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Percy Jackson and the Lighting Thief – Movie Review

Percy Jackson has been heralded as the next ‘Harry Potter’ and compared as such. It’s easy to see why – they both have directors and a fantasy world blended with modern day and historical facts in common. Both create massive hype around the movies with wonderfully edited trailers, which unfortunately the movies don’t quite live up to. They suffer from trying to jam as much as they possibly can from an amazing book into an action-packed two hours film. Don’t mistake me though, I enjoyed the film immensely. However I’m not sure if it was for the reasons the creators wanted. The story centres on our teenage boy hero, Percy Jackson.

He’s a likable enough fellow; an ordinary bloke that has a slight learning disability – Dyslexia. I love the idea of a plot device being dependant on Percy’s inability to read. You soon discover the reason for his dyslexia is because he is actually a demigod, the son of a human and Greek God. Percy is the son of Poseidon, God of the Seas and thus has an affinity with water. His connection with ancient Greece means his entire being is programmed to read Greek, wield a sword and attract a world of trouble. Percy is thrust violently into his new reality when he is attacked by his substitute teacher one day on a school trip.The attacker is convinced Percy has stolen Zeus’ greatest weapon – his Lighting Bolt.

For obvious reasons, Percy has been watched his entire life to protect him from such harm by a Minotaur and Satyr in the form of his teacher and best friend. They rescue him and take him to “Camp Half-Blood”; a training ground for the underground world of Demigods and various Greek mythological beasts. Here two other very important characters are introduced. Annabeth (Alexandra Daddario), the demigod daughter of Athena with strength in wisdom and battle strategy, and Luke (Jake Abel), the mischievous demigod son of Hermes who has incredible fighting ability. When it is revealed that Percy’s mother has been abducted by Hades (Steve Coogan), Annabeth joins Percy’s group to rescue her and Luke helps by lending his shield and flying shoes. These prove to be quite useful on their travels across the United States to find the portal to the Underworld.

One thing I quite liked about the development of the plot in Percy Jackson was that everything Percy does is to save his mother. He doesn’t seem to care about the rest of the world. Olympus can go to hell and wage war on earth for all he cares. He just wants to rescue his mother. Which is probably the most realistic portrayal of a fantasy hero I have seen in a long time. Coincidentally, that is exactly what he needs to do to return the Lighting Bolt to Zeus and save the world. The movie climaxes with an interesting twist; but naturally ends with Percy returning to ‘Camp Half-Blood’. His mother is safe, the world no longer in peril and a romantic interest blooming with Annabeth.  You can almost hear it as the credits role; a promise to return for the next instalment. You are hungry for more.

I’d rate Percy Jackson and the Lighting Thief as a very solid Cool Minus to Cool, for an outstanding performance on the actors behalf, deliverance (as best as can be expected) on Chris Columbus’ part and characters that you grow to like from their unique little quirks. Though there is some unnecessary slapstick humour thrown in several times that would only serve to make Americans laugh – I found it quite irritating. Some slip ups with the CGI can make you cringe, but blink and you miss it, those moments are so insignificant.

The plot has altered from the book, and is probably paced a little too quickly, but the movie weaves a story that holds its own enough to be comprehensive and intriguing. It’s basically a teaser for the actual book. The movie is a great stand alone, but sparks a powerful desire to read the books and discover just what was exactly left out in its adaption.

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If there are book purist out there reading this; what is your take on the movie? Did you hate the changes? What did you like about seeing it on-screen?

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About The Author

Sme

This gal is just a big fan of everything, ready to give her opinion to anyone who will listen. Currently travelling around Europe (ready to go home any week now!), any free time is taken up with writing and reviewing [i.e. fangirling] over the latest culture craze. Biggest fandom's include all things anime, manga and J-Drama related, Harry Potter, Star Trek and most things created by the BBC. So not a long list at all!

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Article Information

  • Posted: Thursday, February 18th, 2010
  • Author: Sme
  • Filed Under: Film,Review
Tags: , , , , ,

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