Clash of the Titans (1981)

Not even I am nostalgic enough to look back at the 1981 film, Clash of the Titans, and believe it to be a good, or even a mediocre, film. It's the perfect example of a childhood pleasure that you should never revisit with adult eyes, for if you do that, the memory of it will be forever ruined. But surely it is better by 1981 standards than its remake, released this past Friday, is by 2010 standards. Initially, it seems that a remake of the 1981 version might be a good idea, as film-making techniques and technology have significantly advanced in the last 29 years. Further, Clash of the Titans is not so ingrained in the culture and popular imagination that a remake that trifles with its narrative or place in pop culture history would be objectionable. But to make a film which from the trailers appears to be even worse than the original seems a tactical error. Surely this was pitched as Gladiator with monsters? Well, I'm sure it will be on DVD in a few weeks . . . . Perhaps I will rent it at that time and do violence to whatever childhood memory I maintain of the original film. Alas.