Jason and the Argonauts (2001)

Powerful

How sad is this?

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

It’s sentimental, ridiculously long and only occasionally funny

I'll keep this simple and without all blathering hoopla about this and that, that my predecessors are most famous for. Although this may prove to be somewhat of a tedious task, given that I'm required to have a minimum of 10 lines! I'm actually shocked that this re-make has nearly 6.0 rating from 3500 viewers, probably all of them worked on the making of this futile attempt. I was forced to give it a 1 out of 10 rating....LOL This re-make attempt is one of the worst I've ever had the displeasure of viewing! Simply put, the 1963 original version "hands down" had stellar acting (with a lesser known English cast) and much better (Ray Harryhausen) special effects.

When I acquired this, I had actually ordered the original 1963 classic – at the time I had no use for it, so I gave the disc to my father; however, following the recent passing of Dennis Hopper, I decided to check it out regardless and, as it turned out, fairly enjoyed this epic of Greek Mythology. Being a good 75 minutes longer than the movie version (which was sparked by Ray Harryhausen's iconic stop-motion animation and a marvelous Bernard Herrmann score), this runs the risk of crumbling under its own weight – but, for the most part, the plot retains much of its inherent sense of adventure and fantasy.While I do not usually condone remakes, I think one has to make concessions for essentially timeless material such as this; thankfully, when this came out, there were still enough thespians (in its case, the afore-mentioned Hopper, Frank Langella and Derek Jacobi) around who could be depended upon for this kind of larger-than-life fare – but with Hopper now gone (not to mention the likes of Oliver Reed, Richard Harris and Alan Bates), it cannot last for much longer! That is not to say that the younger members of the cast do not have sufficient talent to carry the film, but they do lack that extra ounce of personality and charisma demanded to portray demi-gods with conviction.Anyway, comparisons between the two versions of the tale is inevitable and though, as I said, the narratives are reasonably similar, this does add its own stuff (necessary to pad out the running-time) while omitting or changing others. For instance, the demonic Harpies (designed by the Jim Henson company) and the fighting legion of the dead (actually grown from seed this time around!) are here, and so is Poseidon (though he is depicted as a monster rather than a savior in the 'moving rocks' sequence, which is subsequently rendered pointless), but not the statue that comes to life. The hero is then made to tackle a mechanical bull, while his entire crew falls prey to an island of murderous females (a scene which had already appeared in the peplum HERCULES UNCHAINED [1959]); the latter character also turns up here (as he did in the original), along with a black Orpheus (in keeping with the 1959 Oscar-winning film of the same name). Inevitably, the CGI-rendered special effects are not a patch on Ray Harryhausen's charmingly archaic Dynamation stuff and the recurring imagery of Zeus and Hera watching over mortal subjects from their Olympic abode in the skies grew too cheesy for words at times!

This was a truly fantastic surprise to discover one day when I was roaming the Sci-Fi Channel. I only ever roam the Sci-Fi Channel on a sunny day when I have nothing else to do. I just need something to criticize on days like that. But in this case, I didn't find something to criticize, but instead, something to be impressed at. "Jason and the Argonauts" is a made-for-TV movie and was obviously made on a low budget. It stretches about three hours in its running time, four when you include the commercials, and yet, I did not find myself bored or tired with it until near the very end. I have never seen the original film with Ray Harryhausen's stop motion effects, nor am I all that familiar with the original Greek myth upon which that film and this film was based. But I did very much enjoy this film.One of the many things that impressed me about this film was the good quality presented in its computer graphics. Unlike most features presented on the Sci-Fi Channel, the effects in this film are very convincing. They weren't entirely flawless, but were realistic enough. My favorite out of all the creatures was a giant lizard-like dragon that appears about mid-way through the film. It looked reptilian and the lighting effects used on it to make it blend in with everything else was magnificent. I was not as impressed, however, with Poseidon, the sea-god. Here, he is represented as this giant stone humanoid figure that literally roars a dinosaur's roar. If Poseidon were to roar at all, I think it would be an electronically altered human-made sound. But nonetheless, a fine addition to the story.Even though the film is three hours long, like I mentioned earlier, it does play itself well. There was merely one sequence that I felt was removable and that was the part where Jason and his crew encounter an island full of beautiful, but cannibalistic women. While it wasn't a badly done scene, if there was to be another scene removed due to pacing problems, it would have had to be this one.With a well-written script, fine acting, surprisingly good special effects and sound design, and a very impressive-for-its-type entertaining value, this version of "Jason and the Argonauts" is a very delightful surprise to discover. It managed to keep me interested on a day where I would have rather been outside, and in a case like that, it takes a good movie to keep me to sit still for four hours. And it did. I recommend it and there are hopes from me for others like this.

For some people 'Jason and the Argonauts', one of the most representative tale of the rich Greek Mithology, is one the most intense adventure yarn of all times. For this reason, maybe, this story - with more than three thousand years - is always returning to delight children and adults. This new TV version is an accurate and well done entry of the classical adventure. The movie - starring young Jason London as Jason - has a correct cast (with an impressive Dennis Hooper as the cruel King Pelias) and extremely good special effects. Maybe the movie is a bit too overlong which causes some uneven development of the plot, with some parts less interesting than others. For example, the movie goes down when the argonauts are made prisoners in the island of the Amazon women. But there's other great moments: the fight to take the 'Velocino' and the fight against the Minotauro. Although some old guys will remember and miss the old movies about Heroic Greece - especially the movies made with the assistance of the master of the special effects, Mr. Ray Harryhausen - this new version is capable and well done.