Immortals: A Bloody Feast for the Eyes
The conquering King Hyperion (Rourke) is on a mission to annihilate all Hellenes, liberate the Titans from their eternal prison, and overthrow Zeus and his Olympian cohorts. Standing in his way is Theseus (Cavill), aided by a beautiful oracle (Pinto) and a pair of escaped slaves.
Director Tarsem Singh, seemingly starved for violence after his gentler, more family-friendly film “The Fall,” revels in the juicy sounds of severed limbs, much like King Hyperion delights in the moans of his vanquished foes. The carnage is gloriously over-the-top: people and gods are sliced, impaled, hacked, boiled alive, and diced into tiny pieces. There’s even a scene involving the ritual castration of a prisoner with a massive hammer. Therefore, comparing this film to the recent “Clash of the Titans” is almost pointless, except perhaps in terms of liberties taken with the source material. However, accusing Singh of disrespecting the myths would be snobbish; after all, this is a costume action film, not an ancient drama, and nuance is hardly the point.
Tarsem Singh’s Background
In the 90s, Tarsem Singh made a name for himself as a music video director, with one of his most famous works being the iconic “Losing My Religion” video.
What’s Next for Singh?
Singh’s next project is an adaptation of the Brothers Grimm’s “Snow White.”
Immortals vs. 300: A Clash of Styles
However, it’s nearly impossible not to compare “Immortals” to Zack Snyder’s “300,” and in this comparison, the new film falls short. It’s not just that Singh replicates entire fight sequences frame-by-frame (though, some might argue Snyder borrowed those sequences himself) and overuses slow-motion. Snyder, aware of the potential absurdity of patriotic pathos among a bunch of half-naked, bearded men, pushed their heroism to the point of caricature, creating a macho spectacle that elicited smiles from the audience. Singh, on the other hand, reserves the right to be a cool, ironic jerk exclusively for Mickey Rourke. The other actors are forced to mumble kindergarten-level lines about duty with stone faces, hoping to get impaled on someone’s sword and end their misery early.
Henry Cavill, as Theseus, is particularly unlucky, as he’s destined to survive until the credits roll. While Freida Pinto can compensate for her character’s superficiality by removing her robe and showing off her backside, the unfortunate Cavill, who is now working directly with Snyder (“Man of Steel”), must be kicking himself for not demanding a line like “This is Tartarus!” or at least a cool beard in his contract.