Immortals (2011) Review

Immortals

Despite the many obvious comparisons that were being made between “Immortals” and “300” before “Immortals” was released, I was willing to give it the benefit of the doubt. Its director, Tarsem Singh, is known for his creative and unique visual style, and he’s not usually a formulaic director who copies other movies like so many others do. But after leaving the theater, it dawned on me that Singh really did copy the formula for “300,” and unsuccessfully to boot.

Plot Synopsis: Theseus started out as just a simple peasant, a nobody who cared for his mother and his village. But when King Hyperion, in his search for the mythical Epirus Bow, slaughters everyone in the village, including Theseus’ mother, Theseus joins a band of soldiers in order to stop Hyperion from releasing the Titans from their prison. The Titans once lived on Mt. Olympus with the Gods, and despite Zeus’ insistence on not helping the humans, the Gods inevitably get involved in the quest.

“Immortals,” much like “300,” is a movie more concerned with cool visuals and bloody violence than storytelling depth. The difference though is that “300” managed to distract us from the thin plot with a consistent stream of action scenes. “Immortals,” on the other hand, doesn’t accomplish the same trick, with awkward pacing and a lack of narrative momentum replacing visceral carnage for long periods of time.

But don’t let that fool you that “Immortals” actually spends that time to concentrate on plot or character. Despite a fine performance from soon-to-be Superman Henry Cavill, we are never given enough of a reason to care about Theseus’ adventure (killing a family member does not automatically create an engaging character). Mickey Rourke is suitably intimidating as the evil Hyperion, but mostly he does the same thing in every scene: growl at his minions and kill one when he’s angry, which happens a lot.

Aside from Cavill, the only other actor that was good in the film was Luke Evans as the manipulative Zeus. The rest of the cast ranges from decent (Stephen Dorff has some funny comic relief moments) to blank (Friedo Pinto’s chemistry with Cavill is non-existent), and all of them thinly written.

The action scenes can be a mixed bag too. One part with Theseus killing multiple soldiers in a straight line feels ripped from a similar scene with Leonidas mowing down Persians in “300.” However, the 15 minute final battle is pretty awesome, especially once the Gods get in on the action. The fight choreography was inventive, shockingly gory, and it was one of the few times that the film really came to life.

Despite my continuous harping on the flaws of “Immortals,” it is not an altogether terrible movie; because there are some scenes of great imagination, usually courtesy of picking from the movies Greek mythology roots. “Immortals” is, however, a very mediocre movie that I can’t recommend beyond a curious rental on Blu-ray.

2/4    Rating Criteria