Today (yesterday) was a big event down at the Glendale Americana…a signing event for Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters followed by a screening! I have a poster signed by Logan Lerman, Alexandra Daddario, Levin Rambin, Brandon Jackson and Douglas Smith. I of course didn’t think of a single relevant thing to say to them and didn’t take the opportunity to embarrass myself with exclamations of adoration or anything amusing to blog about. Nice people. I didn’t try to get them to sign the book… Of course if I could get Logan to sign anything… probably would be my DVD of Perks of Being a Wallflower.
And then afterwards was a 3-D screening of the new movie. I really enjoyed it. Not just because I saw it for free or because I was plied with complimentary popcorn and soda. The movie itself was enjoyable. Maybe it will only interest people who saw the first film; but I thought it was fairly fun.
I know it seems like just yesterday I posted a review of a movie complaining about what horrible films I’ve suffered through in 2013. Uninspired action films filled with special effects and boring predictable plots. And sure, Sea of Monsters is an effects heavy action film. There is sufficient foreshadowing that when you get to the climax it’s not a giant revelation or a surprising plot twist… I hate to ruin that for you.
Percy and his friends go on quest to fetch a MacGuffin. Along the way they learn lessons in tolerance, and hopefully a valuable lesson in self-reliance as ones deity father doesn’t necessarily always answer you when you talk to the empty body of water. In this case the MacGuffin is the golden fleece of mythology with healing powers.
There have been a few changes made since The Lightening Thief. The camp looks different. Stanley Tucci, Anthony Head and Nathan Fillion make welcome appearances in the film. I could be wrong…but I’m wondering if the change in director helped Sea of Monsters to be a better film than its predecessor. Jake Abel … what is he, the new Zabka? (He’s not even as good as Zabka).
Sea of Monsters. 4/5. #10 out of 23 films in 2013.