Films > Film Reviews

Immortals

02/11/11

This month sees the release of sword-and-sandal epic, Immortals. This sort of film has come back into fashion over the last few years, and has proved to be a touch hit (300) and miss (Troy). The reports on this one, however, look pretty promising and it does come with good credentials.

It is directed by Tarsem Singh, an ex-MTV video director whose previous films include The Cell and The Fall, both of which were visually stunning. It is produced by the same camp as 300 who seem to firmly believe that if it isn’t broke, don’t fix it, and so audiences can expect skull shattering fight scenes, amazing special effects, and lots of dead CGI Greeks. It even has that bloke from the Tudors as the hero, and Mickey Rourke as the bad guy – perfect. Or is it?

The story is set within the realms of Greek Mythology, where they do love a good quest, but as Clash of the Titans proved, a series of random events does not an exciting adventure make. The plot involves the evil king Hyperion, who hates all mankind (he is an angry man) and is trying to raise the Titans. They have been locked away in a mountain by the gods, and they (apparently) are seriously mental and want revenge. Ok, it’s immediately implausible, but at least it’s not overly complex, right? Wrong! The only thing that can release the titans is the Epirus bow, a “weapon of unimaginable power”, and of course the gods’ own rules mean that they can’t intervene (even though they do, as seen in the trailer) so the job falls to a peasant who appears to have been groomed by Zeus since birth like some Olympian rent boy to step in and save the world.

Will they make it? Why would you need to release the Titans if you already have a “weapon of unimaginable power”? Why can’t Greek gods be a bit more flexible about rules? More importantly will this film be good? Er, yeah, because when it comes down to it, when a film comes along with as stylish looking fight scenes as this one, they may as well be talking Greek, you’re going to be watching not listening.