We begin today’s review with a public service announcement: 
 
 The new mythological adventure/fantasy film “Clash of the Titans” is advertised as a 3D production and tickets are priced accordingly -- which is to say, at about one-and-a-third times the cost of a ticket to a plain-old 2D movie. 
 
 Well, it ain’t worth it. 
 
 I’m not talking about the quality of the film itself, which is not very high -- although not as low as you probably (and understandably) fear/expect. 
 
 Rather, I’m talking about the sheer awful quality of the 3D transfer of the film. “Clash” was shot in standard format, then gussied up to add a small bit of depth on the screen and considerably more at the boxoffice. A mere handful of shots have a feel of multi-dimensional immersion. But that number is small in comparison to the 3D sensation afforded by, oh, “How to Train Your Dragon,” which was made expressly for the 3D format, or even “Alice in Wonderland,” which, like “Clash,” was retrofit for 3D but with a more studied hand. 
 
 And, of course, all of those pale next to “Avatar,” a film which “Clash” continually calls to mind for reasons not entirely its own fault. Because, you see, if the filmmaking and 3D effects aren’t anything like those in “Avatar,” other things, alas, are. 
 
 “Clash,” you see, stars “Avatar”’s Sam Worthington as -- get this -- a half-human/half-not-human hybrid whose quest to drive evil from his planet involves riding a winged beast that no man has ever mastered and settling an internal conflict about which portion of his nature should command his loyalty. 
 
 Obviously, “Clash” isn’t an “Avatar” knock-off -- it’s far too soon even for the most opportunistic filmmaker to pull that trick. Rather, it’s loosely based on the laughably stoic and dated 1981 “Clash of the Titans,” which was itself loosely inspired by the Greek myths involving Perseus, a demi-god (in this case, a son of Zeus and a human mother) who fought off such beasties as the Medusa and a gigantic sea monster (or Kraken) in his rise to become, later in life, a beloved king. 
 
 In this telling, Perseus (Worthington) watches as the fisherman who adopted him as a foundling is killed by the god Hades (Ralph Fiennes), who’s engaged in crushing a human insurrection against the rule of Zeus (Liam Neeson). Hades has threatened to destroy the city of Argos by unleashing the Kraken unless the city offers its princess as a sacrifice, and Perseus, though mistrusted by the humans because of his godly parentage, leads a small band intent on destroying the Kraken and sending Hades back to the underworld. 
 
 “Clash” is basically a quest story, broken up with fights against monsters (a couple of which are pretty cool, actually) and some truly limp and ill-played attempts at humor (a pair of hunters with Yakov Smirnoff accents join Perseus’ crew for no discernable reason). Fiennes and, as Argos’ senior solider, Mads Mikkelson, afford some juicy fun, but Worthington projects the charisma of the young Russell Crowe’s lighting double. And there’s a fair bit of gore for a PG-13 film, for what that’s worth. 
 
 But the going is pretty slim here. Director Louis Leterrier (“The Incredible Hulk”) cannot stoke any of the film’s elements -- semi-romance, personal salvation narrative, or, most importantly, dramatic adventure -- into anything engrossing. It all passes quickly, as far as that goes, but when it’s over it passes entirely. And something that sells for a premium price ought to linger. 
 
 (98 min., PG-13, multiple locations) Grade: C ||||| Clash Of The Titans (Film) 
 
 Rating: M Running Time: 106 Director: Louis Leterrier Cast: Alexa Davalos, Ralph Fiennes, Liam Neeson, Sam Worthington Distributor: Roadshow Release Date: April 01, 2010 Film Worth: $3.00 FILMINK rates movies out of $20 - the score indicates the amount we believe a ticket to the movie to be worth 
 
 A big, loud, uninvolving mess played by actors who arenít even taking the film seriously 
 
 It's in 3-D! It's a remake! It cost millions to make! It's directed by a hack! It's filled with slick, over-used CGI! The dialogue is terrible! The characters are cardboard cut-outs! Yes! Welcome to the latest market-research-driven, soul-dead Hollywood blockbuster! It's Clash Of The Titans! As the American film industry continues to triumph at the box office but dies a long, protracted death when it comes to creativity and originality, this idiotic "event movie" pretty much sums up everything that's wrong with Hollywood right now. It's big, it's loud, and it's filled with meaningless action...and it also feels like not one single person involved with the production could give two hoots. 
 
 Based on the kitschy, ridiculous but vaguely enjoyable 1981 adventure of the same name (most famous for its excessive use of togas, and the wonderful stop-motion animated work of the legendary Ray Harryhausen), Clash Of The Titans is set in ancient Greece, and follows the battle waged between God and man. As Zeus (Liam Neeson) tries to teach the humans a lesson for disregarding him, he unleashes his evil brother Hades (Ralph Fiennes) upon them, with demi-God Perseus (Sam Worthington) - the bastard son of Zeus - getting caught up in the middle. Only he can kill the Kraken, a massive sea creature which will be dragged from the bottom of the ocean to teach the Greeks the ultimate lesson. To learn how to kill the Kraken, Perseus has to journey across the land to get a tip from three witches, who tell him that the secret lies with the evil Medusa. 
 
