'Clash of the Titans' doesn't live up to its potential.

Probably the best thing that can be said about this movie is that it has superb special effects (they, in and of themselves, were stellar).  When it comes to the story and the acting, however, the film falls a bit short.

Sam Worthington's performance was less than what it could have been.  There was no emotion behind his performance, so it was difficult to care about anything that happened to him.  And as one person said after seeing the film, "Sam Worthington [was] like oatmeal. Boring, muscular oatmeal. SERIOUS oatmeal. VERY SERIOUS. As a heart attack, this oatmeal."  Comparing to him to such a bland food should give you an idea of just how unimpressive he was in this role.

Ralph Fiennes seemed to be trying a bit too hard in his role, which is a bit surprising, since he has the capability of being such a fantastic actor.  He seemed to be recycling a bit to much of Voldemort while in his scenes as Hades.  One would have expected him to at least use his voice a bit differently for this character, as even that was a bit too similar.

Also, Zeus' help of Perseus doesn't seem at all believable.  When Hades suggests that the people of Argos be sacrificed, so that they will send more prayers to the gods, Zeus seems to be completely behind the idea.  And when the time is up for the people of Argos to sacrifice their princess, Zeus has absolutely no issue with sending in the monster that will cause the deaths of many of the city's citizens.  So, him suddenly helping Perseus to defeat the monster that he seems so set in causing death, doesn't seem to make much sense.  Either he wants the monster defeated from the beginning, or he wants humanity to fear the gods.  If, however, he doesn't trust Hades' plan from the beginning, this needs to be made plain.

And Athena seems to get more secondary and tertiary references than any character that doesn't actually have a speaking part.  The acknowledgment of the original film, through the use of Bubo makes her absence in the film evident from the beginning (especially since she helped Perseus in his quest in both the original film, and the legend).  Then, later, when discussing how Medusa became the monster that she was, the original legend was told.  In that legend, Medusa was changed by Athena after she was raped in one of Athena's temples.  This story could have easily have been cut from the final film, if they had no intention of really bringing her into the film with a speaking part.

If you want to go into this for just the amazing special effects, then, you will probably really enjoy this film.  But if you want something a little more from your reworkings of mythology, or from your stories in general, you might want to skip this.

Clash of the Titans is now playing nationwide.  You can check show times, and get tickets for most theaters in and around Modesto on Fandango.