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Rating: 2 out of 5
I know I have said this before, but one of my all-time favorite periods is learning about the Greek Gods and Greek mythology. The stories, heroes, and Gods are always entertaining because they are wild to listen to or read. Greek mythology has had a significant influence on civilization and current times. God of War is still one of my favorite video game series. One Spartan against all the Greek Gods. What a freakin classic gaming series. We are once again introduced to Percy Jackson. This is the second book of the series and the second film. With the first film, I made the mistake of watching the movie first and then reading the book. BIG MISTAKE! This time around, I decided to flip the script and read the book, followed by watching the film. The reason was because I said the first film was good until I read the book and was disappointed. Well, the movie sure as hell doesn’t even live up to how good the book is.
The sequel to the Percy Jackson film, based on the 2006 novel The Sea of Monsters by Rick Riordan, was directed by Thor Freudenthal from a screenplay by Marc Guggenheim. Percy’s (Lerman) life seems to be going well after preventing the war between the two Greek God brothers, Zeus and Poseidon, in the previous film. Even though he is a hero, Percy has a hard time trying to make his mark. His rival is Clarisse La Rue (Rambin), daughter of Ares, who won a competition against him. When the camp is attacked and the realization that the tree protecting the camp is dying, Percy feels like this is his chance to prove himself once again. With the help of Annabeth (Daddario), Grover (Jackson), and his half-brother, Tyson (Smith), the group embarks on a quest to find the Golden Fleece and protect everything they love.
I don’t know how to feel about this film. I would say that I am disappointed in the story because it was about 50% of the whole book. When I think about it, the film could’ve been better and more concise with the book. The old saying is, “The book is better than the film,” they were speaking of this movie. The storyline was the same in the book, with Percy and his friends going after the Golden Fleece because the tree that protects the camp is dying. Side note: the tree is Thalia Grace, the daughter of Zeus, who was turned into a tree to protect the camp with her dying breath.
The film quickly gets from different points to make the movie flow. It leaves A LOT out of the book. First off was the introduction of Tyson. Tyson rolls into camp as the son of Poseidon, but in the book, Percy meets him at his human high school and doesn’t know he is a Cyclops. It would’ve been better if the movie had the book’s introduction. Another thing was the whole thing with the camp. Since the tree was dying, Chiron was blamed and relieved of duty. Mr. D was placed in charge, and he brought someone who made the camp into a nightmare.
I could go on and on about the movie not having this and that from the book. Let’s talk about the film. Even though it is muddled and lacks some passion, it’s not the worst sequel I have seen. It lost some direction, and the movie knew it wouldn’t have a third film. When the film introduced Cronos at the end, you figured there wouldn’t be another film, even though they used the end of the book to make you think a third film was coming.
It’s hard for me not to think of the book and this film. I wanted more from the boat scene with Luke, but we only got a quick battle and the three main characters dipping. Grover and what he went through would’ve been a nice touch. Hell, even the part with Circe would’ve been fun to watch because Percy was turned into a guinea pig. Even the man-eating sheep would’ve been fun, but it was left all out.
With the title being Sea of Monsters, you would think it would have more of that, but it was a quick scene. The Sea of Monsters is the Bermuda Triangle, which should explain why many things disappear in that area. The ship must pass between Charybdis and Scylla to enter the Sea of Monsters. Odysseus tried that, and the ship got destroyed. In the film, Percy and his crew get swallowed when they meet Clarisse. After that, the Sea of Monsters is wholly gone. Only like a five-to-ten-minute scene.
The CGI in this film is a highlight. It would make the Gods proud, but I enjoyed how many of the things looked. Clarisse and the Confederate ship were something to look at, along with Charybdis and its stomach. The CGI made this film bearable to watch and somewhat enjoy. This was a quality film if I had never read the book. Hell, even Cronos looked awesome, looking all blue and electric-like.
The acting was okay. Logan Lerman as Percy Jackson was cool, but he looked old now to play a 16-year-old. It was time for him to hang it up. Alexandra Daddario as Annabeth Chase was also good, but her blue eyes mesmerized people. As the demi-god, she was quick wit but seemed to play second to everyone. I really liked Leven Rambin as Clarisse La Rue, daughter of Ares. She was mean and seemed to take over the film when she was on screen.
Percy Jackson and the Sea of Monsters is one of those films that is okay to watch. It would be great as background sound. The storyline is okay and does its job, but it seems muddled and all over the place without any feeling of direction. The cast did okay, but they could’ve done better with some direction. Once again, if you need a beginner course in Greek Mythology, this film will get your interest started, but watch others to really know about the gods.