 Though stupid right from the premise, director Louis Leterrier and screenwriters Travis Beacham, Phil Hay and Matt Manfredi (it took three people to write this?) add to the idiocy with reams of arch, ridiculous dialogue, plenty of plot holes, and characters that make little to no sense. The performances follow suit. Liam Neeson and Ralph Fiennes look suspiciously like they're taking the piss, hamming it up deluxe, and playing in an acting style that wouldn't look out of place in a cheap local pantomime. Meanwhile, "man of the moment" Sam Worthington's character should have been called Aussieus for all the effort he takes in masking his down under accent. Though left to struggle with dialogue that would hobble even Meryl Streep, the hardly expressive Wortho is particularly wooden here, as if he was trying to make the job easier for the people designing his action figure. Only charismatic Danish actor Mads Mikkelsen comes out unscathed as Wortho's hardman sidekick. 
 
 As Clash Of The Titans rolls on, it begins to feel more and more like a video game, with each new adventure emanating the vibe of a new "level" on your XBOX or PS3. The overly edited action sequences are almost impossible to follow, ironically rendering them dull and tedious, and they're made even more incomprehensible by the use of 3-D. The result is a blurry, uninvolving mess, but you know...whatever. Nobody involved with Clash Of The Titans seems to have cared about the film...and - by the Gods! - neither should you. ||||| THE last time James Cameron directed a movie he broke all box office records. 
 
 Now — 12 years after Titanic — he has sunk £300million into Avatar to produce the most dazzling film of the decade. 
 
 See a trailer for the epic film, below... 
 
 Click here to download the latest flash player. Video: Avatar - trailer Exclusive look at James Cameron's sci-fi fantasy 
 
 It’s a 3D movie people will look back on in years to come to comment on how it transformed cinema. 
 
 In recent 3D releases such as Beowulf, the effects were impressive but the computer-generated humans looked far from real. 
 
 In Avatar, everything feels real — and it’s as if you are immersed in the action. 
 
 And what action. 
 
 Awestruck 
 
 The final battle scene is 20 minutes long and absolutely mind-blowing. 
 
 Alien nation ... Sam Worthington and Zoe Saldana as Na'vi aliens 
 
 Avatar, out next Thursday, is truly an event movie. 
 
 The Sneak still recalls sitting in a cinema 12 years ago watching awestruck as Titanic slipped beneath the Atlantic waves. 
 
 And your critic is sure that, even when he is pushing a Zimmer, he will remember the moment the main spaceship of the baddie corporation goes down in Avatar. 
 
 It is overwhelming, and that is because you are emotionally tied up in the characters and the story. 
 
 The plot is set in the next century, with humans trying to take vital resources from a distant planet called Pandora. 
 
 A paraplegic soldier called Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) gets the chance to walk again when he is transformed into the local species, the Na’vi. 
 
 This 10ft-tall elegant blue creature is his “avatar”. 
 
 Thrill ride ... film's all-action air battle 
 
 Jake is supposed to spy on the Na’vi for his company, but his mission gets complicated when he falls for a local girl. 
 
 The romance between Jake and Neytiri (Zoe Saldana) shows that Cameron has not lost his ability to evoke emotion. It will bring tears to your eyes. 
 
 Aussie Sam is totally compelling as Jake. It is easy to see why he is now such an in-demand actor. 
 
 James Cameron has described his new filming process as “emotion capture”. And it’s a boast he lives up to. 
 
 Even when Jake is a strange blue creature, you can tell it is him by his mannerisms. 
 
 A voiceover from Sam leads the audience through the alien world in a soothing, laid-back way. 
 
 Star power ... Sigourney Weaver with Avatar cast 
 
 One of the most amazing scenes comes when Jake and Neytiri are walking in the dark through a forest on Pandora. 
 
 Suddenly, she puts out her torch and you see all the vivid, fluorescent plants. 
 
 Some people — who have only seen the photos and not the film — have commented that it looks a bit cartoonish. 
 
 It doesn’t. Everything feels real. It’s as if Cameron has happened upon this alien world and got his camera out. 
 
 Zoe, who played Uhura in the recent Star Trek remake, also displays star quality. 
 
 You don’t need A-list names to make a great movie but it does help having Sigourney Weaver in the cast. 
 
 Brave 
 
 She plays a scientist called Grace, who wants to prevent the plunder of Pandora. 
 
 mpu 
 
 Clearly, there is a message here about mankind’s destruction of beautiful places. 
 
 And Cameron’s story is very black and white, an old-fashioned tale of good versus evil. 
 
 It’s unashamedly populist. Just like Titanic. 
 
 But don’t worry. This isn’t a preachy story. It’s big action. 
 
 The only reason that Avatar won’t top Titanic at the box office is that there are not enough digital screens around the world to show it in all its 3D wonder. 
 
 But you have to admire the film’s backers for being brave enough to take a risk on funding such ground-breaking technology. 
 
 The Sneak’s advice is to make sure you can say you were there when the future of cinema began.
– In Clash Sam Worthington plays a half mortal hopelessly in love and stuck between two worlds. Sound familiar? This remake aims for Avatar, but falls short. Though it has expensive effects (3D!) and stars (Ralph Fiennes!), it even falls short of the cheerfully cheesy original. This movie manages to make Avatar's plot look sophisticated, writes Dana Stevens on Slate. "Compared with this witless, chaotic mess of a movie, James Cameron's epic looks worthy of the ancient Greek authors." Peter Sobczynski of eFilmCritic says Clash "not only amplifies all of the flaws of the original but even screws up the things that it actually got right the first time around." "It's big, it's loud, and it's filled with meaningless action," says FILMINK's Erin Free. The film "pretty much sums up with what's wrong with Hollywood right now." Ralph Fiennes, does fine, says the Oregonian's Shawn Levy. Worthington, however, projects "the charisma of the young Russell Crowe's lighting double."