Review of Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief (2010) by Damien F — 09 Jan 2013

Ancient Greek gods are "real" and sometimes come down from Olympus and mix with mortals creating the race of demigods. This adventure movie tell us the story of one of them: Percy Jackson is an apparently average teenage boy, nothing seems out of the ordinary, his dad left when he was a baby, his mum lives with a total idiot and his studies aren't going particularly well. Suddenly everything changes when he finds out that his father is Poseidon- the God of the Sea- and that he has been accused of stealing Zeus' lightening bolt, the most powerful weapon on Earth (after Saddam's WMD). He goes off on a quest to recover it with the help of his protector, a satyr named Grover, and Athena's daughter, Annabeth. Only by finding the bolt he can stop the wrath of Zeus and the almost certain war between the gods.

Several Greek myths are cleverly mixed in this picture playing the classic theme of a perseverant hero going on a quest to restore order to the world. In a way it is a really far fetched plot but with a charming story, some shocking images and impressive special effects it makes a really good watch, especially for the younger generation. It is based in the book with the same name by Rick Riordan, I haven't read it but it seems like a plausible adaptation of a very fantastic tale of good against evil.