place 10 years after the events of “Clash of the Titans” where Perseus (Sam Worthington) has a son and his wife Io has departed (Gemma Arterton isn’t actually in the film, probably because she realized how terrible the predecessor turned out).
After slaying the kraken, Perseus is living the simple life of a fisherman, until his father Zeus (Liam Neeson) comes to warn Perseus that the gods are losing their powers due to the people’s dwindling faith in them. Also, this diminishing faith from the people is weakening the strength of the underworld prison known as Tartarus, where the titans are imprisoned.
In order to secure the prison of Tartarus, Zeus pleads with the brother Hades (Ralph Fiennes) for help, but Hades and Zeus‘s son Ares instead capture Zeus with the intention of feeding his power to the titan Kronos. Realizing that his father is in danger, Perseus decides to step back into battle and journeys to the underworld along with the warrior Queen Andromeda (Rosemund Pike) and the comical son of Poseidon, Agenor (Tobey Kebbell).
Even though this movie is indeed all-spectacle and no substance, “Wrath” does display sharper special effects complimented by a better use of 3-D technology compared to “Clash.”
Also, the movie seems to demonstrate some self-awareness toward how ridiculous the first movie was. In one scene where Perseus arrives to assist Andromeda’s army, the captain talks about Perseus’s fame after defeating the kraken, even jokingly repeating “Clash’s” signature line, “Release the kraken.”
However, as stated, there are more negatives than positives. For instance, the actual structure of the story includes a series of monster-wrestling sequences with 10-minute intervals, demonstrating some impressive visuals that practically mask the film’s overall lack of substance. There are side stories within the movie, like the Perseus/Andromeda romance and the father-son relationship between Agenor and Poseidon, that don’t display a tinge of depth. There are even some key plot points brought up once in the entire movie and completely forgotten until the climax.
Sam Worthington definitely isn’t an actor of great range, even though he has demonstrated some talent in movies like “Somersault” (2004) and “The Debt” (2011). His popularity that originated from the career making role in “Avatar” (2009) has drawn him to roles like this and he’s really the type of actor that you want to like, but it’s just really difficult to look past his wooden acting.
The only actors that bring a suggestion of humanity to their characters are Ralph Fiennes as the death-fearing Hades, who increasingly shows regret for his actions, and Edgar Ramirez as Ares who has a one-sided sibling rivalry with Perseus for Zeus’s affections.
In the end, “Wrath of the Titans” is just another high-spectacle mess that replaces monsters, explosions and 3-D special effects for an interesting story and compelling characters.