Clash of the Titans appears in an aspect ratio of approximately 2.40:1 on this Blu-Ray Disc. Across the board, the movie looked great.
If any problems with sharpness manifested themselves, they eluded me. No issues with softness arose during the movie. Instead, the image always remained nicely detailed and well defined.
Jagged edges caused no concerns, and neither shimmering nor edge haloes appeared. Print flaws remained absent.
In terms of hues, Clash went with a lot of amber and teal, though matters turned airier in scenes with the gods. Within those parameters, I thought the colors were good, as they represented the visual design well.
Black levels also were very positive, as dark elements appeared deep and bold. Low-light shots demonstrated appropriate levels of opacity but didn’t come across as dense or thick. Ultimately, I thought the transfer worked nicely.
I also felt very pleased with the DTS-HD MA 5.1 soundtrack of Clash. All of the action scenes ensured that the mix offered plenty of involving material. The chaos filled out the spectrum in an active, involving manner that created a lot of exciting audio.
All five channels featured plenty of unique elements, and they fit together in a fine manner. Even quieter scenes used the soundscape in a satisfying manner. Music featured nice stereo imaging, and we found some localized dialogue as well.
Audio quality also was very good. Speech seemed crisp and distinctive, as I noticed no flaws like edginess. Music seemed warm and full, while effects added a real bang to the proceedings.
Those elements showed good clarity and accuracy, and they offered tight, deep bass as well. The track seemed vibrant and dynamic as it accentuated the movie in a satisfying manner.
How did this 2024 Arrow Blu-ray compare with the original Blu-ray from 2010? Honestly, I didn’t see much difference, as the two looked and sounded pretty much identical to me.
The Arrow release mixes old and new extras. Under Harnessing the Gods. we find 10 featurettes that fill a total of 35 minutes, five seconds. These include “Sam Worthington Is Perseus” (3:44), “Zeus: Father of Gods and Men” (2:18), “Enter the World of Hades” (3:30), “Calibos: The Man Behind the Monster” (2:58), “Tenerife: A Continent on an Island” (4:25), “Scorpioch” (4:07), “Actors and Their Stunts” (3:48), “Wales: A Beautiful Scarred Landscape” (2:33), “Bringing Medusa to Life” (3:487), and “Prepare for the Kraken!” (3:57).
Across these, we hear from director Louis Leterrier, producers Basil Iwanyk and Kevin De La Noy, production designer Martin Laing, visual effects supervisor Nick Davis, MPC visual effects supervisor Gary Brozenich, costume designer Lindy Hemming, special effects supervisor Neil Corbould, Cinesite visual effects supervisor Simon Stanley-Clamp, character designer Aaron Sims, stunt coordinator Paul Jennings, prosthetics supervisor Conor O’Sullivan, location manager Terry Blyther, supervising location manager Robin Higgs, stunt double Mark Mottram, associate producer Karl McMillan, Cinesite CG supervisor Quentin Miles, Medusa lead modeler Scott Eaton, Framestore animation supervisor Max Solomon,and actors Sam Worthington, Liam Neeson, Ralph Fiennes, Gemma Arterton, Mads Mikkelsen, Alexa Davalos, Liam Cunningham and Jason Flemyng.
The programs cover cast and characters, costumes, hair and makeup, effects and stunts, sets and locations, and a few other nuggets. These can be fluffy at times – especially when they praise the actors – but they also include a lot of good notes.
Heck, even the actor-based pieces throw out some nice nuggets, such as when we learn more about the gods’ complex costumes. While some of the clips fare better than others, they usually give us quality material.
Another featurette follows. Sam Worthington: An Action Hero for the Ages fills seven minutes, 58 seconds with info from Iwanyk, Worthington, Leterrier, Jennings, Flemyng, and Arterton.
“Hero” mostly look at Worthington’s work on the film, and it leans toward puffy praise. Nonetheless, it throws in more nice footage from the set, so it’s worth a look.
In addition to an Alternate Ending (5:23), we find 10 deleted scenes. Those run a total of 18 minutes, 12 seconds.
The “Ending” gives the movie a bit of a darker finish. I don’t know if it works better, but it adds a certain edge.
As for the deleted scenes, they tend to focus on characters not well explored in the final film. We get more of events back in Argos with the king, the princess and the townspeople who clamor for sacrifice, and we see more of the gods, with an emphasis on Perseus’s half-brother Apollo.
We don’t find much of him in the release flick, and I suspect he got the boot so we’d watch more of Zeus. One of the deleted scenes is close to one in the final movie except Zeus replaced Apollo.
I guess the filmmakers wanted more Neeson. Anyway, the cut sequences add some decent exposition but aren’t terribly fascinating.
The remaining features come new to the 2024 Arrow release. Scaling Mount Olympus runs 20 minutes, 45 seconds and involves notes from producer Basil Iwanyk.
He discusses his youthful affection for the 1981 film and his involvement in the remake as well as aspects of the 2010 flick’s development and production. Iwanyk delivers a nice overview of these domains.
In addition to the film’s trailer, we conclude with an Image Gallery that provides 35 elements. These mainly depict movie shots, though we get a few ads and behind the scenes stills. It becomes a largely forgettable compilation.
Note that the 2024 Arrow release drops a picture-in-picture feature from the 2010 disc called “Maximum Movie Mode”. This brought a form of multimedia commentary that worked well and becomes a lamentable omission here.
With a series of good action scenes, Clash of the Titans could’ve been a satisfying adventure. Unfortunately, dull exposition and forgettable characters negate the film’s positives and make it a bit of a chore to watch. The Blu-ray provides terrific picture and audio along with a fairly good collection of supplements. I feel pleased with this release, but the movie itself remains decidedly mediocre.
Note that this 2024 Arrow release of Clash of the Titans comes only as part of a two-film When Titans Ruled the Earth package. This set also includes 2012’s Wrath of the Titans.
To rate this film visit the prior review of CLASH OF THE TITANS
