Year of Release: 2013
Director: Thor Freudenthal
Starring: Logan Lerman, Alexandra Daddario, Brandon T.
Jackson
Well, I finally got myself down to the cinema to see this
after months of waiting. I’d previously ignored the Percy Jackson films as friends
of mine had put me off with their claims that it was like a poorer version of
Harry Potter, but I was intrigued by it and having watched the trailer I
figured, well, how bad can it be? I’m glad that I decided to give it a chance
because I actually really enjoyed it. So, having loved the first film I’ve been
eagerly awaiting the next instalment.
Whilst the first movie was certainly full of adventure, I
found this next instalment to be a little more action-packed, dangerous and
exciting. After the magical border protecting their camp is broken, leaving
them vulnerable and unprotected, Percy (Logan Lerman), along with his loyal
friends Annabeth (Alexandra Daddario) and Grover (Brandon T. Jackson), head out
on a quest to the Sea of Monsters (aka The Bermuda Triangle) in search of The
Golden Fleece in a desperate attempt to save their home.
Needless to say, their quest is a dangerous and unpredictable
one, with new and old faces joining them along the way. Percy acquires a long
lost half-brother, Tyson (who turns out to be a Cyclops –mythical giant
creature with one eye. Probably not quite the brother he was expecting), who is
a lovable, charming character, but has a habit of landing them in hot water due
to his clumsiness and inability to tread quietly. Luke returns and is still
hell bent on revenge and seems more likely to succeed than ever. And then there
is Clarisse, an egotistical and arrogant fellow resident at Camp Half-blood who
loves nothing more than to win and beat Percy in everything he does.
While the new characters do bring more depth to the story,
it is still the trio of Percy, Annabeth and Grover that really make the film
for me – these three actors are fabulous together and Lerman in particular never
fails to impress me. So I was a bit disappointed that Brandon T. Jackson’s
character didn’t feature in this one quite as much. There is a huge chunk of
the film where his character is missing – granted this is a result of the
script and can’t really be helped (I suppose I can’t really argue with the
plot, can I?), but I do think it suffered a bit in his absence as I feel he
brings the most comedic value to the film. His responses to sticky situations
always manage to amuse me. The character of Tyson, who was featured more
heavily, wasn’t quite as engaging to watch and he didn’t bring the same wit and
charm as Grover.
Still, there were plenty of laughs and from start to finish and
the plot remained interesting and entertaining. It wasn’t one of those films
that take a good hour to really get going. To really enjoy the Percy Jackson
movies though, I do think you need to have a good imagination. The film really
does contain a lot of weird – strange, mythical creatures, peculiar legends and
prophecies, magical powers and returns from the dead (to name just a few). If
you didn’t have a good imagination you would just end up sat there chiming ‘yeah
right’ or ‘as if’ the whole way through. But the special effects are brilliantly
done so it’s easy to allow yourself to believe what you’re watching.
It’s a rip-roaring adventure from start to finish, with engaging
characters both new and old, and an ending that promises an epic follow up
somewhere down the line. With its all-round great entertainment and enjoyment
value that had me interested and engrossed the whole way through, I have to say
that this follow up didn’t do bad. It didn’t do bad at all.
Favourite bit: It’s a toss-up between the scene where they
take a ride in the taxi and Percy (Logan Lerman) almost comes a cropper when it
splits in half, or the one where Grover (Brandon T. Jackson) is dressed as a
female Cyclops. Both equally amusing.
Rating: 9/10
