Jason and the Argonauts

As a teenager, I became fascinated by Greek mythology.  Of the main heroes, Theseus, Perseus, Hercules, my favorite was always Jason.  To me, Jason’s tale was the most exciting, like an action movie hurdling from one obstacle to the next.  Finally, I’ve seen the movie that brought the myth into Hollywood, 1963’s Jason and the Argonauts

For those unfamiliar with the tale of Jason, he is a boy destined to claim his rightful place as ruler of Thessaly, after Pelias (Douglas Wilmer) killed his father and took the throne.  But King Pelias is tipped off to know who will be the one to end him, a man wearing one sandal.  When the one-sandaled man (Jason, portrayed by Todd Armstrong) arrives, King Pelias does not reveal himself and buys himself time by advising Jason to find the Golden Fleece before taking back his kingdom.  Jason then musters a fitting crew and takes on the task.  Along the way are adventures and misfortunes that hinder the crew and even send the legendary Hercules (Nigel Green) astray.   While Zeus (Niall MacGinnis) is plotting against him, Hera (Honor Blackman) has been allowed to help him five times.  Jason has been informed and knows to ask for help wisely.

For those who are more familiar with the myth, you may find a few inaccuracies.  Why a hydra is guarding the fleece is beyond me, but makes for very good moment to show off the effects.  And the fact that *SPOILER ALERT* the film ends without Jason fulfilling his prophecy of reclaiming his kingdom, but rather fighting skeletons to keep the fleece is a bit odd.  However, the skeleton fight scene is so wonderful that I didn’t even notice the myth had gone unfinished until days later!  Perhaps director Don Chaffey and his team were hoping for a sequel.

What most people remember this film for are the effects and the stop-motion animation by  Ray Harryhausen.  Without his amazing talents this film would have fallen flat.  He brings the magic that makes a giant bronze statue of Talos move so menacingly, that makes a canyon quiver and smash unsuspecting ships and Poseidon rise from the sea.  His best moment is saved for the end, where Jason and his men have to battle skeleton warriors.  The months of work Harryhausen put in to get the movements of the skeletons timed just right with that of their human opponents was well worth it and became an iconic image of classic film effects.

I caught Jason and the Argonauts on TCM’s Essentials Junior.  I can’t think of a better category to put this in!  This film is wonderful for school aged children; no language, not too violent and a wonderful way to introduce the mythology.  And for young aspiring film makers it is especially essential to introduce them to the early special effects and how well things can be done outside the realm of CGI.  I know babies aren’t supposed to watch television, but I couldn’t help but hold my son and let him gaze upon a few key scenes as I narrated it for him.  Don’t worry, I only let him watch great movies.

“Rise up, you dead, slain of the hydra.  Rise from your graves and avenge us.  Those who steal the Golden Fleece must die.”

The Thief of Bagdad

When I think of my favorite adventure and fantasy films, I usually don’t reach back further than the 1970s.  For fantasy to work, we have to believe in what we’re seeing, and in a pre-CGI era, no everything is so believable.  However, when it is done right and with enough charisma, anything is believable.  That’s what I love the most about The Thief of Bagdad, the whole film looks like it came straight out of a story book and the effects are years ahead of their time.

In The Thief of Bagdad, King Ahmad (John Justin) is a young ruler who doesn’t realize how his people do not like him, or how his advisor, Jaffar (Conrad Veidt), is an evil sorcerer.  When he ventures out to be among his subjects in plain clothes, he is arrested.  In jail, he meets Abu (Sabu), a boy thief, and together they escape Bagdad.  Soon, they meet a princess (June Duprez) who becomes Ahmad’s heart’s desire, as well as Jaffar’s.  Along the way, they encounter a powerful djinn, giant spiders, a mystical all-seeing eye, a flying horse and, of course, a flying carpet.  It’s quite an adventure!

I was immediately struck by all the vibrant color in the film.  We’re greeted with billowing red sails, grand painted ships and brilliant blue skies.  The bright array of colors continues through to the very end.  In an era of film that was mostly black and white, The Thief of Bagdad must have been a real treat to movie goers young and old.

I’ve always been a sucker for big-budget special effects where I find myself trying to figure out just how it was achieved.  Sadly, with most of today’s films, the answer is usually boring old CGI.  There’s nothing like the thrill of seeing the mechanical shark in Jaws chomping down in Quint, the big rotating station in 2001: A Space Odyssey, or a claymation King Kong battle.  Here in The Thief of Bagdad, that thrill of old timey special effects is back, full force.  My heart soared when that some-assembly-required horse took off into the sky.  Seeing the djinn escape from his lamp for the first time was exciting.  And the multi-armed blue lady feels so much more real when all six arm are attached to real people.

