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In the new film “Percy Jackson and The Olympians: The Lightning Thief,” a young boy discovers he has incredible powers and is sent to learn how to channel these gifts and do incredible things. He befriends an intelligent girl and a clumsy but loyal guy, and the trio have various adventures using their magic while being pursued by a veiled villain who happens to have played a key role in our hero’s past. Sound familiar?
As the “Harry Potter” film series wraps up, several studios are looking to fill the gap it will leave behind and capture the adventure/fantasy audience. Twentieth Century Fox has thrown in its bid with “Percy Jackson,” a semi-popular children’s series. The books follow the Harry Potter formula fairly closely, switching witchcraft and wizardry for Greek gods and monsters, and provide light, breezy reads. There’s nothing wrong with playing a song we all know, just as long as you do it justice. Unfortunately, the film adaptation fumbles many of the necessary notes.
The first bad decision was hiring director Chris Columbus to shepherd the adaptation. Columbus helmed the first two “Harry Potter” films before he was dropped for the likes of Alfonso Cuaron and David Yates. His entries in the “Potter” series work in spite of and not because of him. His other films include the formulaic “Stepmom” and “I Love You Beth Cooper.” Columbus makes all the right choices to provide an easygoing ride that doesn’t challenge the audience, but doesn’t excite them either.
The film’s franchise-starter nature negates any dramatic tension, for we know our hero will have to survive for the next installment. The exposition is coming clumsily from some great actors who are clearly here just in case this series takes off and nets them easy paychecks for the next decade. Pierce Brosnan, Uma Thurman, Steve Coogan and Sean Bean are all wasted talents here, trying to pump life into things and failing miserably.
The child actors are all fine, and relative newcomer Logan Lerman plays Percy Jackson well enough. He has the same tricky job Daniel Radcliffe had the first time out: Percy mainly reacts to the crazy things happening around him, his dialogue consists mostly of questions, and one sees the potential for Lerman to grow as time goes on, just as Radcliffe did.
Thankfully, the film resists the urge to end on a cliffhanger, and if there are no more “Percy Jackson” films produced it won’t be maddening like it was with the far superior yet incomplete “Series of Unfortunate Events.” No one is embarrassed, and it won’t be hard for any of the participants to find their next gig. But in the end, all that’s here is a by-the-numbers fantasy film.
The potential for something greater is here, though. In the appropriate hands, the “Percy Jackson” series could become an action-filled romp through modern interpretations of ancient Greek mythology. Someone with an eye for action and decent character work could surely squeeze out a fun ride at least. If a sequel is made and a different director is at the helm, it’d be easy to give Percy a second chance.
Grade: C
