{"id":29267,"date":"2024-08-16T02:17:21","date_gmt":"2024-08-16T09:17:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.cinemastance.com\/?p=29267"},"modified":"2024-08-16T02:17:21","modified_gmt":"2024-08-16T09:17:21","slug":"blasts-from-the-past-4k-ultra-hd-and-blu-ray-review-when-titans-ruled-the-earth-clash-of-the-titans-2010-and-wrath-of-the-titans-2012","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/?p=29267","title":{"rendered":"Blasts from the Past! 4k Ultra HD and Blu-ray Review: WHEN TITANS RULED THE EARTH\u2026 CLASH OF THE TITANS (2010) and WRATH OF THE TITANS (2012)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

This release from Arrow Video is available as either a\n\u201cLimited Edition\u201d 4K Ultra HD set or in a \u201cLimited Edition\u201d Blu-ray only\nedition.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Growing up in the 1980s, most kids became very familiar with\nthe adventure spectacle Clash of the Titans<\/em> (1981), which featured a\nnotable cast delving deep into Greek mythology. The film wasn\u2019t extremely\nwell-received by the press, but was a box office hit that resonated with\nkids.  Well, at least one of the children who appreciated the original\nepic returned nearly 40 years later to help fashion a remake. Once again,\nreviewers had plenty of issues with the new Clash of the Titans<\/em>, but it\nwas a notable commercial success. In fact, the movie was so much of a hit that\nit inspired a 2012 sequel, Wrath of the Titans<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Arrow Video has now licensed and upgraded these titles,\nputting the two movies in a set called When Titans Ruled the Earth<\/em>. The\nmovies are certainly not the apex of cinema, but it is quite clear in\nrevisiting them that they are aimed at a younger audience looking for simple\nexcitement. Both pictures are exaggerated and sometimes go overboard on digital\neffects, but there is some fun to be had watching the elaborate confrontations\nwith various creatures. And one thing that can\u2019t be denied by viewers of any\nage is that the images presented on the discs themselves look stunning, both in\n4K Ultra HD and Blu-ray. In particular, Wrath of the Titans<\/em> is\nimpressive to behold, wowing with several sequences containing great visual\neffects.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Clash of the Titans<\/em> follows Perseus (Sam\nWorthington), who is the child of Zeus and a mortal princess. For his safety,\nPerseus is whisked away after birth and discovered by a fisherman (Pete\nPostlewaite). Despite being half-man and half-god, he is raised by the\nfisherman and his family and lives a modest life. After many years, the general\nfeeling among humanity is that the gods of Mount Olympus have been mistreating\nthem. It is revealed that much of their power comes from human worship, which\nis now fading. Zeus (Liam Neeson) is convinced by brother from the Underworld,\nHades (Ralph Fiennes), to allow him to wreak havoc on humanity. In the process,\nPerseus\u2019 family are killed, leaving him hungry for revenge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Sometime later, Hades heads to Argos and states that he will\nuse a gigantic monster known as the Kraken to destroy the city, unless the\narrogant king sacrifice\u2019s his own daughter Andromeda (Alexa Davalos). Perseus\njoins the captain of the royal guard (Mads Mikkelson) and his soldiers (some of\nwhom are played by familiar faces like Liam Cunningham and Nicholas Hoult) to\nface off against various monsters, then take and use the head of Medusa to\ndefeat the Kraken. Perseus is assisted by guide Io (Gemma Arterton), who has\nwatched over him since his birth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The story is quite busy with many humans and gods vying for\npower. This adaptation favors breakneck pacing and action involving battles\nwith enormous scorpions over world-building and characters. It certainly isn\u2019t\nboring and the scope of the film is grand, particularly during the climactic\nbattle with the Kraken. An encounter with a trio of witches also works well and\nit\u2019s amusing to watch Neeson and Fiennes have a good time chewing some scenery\ntogether. But still, several characters are not well developed and it feels\nlike the picture could have used extra exposition here and there to help\nviewers get to know the characters better.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Still, it\u2019s amusing to watch and will certainly entertain\nkids. The high-quality picture looks sharp and bright and the big action scenes\nare impressive to behold.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you\u2019ve purchased these pictures before, then you\u2019ll be\npleased to know that seemingly all bonus content from previous editions is\nincluded. There are a ton of featurettes on the production, as well as an\nalternate ending and deleted scenes. The fascinating original ending with\nunfinished effects looks quite silly. It features Perseus traveling to Mount\nOlympus and arguing with Zeus. He appears as a very small figure surrounded by\nthe giant god. Perhaps finished effects might have saved it, but in this form\nit looks silly (the final film features a much less antagonistic exchange\nbetween the two without the size discrepancy). Publicity materials can also be\nfound on the disc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

But the big highlight is a new, recently recorded interview\nwith producer Basil Iwanyk. He discusses his love for Greek mythology and the\noriginal Clash<\/em> film. The producer openly talks about what a difficult\nshoot it was, and how Stephen Norrington (Blade, The League of Extraordinary\nGentlemen<\/em>) was originally set to direct. Despite having done a lot of work\non the film, he bowed out during pre-production. In the end, Louis Leterrier (The\nTransporter, The Incredible Hulk<\/em>) stepped in. Reportedly, the production\nwas difficult, the rough assembly was very problematic and the movie needed\nplenty of reshoots before being completed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