The Thief of Bagdad is not the sort of film that doesn’t fit in with most best picture nominations of the 1940s.  The film boasted no big stars, has more fun and adventure than drama, but I wish it had been nominated.  However, it was not forgotten at the Oscars of 1940, it won three of its four nominations.  It won for best art direction, cinematography (both for color films) and best effects.  It was also nominated for best original score, but lost to Pinocchio.

This is a great film to watch with kids.  The adventure is fantastic and does not slow down until it ends.  I can see adults getting more into it alongside little ones, who may be absolutely floored by the idea of a flying horse and giant djinns.  If possible, show this to kids before they see Disney’s Aladdin, the makers of Aladdin were obviously influenced by this film.  No one wants to hear a child accuse a classic of copying a 90’s cartoon.

“Strange how an unpleasant child can make a decent dog!”

Avatar

Back in December 2009, my husband and I went out to dinner and then strapped into three hours of 3D mayhem with James Cameron’s overrated Avatar.  In no way do I encourage the 3D movie industry that has plagued theaters recently, but I am lucky to be one of those who is not hindered by the 3D experience.  Clearly, I see that in 3D films, everything is dimmed and colors are not nearly as bright, but it does not give me headaches or makes me queasy in the slightest.  The effects, 3D and otherwise, of Avatar were appreciated.  However, the recycled plot really brought me down.

In a way, I have to applaud Cameron’s technique on making a 3D movie not look so dingy.  The use of bright colors and contrast went a long way in the theater.  It was still saturated, but the contrast makes it more difficult to detect.  And with so much action constantly going on, my eyes were glued so well that they vetoed my begging bladder for the last half of the film.  Damn that 32 ounce soda.

Oh yeah, there was a plot to Avatar right?  Somewhere between all the visuals they snuck in some Dances with Wolves meets FernGully: The Last Rainforest story set on the futuristic planet of Pandora.  Don’t open that box, you don’t know the power of unobtanium!

Sorry, let me start at the beginning; seems that military forces from Earth have come to Pandora to learn about its inhabitants, the Navi, and drill its natural resource, unobtanium.  On the Earth base, there is a clash between the military personnel, lead by a scar-headed, G.I. Joe action figure model, Colonel Miles Quaritch (Stephen Lang), and the “egghead” scientists lead by Grace (Sigourney Weaver).  It’s your typical brains vs brawn approach to how to handle this new planet.

Plot structure dictates that the protagonist must be able to have his foot in both courts, so bring in Jake (Sam Worthington), a disabled marine whose recently deceased  identical twin brother was a scientist on the Avatar program.  How convenient.  Rather than toss out the Na’vi body government money has made for his brother, Jake simply replaces him, with no training or scientific knowledge of Pandora or the Na’vi to aid him.  Grace isn’t happy about bringing a jar-head in to do her research, and Quaritch is excited to have a man he can trust on the inside.  Jake quickly gets a sort of double-agent agenda, do the Avatar program, but report to Quaritch about how to overrule the Na’vi.  When Jake gets lost in the jungle and eventually becomes accepted by an entire Na’vi tribe, falling in love with Neytiri (Zoe Saldana), the king’s daughter, and learning that unobtanium is the life force of the planet, his agenda changes.  He has to help the Na’vi defend their planet.

There is no doubt that all the astounding visuals are huge technological achievements for the film industry.  Huge kudos to Mr. Cameron there.  But honestly, after that first viewing it becomes a novelty.  Once I’m over the pretty colors and flying mountains, I yearned to feel like I have for some real movie moments that were naturally beautiful.  There is sense of adventure I always feel watching the helicopter first land in Jurassic Park, with the jungle and waterfall behind it.  The buffalo stampede in Dances with Wolves is a heartpounding experience that leaps off the screen without 3D.  The sprawling deserts in Lawrence of Arabia have this majestic feeling of vastness and being that I just don’t find in Avatar.  Even Peter O’Toole’s camel ranks higher than that neon pterodactyl.

It is not enough for a film to be a wonderful visual overload and leave me hanging for that emotional connection or sense of adventure.  I knew the plot structure too well, therefore the only surprises were for my eyes and not my mind or heart.  In the climatic battle, I had a moment in the theater where I stepped back from the action and asked when the chick with the helicopter would make a surprise attack for the good guys…and there she was.  You’re not supposed to let me be able to step out of the moment and predict that Mr. Cameron.  Big no-no.

“I see you.”