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Percy Jackson: The
Percy Jackson: The Sea of Monsters
I know BHR did a thread on this long ago when the film actually came out, but because I'm slow and only watch movies on DVD, I'm going to rehash this again, since I saw it last night.
First of all, my biggest issue with it was how Percy seemed to keep brooding so much on how neglected he felt. I know that in the book he did have his insecurity, but in the movie it just felt forced. And I really wish they didn't take out the part with Annabeth and Percy with the Sirens, especially when they pointed out their respective weaknesses then. It would have tied in Percy's not-so-great-after-all loyalty with the part in the beginning when he saved the other half-blood on that climbing device, thus losing to Clarisse.
I really liked Clarisse. Aside from the fact that she was slightly too pretty, looked a little too old, and her dislike of Percy was mainly reserved to being catty to him, she was really quite dead on. And I loved her costume.
I liked Tyson, too, aside from the sprayable Mist (though I guess, for those that didn't read the book, the fact that there is such a thing as Mist had to be pointed out). He seemed almost too stupid, too, but he was still a really fun character.
I didn't care for Luke's bit in this, though. It never seemed like he had a chance of getting ahead of the others, since Percy managed to brig-break with such ease. I wish Luke was as impressive as he was in the book. In the book he was a great villain, but he's a little dull in the films. And Silena should totally not have joined him yet! She's going to be important, and she isn't even introduced properly!
I also didn't like how they raised Kronos and then just "killed" him again so easily. This is the Lord of Time! Father of the Olympians! And why does he have to sound like Darth Vader? And there seemed something too ordinary looking about the Fleece.
I loved Grover in this one, though. He gets all the great lines and the bit at the end when he dresses up as a Cyclops handmaiden is precious!
Thalia seemed pretty cool, though I imagined her looking different. Annabeth had too small a part in this movie, though. It seemed like she should have done a little more.
All in all, I liked the film a lot, though I wish they had included more of the episodes from the book. I hope they do Titan's Curse, though if they change it too much, I'm going to be very angry indeed.
Sorry for the very late review of this--you're probably all like "That's yesterday's news!" and "Girl, get with the times!" but with my slow library and not being allowed to go to movie theaters...I really don't have much of a choice! :)
submitted by Everinne, age 14, Camp Half Blood
(March 1, 2014 - 9:23 pm)
(March 1, 2014 - 9:23 pm)
You so never got a sense that "Uh, oh, something wrong might happen about now!" You always knew they were going to get through all right. So disappointing.
The CSS Birmingham scene was the best! That must have been the best part of the whole movie, with Clarisse taking Percy's orders but still with her "This is my quest!" attitude about it all!
The young Thalia was adorable! If her grown-up version does just as well, Titan's Curse should be carried off pretty well.
The only thing about the "Small World After All" scene was that I kind of expected it to include the bit where Percy and Annabeth nearly smash into the other ride and they catapault out of it at the last moment into the water pool. Wasn't that what happened in the Lightning Thief book? The singing was kind of funny (and Clarisse getting annoyed by it), but I was just a little let down that they didn't include the other part, that's all.
(March 15, 2014 - 8:23 pm)
I know! That's exactly how I felt about it! In fact, I felt so disappointed cause on the way into the theater, I got talking to two kids who were going to see it, but hadn't read the book (ironically, their mom had). Then seeing the movie, I was inwardly writhing they hadn't read the book. It was like some cliche super hero movie where nothing bad ever happens, and the villian is easily destroyed.
I agree! It is fantastic!!! Clarisse was just nailed all around, and if they get to Last Olympian I want ALL of Clarisse's scenes in there, with this actress playing her.
Yes! I really hope so. If they do Thalia well, the movie may be somewhat good, despite other flaws they're bound to make.
Yes! The Tunnel of Love thing! That was great, I wish they had done something like that too. It wouldn't have made the entrance to the Cyclops cave quite so boring. But Clarisse getting mad made it worth it!
Over all, Clarisse is officially one of my top ten favorite characters. Actually, top five.
(March 16, 2014 - 3:26 pm)
In the book, my top characters are (in no order):
Annabeth
Percy
Thalia
Luke
Silena Beaurengard (I don't think I spelled her name right)
Zoe Nightshade
In the movie, I just like Clarisse. Which is sad. Becuase it could be so good!! *sobs*
I know! It's just like a dull superhero movie! But even The Avengers seemed to have more real emotion in it than Sea of Monsters!
(March 16, 2014 - 4:25 pm)
My favorite book characters are (no order):
Annabeth
Thalia
Luke
Clarisse
Percy
Tyson
Zoe Nightshade/Silena Beauregard (cause they were both such awesome heroines who sent me into tears)
Grover might have made it on the list, but he annoyed me so much through most of the 4th and 5th books.
