For centuries, tales of gods and men have prospered. Originating from ancient cultures in oral and illustrative iterations, legends concerning deities and humankind have regaled audiences, exemplified by the enduring impact of Greek, Roman and Egyptian stories. The advent of paper and then celluloid helped preserve and perpetuate their legacy, with writers and filmmakers drawing inspiration from historical sources. Accordingly, adaptations and interpretations of mythology have proliferated, evidenced by the likes of Hercules, Jason and the Argonauts and Clash of the Titans, as well as recent films 300, Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief and now Immortals.
In his third feature, director Tarsem Singh turns his elegant eye to the subject, exploring a plethora of Greek myths. Utilising the fabled Titanomachy as context, the film ponders the efforts of peasant Theseus (Henry Cavill, TV’s The Tudors) to stop King of Crete Hyperion (Mickey Rourke, Iron Man 2) from destroying humanity. Determined to defeat the gods by unleashing the overthrown titans, Hyperion scours the Hellenic realm for the only weapon up to the task, with virgin oracle Phaedra (Freida Pinto, Rise of the Planet of the Apes) instrumental in his plans. When his rampaging ways encroach upon Theseus’ village, the young man is forced to fight back, driven from above by the secret support of Zeus (Luke Evans, The Three Musketeers) and his fellow immortals.
As fans of his previous films The Cell and The Fall are no doubt aware, Singh is known for his aesthetic abilities. His features boast style and spectacle regardless of story, with his talents now demonstrated across three distinct yet thematically similar narratives. With its striking use of computer generated effects and undercurrent of unreality, Immortals effortlessly fits in with the helmer’s oeuvre, continuing his penchant for vivid visuals, surreal stories, and fantastical themes. However, unlike his earlier efforts, the contemplation of faith, loyalty and immortality fails to translate beyond the dreamlike appearance, in an offering that lacks substance and subtlety.
Although undeniably handsome, Immortals values flair over finesse. Indeed, the film abounds with underwhelming elements, from average performances to a mediocre script. In the former category, leads Cavill and Rourke are upstaged by bit player John Hurt (Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy), whilst supporting turns from Isabel Lucas (A Heartbeat Away) and Kellan Lutz (The Twilight Saga) do neither any favours. As for the latter, brothers Charley and Vlas Parlapanides (Everything for a Reason) utilise obviousness instead of originality, with everything from dialogue to exposition laboured. Ultimately, Immortals is an action-oriented exercise in unfulfilled potential, presented in an attractive but empty package. A fruitless appropriation of Greek mythology, the feature is unable – sumptuous imagery aside – to escape its ordinariness.
Immortals was released in Australia on November 24th.
Director: Tarsem Singh
Cast: Henry Cavill, Mickey Rourke, Freida Pinto, John Hurt, Luke Evans, Isabel Lucas
I enjoyed immortals for what it was. I liked it for the action, and for the visual appeal. The lead actor did a pretty good job with what he had to work with, but I felt that the story just didn’t come together like I was hoping. But the movie ended up being just what I expected.
I went in to the movie expecting to see some good action scenes. After seeing the trailer around ten times or more I knew I would enjoy the action, the slow motion sequences and the visual style in general. My friend told me that the lead actor was actually the boy in the count of monte cristo with jim caviezel. I found that bit of trivia interesting.
I thought mickey rourke did well in his portrayal as the bad guy but I must admit there wasn’t a lot of depth to him(not mickey rourke’s fault). He played the ruthless tough bad guy pretty good I thought, with plenty of grunts and gruesome acts. So the build up to his show down with theseyus was pretty fun to watch. But for much of the movie he’s sitting around trying to extract information from people or giving orders to underlings.
Now the gods from olympus I found very interesting. They have special powers of course and look down on events from mount olympus. In my opinion if the movie focused on the gods and their intervention into human affairs it would make for a much more interesting movie. Especially considering how zeus responds to certain actions that made by others in this movie.
In my opinion if you want to see some pretty cool looking action sequences, especially during the end then go see this movie. But be warned this is not an epic war movie in the vain of 300, troy or even something like kingdom of heaven. This movie will slow down, sometimes agonizingly slow. But if you like seeing movies with greek mythology(or greek mythology like elements) than you will probably enjoy this movie.
Hopefully someone will come along and build off of the things that immortals and clash of the titans does right, then we will truly be in for something special.