Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters

It's refreshing to see a relatively non violent adventure fantasy suitable for younger audiences again. Yet older audiences can enjoy it too. I actually prefer the story to the Hunger Games stories with all the killing.

The effects and creatures are slightly fake and unreal looking but it adds to the charm. Cute blending of mythology and the present story.

Logan Lerman still looks young enough for the role but Alexandra Daddario is looking a bit older.

I remember enjoying the first one slightly more with the novelty of the characters but this one is alright enough.

This movie was a major disappointment in my opinion. I've read the books and I loved them so I thought the movie would be pretty good too! I was wrong. Problem one is that it was a little too slow. They could have easily shortened 10 to 15 minutes of this movie but yet unnecessary parts were added. Problem two is that the acting was just not good. They could have done a much better job and at least tried to act in character. The biggest problem is that this movie was just stupid. It took them up until the last 20 minutes to reach their destination and to get to the whole point. Up until then there were just time wasters. The only good thing about this film is the special effects. I saw this in 3-D and i give it applause for its amazing graphics and special effects. Other than that though, this movie isn't worth seeing, it has countless flaws and problems. Don't waste your money on it.

My expectations were very low for this movie. The reviews were rotten, I could tell it was nothing like the book from just the trailer, and it was cut from the ugly cloth of the Lightning Thief movie, despite both films being based upon source material with limitless potential. After watching this movie in the theater and bracing for Logan Lerman's flawless portrayal of dirt, I ended up getting thrown a real treat.

Not to say it was a really good movie. The acting ranged from good to sickening. The plot was already cursed to be soiled due to the the first film's failure at adaptation. Half the characters introduced in the first novel, but not the first movie, came up this time. It was nice to have Mr. D and Clarisse, and even Chris Rodriguez, make an appearance on the screen. Despite this, the script itself was full of corny lines (mostly uttered through the mouths of Logan Lerman and Alexandra Daddario). Some of my favorite script moments were Tyson's little comments here and there,("At least there's no line." and when he sings an all too familiar song...)and then Hermes(Nathan Fillion) was well adapted and written, and also portrayed well by the actor. Another thing to note was the film's overall humor. In the first film, the characters took the story so seriously, it was hilarious without their intention. In this film, the filmmakers, writers and actors, actually intend to have fun and be ridiculous, which makes the film more worthwhile.

I can't say the visual effects were the best, but they really weren't that bad. Many reviewers site "video-gamey" CGI. Well, if it's video game graphics, then it's the best video game graphics I've ever seen. They aren't super-realistic, but the special effects are decent.I have to point out that there was an awesome scene of CGI when the Oracle explains the story of Kronos to Percy. This scene was creative and well done, especially with it's stain-glass window style.

The film's score (composed by Andrew Lockington) was pretty epic, but not entirely memorable. It won't get much awards, but it was really well done and held the movie together.

Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters only settles for being an "okay" movie. There are constant deviations from the novel, only decent scripting, acting, visual effects, good music, and mixed acting. However, it is not a waste, especially for fans of Percy Jackson. I enjoyed the movie, and The Sea of Monsters is my favorite book, despite changes. Now that many characters and plot points have been set into place after being shattered y the first film, the makers of this film have paved a promising path for another film that may be even better than the first two.

Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters feels like a cheap ripoff of the Harry Potter series made for younger kids or teenagers who read the books and would like to see it on the big screen. The script is awfully written, some of the dialogues were bad. Some of the funny scenes earlier in the film feel forced and the jokes were not delivered properly by the characters (found out the screenplay is actually written by the screenwriter who wrote Green Lantern).

The storyline is weak and feels out of place. There's simply not enough adventure in the Sea of Monster'S' and the actual quest felt a little too rushed for the audience to feel satisfied. Furthermore, the big finale near the end of the film feels disappointing and lame. Not sure about the novels as I've never read them before, but it seems as if the gods doesn't seem to care much about their half-blood kids (Poseidon seemed to be ignoring Percy despite his many attempts in communicating with him)...There's no appearances of the Greek Gods - Zeus, Poseidon or Hades throughout the film...despite the fact that there's an issue of utmost urgency that requires their immediate attention. One could even question why bother making the half-bloods in the first place?

