Jason and the Argonauts (2001)

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.

As a Classics major I can not recommend this movie. It holds no truth to the writings of Apollonius and is another Hollywood recreation of a magnificent Greek Poem. The writers and I call them that loosely stole a great story and changed a classic into a bad tele-novel. This is akin to taking Hamlet, keeping his father alive and Hamlet is just a joyous kid out on a fun adventure. As a Classicist this adaptation disgusts me. If anyone thinks watching this will replace reading the poem then expect a very low grade in your class!!!This is about as far away from the actual story as one could get. The original story is amazing and full of non invented plot twists and turns. The ending is Hollywood at its worst. So sad to see one of Greece's true masterpieces destroyed like this. Note to Hollywood, Why change a story so amazing it has lasted for 2,500 years. To change the story is so sad and just a slap in the face of a wonderful writer.

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.

I have been watching this movie on Hallmark Channel for about 5 years. It depicts an ancient story. Some of the characters are from the Ancient Greek Mythology. I am particularly interested in the character of Orpheus. If the viewer is too young and takes the movie as a source of his future culture and development, he'll be totally surprised when coming to Bulgaria and Greece and finding that the population there is mainly Caucasian and only few of it has blond hair and eyes. That is the insult that I am talking about. Orpheus could not be at all an African-American, or being representative of Africa. It is so ridiculous because everybody here in my country Bulgaria is generously laughing when seeing this movie. There is a name for a mountain which is situated 90 % in Bulgaria and only 10 % in Greece - the Rhodopi mountains or the Rhodopi, Rhodopa. It is called Orpheus' mountain. The cave of Trigrad in the heart of the mountain is the where he lost his love Euridice or Evridika. It is the same mountain where Rita Wilson's father was born. I think the producers would have to meet him and read, orientate a bit before placing an African-American actor to play Orpheus.