WRATH OF THE TITANS - Pass The Popcorn, Please

WRATH OF THE TITANS (fantasy adventure in IMAX 3D)
Cast: Sam Worthington, Liam Neeson, Ralph Fiennes, Danny Huston, Rosamund Pike, Toby Kebbell, Bill Nighy and Danny Bell 
Director: Jonathan Liebesman
Screenplay: Dan Mazeau and David Leslie Johnson
Time: 98 mins
Rating: *  *  1/2  (out of 4)

Perseus (Sam Worthington) and Andromeda (Rosamund Pike)

PREAMBLE: First the good news: Wrath Of The Titans is a better and more comprehensive movie than its 2010 predecessor, Clash Of The Titans.

The bad news: It is only a slight improvement, so don't go setting your hopes high. Many aspects of the sequel are still messy, notably its creaky script and some ridiculously lame dialogue.

WHAT'S IT ABOUT? Ten years after the events in Clash of the Titans, Perseus (Sam Worthington), the Kraken-slayer has retreated to a fishing village to raise his young son, Helius. Not for long, though. He is soon persuaded to descend into the underworld to rescue his father Zeus (Liam Neeson) from the clutches of Hades (Ralph Fiennes), Ares (Edgar Ramirez), and Kronos.

Meanwhile, humanity has lost faith in the gods. As a result, Zeus, Hades, and Poseidon find their power beginning to slip, a development that could spell disaster for all of humankind should their imprisoned father, Kronos, manage to break free from his underworld prison in Tartarus. When Perseus learns that Zeus' son Ares has teamed with Hades and Kronos to capture Zeus, steal his power, and create hell on earth, he decides to take action.

Now, with Andromeda (Rosamund Pike), Argenor (Toby Kebbell), and Hephaestus (Bill Nighy) by his side, Perseus must defeat the Titans, deliver Zeus from evil, and prevent the powers of darkness from consuming all of humanity. Yeah, you've heard all these before, haven't you?

Perseus on Pegasus

HITS & MISSES: On the plus side, we see Worthington more comfortable in his role as the hero although he doesn't need to flex his acting muscles. He gets to ride Pegasus and does a lot of yelling and seething. Neeson tries to convey his lines seriously and he succeeds most of the time; Fiennes hams his role as the treacherous Hades but redeems himself in a touching family melodrama at the end. Yup, this sequel is primarily about family - fathers versus sons; brother versus brother, and father protecting son.

Kebbell has a fun role as Poseidon's (Danny Bell) wayward son, Argenor, and he has some of the better lines. The deliciously comical Nighy is given the short shrift as Hephaestus, designer of the labyrinth of Tatarus, but the most note-worthy role belongs to Pike's Andromeda. She is always an eyeful, decked out in a form-fitting leather outfit and looking scared or terrorised most of the time.

Pike and Bill Nighy

The action (best seen in IMAX 3D) is better than the first movie and the set pieces are of Perseus fighting some fire-breathing double-headed monsters; outwiting a trio of Cyclops, manoeuvring the shifting walls of the labyrinths and battling the gigantic Kronos. These are visually catchy but they do not generate much suspense.

THE LOWDOWN: A see-and-forget popcorn outing.