Most of the plot elements felt contrived or questionable...they're just simply there for the sake of the plot (sorry for mentioning some of the plot element, I just couldn't help it):

-Out of nowhere, Luke just 'magically' found the Tomb of Kronos?

-A powerful crucial magical item such as the golden fleece is only guarded by a Cyclops on an island?

-The film's title mentioned Sea of Monster'S', but in the end the audience just get to see just a monster that looks like a maelstrom?

-How Grover managed to reach the island in the first place?

-How Luke and his crew gets to have a rat-scorpion hybrid monster as a pet in the first place?

-Seriously, if Kronos was defeated that easily, then why it needs 3 powerful Greek Gods to defeat him in the first place?

-Annabelle mentioned that Poseidon's powers don't work in the sea of monsters since the sea is not within Poseidon's domain of power, but Tyson managed to heal his wound?

Not to mention, the film ends in an unsatisfactory cliffhanger as well.

There's some character development in the film, especially Tyson, Percy and Luke. The acting performances from actors were fine and the film is entertaining in some parts of the film, but it certainly didn't reach the heights and complexity of the adventures in the Harry Potter series. While fans of the book series might love the film, but for general audiences, this fantasy action adventure is certainly a miss.

Greek mythology returns in "Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters", the sequel to 2010's "The Lightning Thief". Based on the novels by Rick Riordan, the series puts a spin on the rich mythology by blending it with modern society, which is kind of interesting.

The bulk of all the characters here are demigods/half-bloods (offspring of gods and humans). But the protagonist is Percy Jackson, a demigod son of Poseidon. Previously, he along with his besties Annabeth (daughter of Athena) and Grover (a satyr), stopped Luke, the Lightning thief, from destroying Olympus. Here, Camp Half-Blood (demigods' safe haven) are under threat after Thalia's tree, the boundary that protects the camp, is poisoned. The only thing that can heal it is the Golden Fleece which is located on an island in the Sea of Monsters, or what we like to call the Bermuda Triangle.

The movie is quite action-packed and pits our hero against a variety of Greek monsters. I loved the scene where the half-bloods had to face the Colchis bull. The mechanical bull was quite extraordinary and that scene was entertaining. However, I felt that the climax was a bit of a letdown as all the tension that had been generated zipped away so quickly.

Characters come and go. In "Sea of Monsters", much of the ensemble cast that make up the deities from the previous film are absent. We will see no more of Zeus (Sean Bean), Poseidon (Kevin McKidd), Hades (Steve Coogan), Persephone (Rosario Dawson), and Chiron (Pierce Brosnan). That means most of the experienced actors are out (not to forget Uma Thurman as Medusa). In replacement, we get Dionysus portrayed by the reliable Stanley Tucci. The gods Hermes and Chiron have replacements (Nathan Fillion and Anthony Head, respectively). We also have the clumsy but humble Tyson (Douglas Smith), Percy's cyclops half-brother, and the self-eccentric Clarisse La Rue (Leven Rambin), demigod daughter of Ares.

The movie had lots of scenes involving special effects. It was okay but it wasn't excellent. Some of the creatures were stunning (the hippocampus was amazing and eye-candy) whereas some looked pretty cheap and effortless (Kronos).

Under the direction of a new director, the movie is more faithful to the source compared to the first movie's similarity to the book (although by a tiny bit). But that's not to say some of the scenes diverge from he book. The movie is quite well-paced and during the ride, there are plenty of laughs to enjoy.

Overall, "Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters" is quite an enjoyable film. It's not better than the first and it's not worse than the first. It has quite an interesting premise and some fine action sequences.

Rating: 6/10

Final Verdict: "Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters" is a decent sequel that provides plenty of action scenes and laughs, with passable acting and okay visual effects.