Jason and the Argonauts [DVD]

I can remember watching this film for the first time when I was about 8 and being totally blown away by it. Even now when I watch it, it holds up really well against modern cgi because it is so fast paced. The story is based on Jason's journey to find the legendary golden fleece so after he gathers together a motley band of sailors for his ship 'The Argo' off he goes. The stop frame animation is superb and the battle with the skeletons towards the end of the film has not been surpassed. A talking figurehead on the boat, giant flying fruit bat type demons, neptune rising from the ocean are just a few of the myriad of characters from Greek mythology that star in this creation. There is a great sense of forboding in this film and even though you know he gets the fleece in the end, it does not make the journey any less entertaining. A classic, and much better than Clash of The Titans which was a later film using the same animator. They did produce a made for TV Jason & the argonoughts in the 90's which I thought would have surpassed the original from the 60's but no it was rubbish. I highly recommend this film to everyone.

Don Chaffey's 1963 epic which many remember fondly as boasting some of Ray HarryHausen's best stop motion work finally arrives on blu-ray, and only one word can describe it, Glorious!

I always have mixed feelings when something as old as this recieves the blu-ray treatment. there either seems to be a tendency to overcompensate for the age and grain of the picture by employing heavy DNR that destroys the intended look, or a tendency to pretty much leave it at DVD quality. But the recent clash of the titans blu ray release was a pleasant surprise, no heavy digital tinkering, just superbly remastered, authentic, and fresh looking with a great lossless dts stereo track.

I'm pleased to say that Jason and the Argonauts follows this trend, and improves upon it oustandingly. This is a truly great 1080p 1.66:1 framed transfer boasting superb levels of detail that bring this legendary picture alive like you have never seen. Yes, certain scenes are rough and grainy looking, probably most evident in olympus and certain creature shots, but this is not a transfer that attempts to digitally alter a film to the standard of recent releases with noise reduction and endless polishing. This is a transfer that has restored and remastered a classic with great authenticity to the source print, yet providing a genuine hi-def look that is really quite eye catching throughout. It's incredible to think at some points that you are watching something made in 1963! Skin tones are natural, colours are vibrant and bright, black levels are extremely impressive, and the general detail is extremely crisp and detailed, yet ALL without sacrificing the look of the film. And even though generally the effects shots tend to suffer most from the grain, they still show incredible detail compared to previous releases.

One thing to note is that because of the faithful representation of the original aspect ratio, the film places very thin vertical black bars on either side of the 1.78:1 display. However it is barely evident on most modern widescreen tvs, you really have to look for it to even see it, and this is well worth having a faithful representation of the original film.

The soundtrack is an impressive DTS HD Master 5.1 surround track, which whilst not utilising the rear surround speakers extensively, provides an immersive track. Herrman's score sounds amazing with it's basey pounding drums and rhythmic trumpets, and the general sound levels are extremely impressive. Dialog is clear and audible, even the whisperings of the gods themselves, and the sea roars and thunders the bottom end with great rumbling effect.

As if all that wasn't good enough there's also for the first time a commentary by peter jackson (a long time fan of stop motion and harryhousen's work) film historians, and the maestro himself, Ray HarryHousen which is both insightful and entertaining. There's the original skeleton fight storyboards, interviews with harryhousen by john landis (from the old dvd release) harryhousen chronicles, and harryhousen legacy featurettes.

All in all this is a fantastic release, given the treatment it so rightly deserves - unquestionably THE version to own.

Now 40 years old, this popular film makes a welcome addition to the ever growing DVD catalogue. Filmed in Italy with an astounding cast, it never fails to entertain. What I like about this disc is that it contains interviews with Ray Harryhausen who explains how his interest in dynamation came about. He has certainly left his mark on the cinema. My only reservation about this disc though is that picture quality is rather inconsistant. Some scenes show excellent detail, but others are rather grainy. Still, sound is more than acceptable and it shouldnt put off cinema enthusiasts like myself. I wish I could have given it a five, but inconsistant picture lowers its markings. A good buy though, and still enjoyable even after all these years. Look out for the rising of Neptune out of the sea in the thrilling "Clashing Rocks" sequence; the capture of the "Harpies"; and even more frightening, the 100 foot tall Talos, one of the Titans.