Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters

PercyJackson2

Starring: Logan Lerman, Alexandra Daddario, Douglas Smith, Leven Rambin, Brandon T Jackson, Jake Abel, Anthony Head, Stanley Tucci, Nathan Fillion, Connor Dunn, Paloma Kwiatkowski, and more.

Directed by: Thor Freudenthal Screenplay by: Marc Guggenheim Based on the Novel by: Rick Riordan Cinematography by: Shelly Johnson Original Music by: Andrew Lockington

Premise: An attack on the demigod haven brings Percy face to face with the Lightning Thief, Luke son of Hermes. Luke asks Percy to join him and rebel against the gods, the very ones who’d probably yet to tell him of  the prophecy. A prophecy which claims that Percy will be either the savior or destroyer of those around him. With these ominous words the race begins to see who will find the Golden Fleece and either use it to save the haven’s keeper, Thalia, or release the elder god Cronos back into the world to have his revenge. (Rated PG)

Review:

1) Acting – Total Thumbs Up: Logan Lerman reprises his role as Poseidon’s son, Percy Jackson. Logan did a great job conveying Percy’s insecurities as the success of his first adventure starts feeling more like a fluke rather than an achievement. Leven Rambin was fun as the haughty and competitive Clarisse. Nathan Fillion was a riot as the god Hermes.

2) Special Effects – Total Thumbs Up: “Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters” is filled with some incredible visuals. The mechanical bull early in the film was fantastic. Hephaestus would have been proud. The giant mouth of the sea monster in the Bermuda Triangle was simple and at the same time incredibly impressive. The visuals from inside the monster were even better.

An unexpected treat was a Confederate ironclad steam warship and its crew of zombies. The ship looked great. We even got to see her in action. And wait until you see what they do with Cronos – great stuff!

3) Plot/Story – Thumbs Up: Just like Jason and the Argonauts, Percy has many obstacles placed in his path in his attempts to reach the Golden Fleece. A lot of details in Percy’s journey tie back to the original stories of Jason and his quests, which made for some nice parallels. Added to this are Percy’s swinging emotions on his self worth, his seeming abandonment by his father, and more shockingly still, the discovery that he has a brother. So plenty there to keep the hero busy inside and out.

Several other themes also underscore the plot giving it more flavor – Annabeth’s feelings with regards to cyclops, Tyson’s outsider status with both humans and those of his race, and a couple of others.

4) Stunts – Total Thumbs Up: While the creatures were CGI, most of those being attacked by them weren’t, which meant we got to see a lot of stunt action. The lines between reality and CGI become more blurred every year and well executed stunts just add that extra bit of realism to the illusion. Great job.

5) Locations/Cinematography – Total Thumbs Up: From the gorgeous forests in British Columbia to Six Flags in New Orleans, the locations department picked wonderful and unusual spots for their scenes. The great choices were made even more powerful by the excellent sweeping cinematography.

Conclusion: “Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters” is a fun quest story with some added elements. Great CGI makes this world of demigods and ancient Greek lore come to life.

Rating: 4 out of 5 (Hubby’s Rating: Worth Full Price of Admission)