I actually have not seen The Avengers, though I can imagine it had more emotion. Sea of Monsters had virtually none. In fact, if Clarisse hadn't been in it, the whole thing would have just utterly flopped. Though agreed, it could have been really good! What is up with producers? It's like they go out of their way to make the movie terrible.
(March 17, 2014 - 11:10 pm)
Oh yeah, Tyson was also really cute in the books! Grover just became a little too nonexistant by the end, so I almost forgot about him. *sorry*
Did you know that the actress who plays Clarisse is actually blond? I was so shocked when I saw a picture of her out of character, because she fit the Clarisse persona so well. Personally, I thought she looked better brunette, but that's just me. And I'm grateful anyway to her for saving SoM!
(March 18, 2014 - 2:49 pm)
I know! I thought Tyson was awesome, yet maintained that innocent cuteness! I loved him! I agree about Grover. He became so focused on Pan and all, he sort of left Percy and the whole war thing, till it actually came to battle. I liked him best in the first book.
I know! I saw a picture of her from when she played in The Hunger Games, and she almost looks completely different! I like her better a brunette too. It just suits her. But I'm grateful to her too! I hope she plays in the rest of the movies!!!
(March 18, 2014 - 9:56 pm)
She has GOT to be in the rest of the movies, or I won't watch them! I agree that Grover was the best in the first book. The only decent thing they changed in the SoM movie was that Grover wasn't on the Fleece quest at the beginning--I liked how he set out with Annabeth and Percy first off, thus keeping it similar to the quest in Lightning Thief.
Side Note: You should see Avengers, though. It's what you'd expect an action movie to be, with a lot of CGI destruction and slightly unbelievably powerful objects, but the acting's quite good and the villain, who I fangirl about almost too much, is actually kind of like how Luke Castellan should be, with a good deal of insecurity.
(March 19, 2014 - 4:16 pm)
I agree with a lot of what you guys said.
The reason I disliked the way the Princess Andromeda was portrayed was because it didn't capture the power that Luke has and it does not make him formidable. Without an army of monsters, what does he have? A few other demigods who agree with him. He is not a revolutionary raging against the old empire and he doesn't make nearly as good a villian. He's more a trickster, less a traitor. I think that if the age difference had been maintained and Luke had been aged up along with all the other characters, he might have been a stronger enemy, but at the same time the difference between 16 and 21 is not as big as 12 and 17. They're teenagers. They think they're nearly invincible.
Circe's theme park should not have been the entirety of the Sea of Monsters. It might have been drudgerous to go through all of their adventures and encounters in SoM, but the scale definitely should have been larger. The characters are too big. They're too strong in a world too weak and it won't be as significant when they do overcome the odds in the end.
I do not like the way Tyson was portrayed and introduced. We don't see the flaws in Percy. In the books, he sticks up for Tyson in school without knowing what he is. When he learns that Tyson is not only a monster but his half brother, he is ashamed. He is angry at his father, angry at Tyson, ashamed that he could ever be so directly related to an embarrassment. It is quite revealing. Percy isn't always perfect and kind and loyal, he's sometimes a downright traitor. It also cheats him out of some character development.
Another criticism I have is the degredation of Grover's and Percy's friendship and I believe it does a great disservice to both of their characters. In the movie, the quest isn't about rescuing his friend at all, it's merely an afterthought. There is no empathy link. Percy simply appoints himself Chosen Savior of Everybody and a large part of it is his rivalry with Clarisse. Grover is already being sidelined.
I disagree with you about Grover. In the books, Grover did the right thing in leaving Percy to go save the Wild. Percy isn't Grover's soulmate. He has no obligation to follow him around everywhere and do everything for him. He has goals of his own, goals that were around before Percy ever came around and I see no reason why he should drop everything for Percy's sake, when his own concerns are legitimate and need immediate attention.
No character should ever exist solely for the sake of furthering the hero.
Nor should a character ever be sidelined for the sake of furthering the hero, and I felt like they did that a little bit with Annabeth.
I respect other changes made in the process of adaptation. Film is a very different medium than the written word, especially concerning first person. SoM does a much better job than LF in capturing the spirit of the books and the characters.
On another note, why does it matter what color Annabeth's hair is? Or anyone's hair color, or eye color, for that matter? Does the color of her hair define her as a person? Do trinkets make her who she is? No. I could dye my hair blue tomorrow and it wouldn't change who I am. I could wear colored contacts and get tattoos and carry around seashells in my pockets and stick magic chopsticks in my hair but it wouldn't change who I am as a person.
(March 19, 2014 - 9:49 pm)
I totally agree about the Princess Adromeda. That was my pet peeve with it too. It doesn't portray his power or their formidibility at all. They do think they're invincible, and it's annoying.
I know! I was a little annoyed how it was an amusement park. Perfectly pointless. I mean, I wanted the whole "Nobody" thing!