He also notes the difficulty with the movie\u2019s release and\nthe critical response to it. 3D was becoming popular again thanks to the\nsuccess of Avatar<\/em> and many movies, including this one, were being\nhastily converted into 3D in post-production. The producer discusses this\nissue, as well as his own thoughts on the finished product. It\u2019s an interesting\ninterview.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wrath of the Titans<\/em> picks up the story 10 years\nlater. Now a widower devoted to protecting his son Heleus, the Greek hero\nPerseus (Sam Worthington) tries to avoid conflict. Unfortunately, he\u2019s pulled\nback into the fray after Hades (Ralph Fiennes) makes a deal with a volcanic\nTitan monster called Kronos (essentially a super-Kraken). Hades decides to free\nthe creature (and help release other monsters everywhere), in order to kidnap\nZeus and drain the sibling\u2019s immense power. Knowing that all of humanity might\nbe wiped out in the process, Perseus teams with Queen of Argos Andromeda\n(Rosamund Pike) and fellow demigod Agenor (Toby Kebbell) to rescue Zeus and\nstop the gigantic monster. To do so, they must locate the god of metalworkers\n(Bill Nighy) and collect incredible weapons that will help them win the battle\nagainst not only Kronos and Hades, but god of war and violence Ares (Edgar\nRamirez).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Admittedly, the tone is still silly and a wee bit too\nover-the-top, but the technical specs are even better this time out. It seems\nas though more real backdrops are used, and the fantastic creatures are more\neffectively rendered, creating more authenticity to the proceedings. I was very\nimpressed by the climactic battle, which features Kronos literally coming up\nfrom the depths of a volcano and doing battle with an army and Perseus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There\u2019s also more attention paid to Zeus, Hades and their\nrelationship, meaning that there are more enjoyable verbal barbs between\nco-stars Neeson and Fiennes. The movie is still paced a little too rapidly for\nits own good, but there are less characters overall and more of an attempt to\nhave subplots dealing with their various relationships and interpersonal\nconflicts. These dramatic story elements come to the forefront frequently and\ndo provide a payoff during the climax.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s an imperfect film, but in many respects does outdo its\npredecessor. If you enjoyed Clash of the Titans<\/em>, there is no reason why\nyou wouldn\u2019t admire this follow-up, just as much, if not more, than the\noriginal. Once again, the picture is outstanding on the 4K disc and the Blu-ray\nis also very good.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As with the other title, it appears that all extras from\nearlier releases have been included. Once again, there is an excellent new\ninterview with producer Basil Iwanyk. He discusses being given the last minute\ngo-ahead to make the sequel. After two separate writers, Dan Mazeau and David\nLeslie Johnson (Orphan, Aquaman<\/em>), came in individually and gave similar\npitches, he hired them to work on the screenplay together. Apparently, it was a\ngood partnership.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The producer admits that they all tried to address some of\nthe criticism with the first film by asking for more character moments and a\nstronger focus on the gods. He also talks about the search for a new director\n(Leterrier wasn\u2019t interested in returning) and finding Jonathan Liebesman (Battle:\nLos Angeles<\/em>). The producer goes on about the casting process, shooting, and\nthe finished product. In the interview, he states that star Worthington also\nseemed more comfortable in his leading role. He also notes that the 3D was\nplanned for in the movie and was more effective in this follow-up, but still\nbemoans a continuation of the complaints they received about it in the press\n(personally, I saw the first title at the cinema in 3D and did think it\ndeserved some of the abuse it received).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the end, this is an excellent release. Whether you choose\nthe 4K Ultra HD version or the Blu-ray, you\u2019re going to get an image that may\nbe just a little bit crisper than previous editions. It\u2019s hard to imagine the\nmovies looking any better than they do here. On top of it all, you\u2019ll also get\nan Illustrated collector\u2019s book containing new writing on the movies,\ndouble-sided fold-out posters for each film featuring original and newly\ncommissioned artwork, six postcard-sized art-cards, as well as reversible\nsleeves containing the same promo images for the films.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

If you enjoy these pictures and are a kid (or a\nkid-at-heart) who wants to see a recent take on classic Greek myths, then\nthere\u2019s plenty here to appreciate. The 4K Ultra HD and Blu-ray \u201cLimited\nEditions\u201d of When Titans Ruled the Earth<\/em> looks excellent and includes\nenlightening new extras that may help you appreciate the movies even more.\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This release from Arrow Video is available as either a \u201cLimited Edition\u201d 4K Ultra HD set or in a \u201cLimited Edition\u201d Blu-ray only edition. Growing up in the 1980s, most kids became very familiar with the adventure spectacle Clash of the Titans (1981), which featured a notable cast delving deep into Greek mythology. The film […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":29279,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[159,162,1836,3365,4475,8614,8615,12329,16623,16846,17572,24171,24508],"class_list":["post-29267","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-dvdblu-ray-reviews","tag-159","tag-162","tag-arrow-video","tag-box-set","tag-clash-of-the-titans","tag-greek-myth","tag-greek-mythology","tag-liam-neeson","tag-ralph-fiennes","tag-remake","tag-sam-worthington","tag-when-titans-ruled-the-earth","tag-wrath-of-the-titans"],"blocksy_meta":{"styles_descriptor":{"styles":{"desktop":"","tablet":"","mobile":""},"google_fonts":[],"version":8}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29267","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=29267"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29267\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=29267"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=29267"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=29267"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}