Whenever I leave a press screening of a film I am always asked for a quick quote.
For “Wrath of the Titans” it was easy for me to say “not bad for a sequel.” That can be taken good and bad. In this case, it means bad.
The visual effects are stunning, the acting is decent (yes, I am a Sam Worthington, Liam Neeson, and Ralph Fiennes fan) but “Wrath” seems like that piece of gum you’ve been chewing on for quite some time after it has lost its flavor.
So why are we even talking about another “Titans” movie? The answer is an easy one. The first of this series, “Clash of the Titans,” earned Warner Brothers studio nearly half a billion dollars worldwide. That means a sequel.
The story in “Wrath” is this- ten years after Perseus (Worthington) defeats the Kraken, his father Zeus (Neeson) visits him and says the gods are in trouble because people have stopped praying to them. Meanwhile, Kronos is staging a comeback like no other. Remember that Kronos is the father of Zeus, Poseidon and Hades (Fiennes).
A power struggle ensues involving the brothers/uncles/fathers/grandfathers that could have played well on a “jerry Springer” episode. Really.
After some soul searching, Perseus once again rises to the occasion and, well, does what Perseus does best.
My favorite line from the movie? When Perseus is mentioned in a scene, an onlooker says, “he was the one the defeated the Kraken.” Everyone in the theater, including me, chuckled hearing this. That was my highlight from “Wrath.”
There is talk that the movie studio has already hired Dan Mazeau and David Leslie Johnson, who co-wrote “Wrath,” to develop and write a treatment for a third installment.
