Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief Review
Monday, February 22, 2010
, Posted by Should I See It at 12:33 AM
Film: Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief
Director: Chris Columbus
Plot: A teenager discovers he's the descendant of a Greek god and sets out on an adventure to settle an on-going battle between the gods
Starring: Logan Lerman, Brandon T Jackson, Alexandra Daddario, Pierce Brosnan, Sean Bean, Uma Thurman.
If JK Rowling and CS Lewis ever had a love child, I imagine it would have turned out something like Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief.
You really can’t help but compare it to either of them, especially Harry Potter: there are too many similarities in the plots and the conundrums that the heroes face.
Also the cinematic realisation of the two are incredibly similar, probably because the director of Percy Jackson, Chris Columbus, also directed Harry Potter 1 and 2.
Actually I would say that Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief is a better FILM that Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone*, because it is better acted, better paces and (a little) more imaginatively shot. It’s almost as if Percy Jackson is what Chris Columbus intended to do with Potter 1&2 but didn’t quite get there.
I know I’m not exactly the target audience for Percy Jackson, but I enjoyed it. It’s not fantastic or ground breaking cinema, but it is very good for what it is: an enjoyable, special effects laden two hours (and that is not intended to be demeaning in any way).
Of course there are few problems with the film that come along with this genre and adapting from a novel.
The opening scenes feel a bit rushed; almost as if there was a lot stuff from the book that they didn’t put in (I haven’t read the book, so I don’t know if that was the case, but that’s what it felt like). Once it got past the awkward opening, Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief is a well paced film.
The plot is a little but silly: Someone has stolen Zeus’ lightning bolt and he thinks Percy Jackson, son of Poseidon, has taken it. You can pick who the lightning thief is very early on (hint, it’s not Percy Jackson). Your kids might not pick it though. I guess this brings us to the crux of the matter. Percy Jackson is a kid’s film, but it is by no means painful for the parents to sit through.
The quest of this story is somewhat confused. While the film is called Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief, the hero’s (self imposed) quest is not to find the lightning thief, but to find Percy’s mother, who has been kidnapped by Hades and taken to the underworld, in exchange for the stolen lightning. Percy thinks that once Hades realises he doesn’t have the lightning, Hades will let his mother go. In fact it never actually occurs to Percy and Co. to find out who the lightning thief is to put a stop to the war of the gods. It is a bit of a lightning bolt moment for Percy (pardon the pun) when her realises that all he has to do is return the lightning bolt to Zeus. Meanwhile the audience is thinking: ‘Duh! That’s what I thought this movie was about!’
Logan Lerman (Percy Jackson) is an appealing hero. He is a better actor than Daniel Radcliffe, and looks and sounds an awful lot like Zac Efron. I can’t really say anything beyond that about the performances (except Catherine Keener was awful; she made no effort to look interested in any of the scenes she was in) because it’s really not that type of movie. The movie is really about an adventure, as long as the plot keeps moving and the special effects keep coming, every one’s happy.
When exiting the cinema, I was walking behind a mother and her three sons aged between six and twelve, all of whom loved the film. I couldn’t help but over hear the eldest of the boys said “That was reeeeeeally good! I can’t wait to read the book now!!!!” In my opinion, if it gets kids to read, Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief must be doing something right.
Should I See It?
Yes, it’s enjoyable,just be prepared to switch your brain off and just go along for the ride.
*I am in no way suggesting that either of these movies are great examples of cinema, nor am I suggesting that the Percy Jackson books are better than the Harry Potter books. I am only saying that comparatively, Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief is a better FILM that Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, irrespective of their source material.
"The plot is a LITTLE bit silly"?!?!?! LOL moment if there ever was one!