I AGREE. That's what made their relationship so great later! It didn't show how all half-bloods show that they struggle with the relationship with their parents, it didn't show how even "the good ones" struggle with making the right decisions, and it made Tyson seem too much like a clueless nuisance that didn't have a whole lot to him. I mean, in the books he was great at the forges! They didn't even hint at that.
How it wasn't about Grover annoyed me to. You summed it all up. It just annoyed me.
No, Grover was obligated to Percy, but he completely dropped off through a lot of the final book. He was just so absent, and then he just took off after having been under a spell for six months, I just didn't feel it was very realistic. His over all absense and single mindedness about "saving the wild" just annoyed me. But again, it's just a thing of mine. Others may not feel the same, that's just me.
I enjoyed the movie, and I didn't mind the changes so much, they were just minor pet peeves.
The hair color was a peeve of mine because I appreciated the fact that Annabeth stood for the very thing you just said. That physical features don't define a person. Blondes can be smart and strong. It went against grain, and I appreciated that.
(March 22, 2014 - 4:42 pm)
I would have loved to see the Nobody thing.
And I forgot about something until you mentioned Annabeth's hair. I remember that in The Lightning Thief Percy describes Annabeth as looking like she was a stereotypical Californian girl, and now I understand your point with her.
(March 22, 2014 - 6:53 pm)
Yeah, Annabeth's blond hair is kind of like her trademark, along with the Yankee cap and the knife which she did NOT have in either of the films! They so did not give her character the individuality and personality she should have had. It's sad.
They needed to have put the Nobody thing in. For one thing, it would have made Annabeth to not be such a ditz and unnecessary. Annabeth was pretty much useless in SoM. Clarisse had all the good parts that Annabeth should have had. Clarisse is important, but she shouldn't have eclipsed Annabeth.
I really wish the ages had stayed intact. The actors seemed waay to old in the second movie. In LT, they were maybe all right, but they look like they're in their twenties--not even late teens.
Luke was just made to look like a joke. Heck, the whole quest seemed like a joke, like it didn't matter that the Fleece was two feet away and Percy and Tyson got all gooey and "brotherly" on everyone. The Cylcops in Circe's cave had no use except to stick in the joke with Grover being a handmaiden. There was no sense of urgency or danger. SC is right about Percy being so powerful. Now that he's "defeated" Kronos, what else is there for him to do? That was just so stupid and so incredibly Hollywood. There are supposed to be little victories on the way, but Percy can't just disembowel a Titan like it's cutting open a bag. And the way he did it was too flashy. Maybe Logan Lerman can do it as D'Artangnan in Three Musketeers (take my advice and never see that unless you want to sigh through half of it!), but this is Percy Jackson's very realistic, physics-abiding world!
Sorry, I'm just saying the same things over and over, but it's just so disappointing when things don't turn out how they should have. :(
(March 23, 2014 - 1:10 pm)
*gasp, trembles, dies*
LOGAN LERMAN HAS SAID THAT PERCY JACKSON 3 IS DEAD. They're not making the Titan's Curse, we'll not get to see Thalia, Zoe Nightshade, Nico, Bianca, or any of the other fantastical characters. I'm going to cry now. *slips away sobbing*
Well, that bites...
(March 25, 2014 - 7:52 pm)
OH NO!!!!! THAT'S SO SAD!!!! HOW CAN THEY DO THIS??!?!?!?!?
Wow. Really. I knew that the first two weren't that popular, but I still expected that might at least try to make Titan's Curse, since it's got such a good plot.
That's so tragic.
*goes to a corner and cries*
(March 26, 2014 - 8:40 pm)
The thing is, for all the people who haven't read the books, they're left with this massive cliffhanger about who Thalia is and her purpose, and this unrealized prophecy! If they were planning to get rid of Kronos so quickly and stop the series, they should have stuck in some stuff from Last Olympian and just gotten rid of Thalia. That would have been terrible but at least it didn't seem so unfinished.
(March 27, 2014 - 6:19 pm)
Um.... *shrinks in a corner*
I just watched the movie. Yesterday... and I don't want to have to make you guys start off on a rant again cause you probably don't want to, AND I've read all of your posts. I have to agree with most of it.
A short summary since I don't want this to be too long, though it could!!!
Tyson was adooooorable. My heart melted. I was SO SO SO EXCITED to see my half-favorite character Thalia!!! She was all I imagined her to be, and she had the perfect punk look! Clarisse nailed it. Totally nailed it. Except I didn't like how she softened up so fast. BAD. Luke(other half-favorite) character, in movie on, was a let-down. He was so awesome in my head. And my siblings can't understand why I like him so much. Movie2 didn't do him all that justice, but I liked him at least better. Grover was absent, and I thought he was funnier in the first movie.
Overall, it was cheesy in places, bad acting, scenes cut out and put in. But I actually fouond it enjoyable. (Overlooking the fact that Kronos' digital form sucked big time.)
(March 29, 2014 - 11:54 am)