Clash of the Titans (1981)

Sent with his mother to their deaths at the wild open sea by King Acrisius of Argos, the newborn Perseus, son of the King of the Gods, Zeus, escapes his cruel fate and grows up into a man with a mission in life. Without delay, Perseus has to return to the affluent city of Joppa, where the daughter of Queen Cassiopeia, the beautiful Princess Andromeda, is to marry the hideously grotesque monster, Calibos, the mortal son of Thetis, the sea goddess. However, in his quest to rescue the cursed Andromeda, Perseus will soon find himself up against formidable adversaries, only the gifts from the Gods themselves could give him a fighting chance. Will heroic Perseus fulfil his destiny? For lovers of Greek Mythology movies, this is certainly one for you. I love this film for plenty of reasons but to narrow it down to one, it would have to be the incredible stop-motion effects. They are very impressive and another testament to the creative work of the legendary Ray Harryhausen. His work is so inspirational and has been featured in countless movies following a similar style and mostly fitting that fantasy genre. To name a few he lent his creative touch to are: The 7th Voyage of Sinbad (1958) Jason and the Argonauts (1963) and One Million Years B.C. (1966). Harryhausen pioneered the use of stop-motion animation effects and made it into a form of art. All of these films, including this, were influenced by the work of King Kong (1933), which inspired Harryhausen in stop-motion. This film uses this form on multiple creatures both good and bad. It is used to bring to life that of Pegasus, Bubo the owl, the Kraken, Giant Scorpions, Calibos, the Two-Headed Dog, the Giant Vulture and the coolest/most terrifying, Medusa. That whole sequence where Perseus and two other soldiers enter Medusa's lair is easily my favourite part of this film. It is so tense and seeing the rattling of her snake-like tail as they move closer in among the crowd of past victim statues is brilliant and still effectively scary. Armed with a bow and arrow too makes her a deadly foe when matched with her power to turn living creatures to stone upon looking at her eyes. When she uses her powers, I love the bright green glow they give off. The stop-motion effects used on her alone are unbelievable. Medusa's snake hair each moves individually alongside the rest of her movements, which could only have taken so much time and process to get it to look as good as it does. After all these years to still look that superb is a grand feat for this film. Joined with the phenomenal effects and visuals are the characters who bring a great level of enjoyment to this epic story. One of the highlights of this film for me is Perseus' friends and gifts from the Gods. On his quest, he is joined by Ammon, who is a great asset to the adventure, giving tips and knowledge that can save Andromeda's life. I like it when he sees the items Perseus has been given by the Gods and his remarks to them with that astonished look, full of wonder. These gifts are awesom!. He is given a helmet, which renders the wearer invisible, a sword that can cut through marble leaving no mark and a shield that will come in handy in the fight against Medusa. Later on, a fourth gift is sent in the form of Bubo the mechanical owl who only Perseus can understand. He is one of my favourite characters and acts as a kind of comedic aspect to the film with his clumsy movements and actions. I think he is the most recognisable part of the film and was a fabulous inclusion to the story. I have fond memories of seeing these sorts of fantasy/Greek Mythology movies on television growing up, mainly being shown on repeats around Christmas and how I would watch them with the rest of my family. I miss when films had this sense of adventure and wonderment that seems overlooked in today's cinema with the overuse of CGI. Overall, this is a fantastic fantasy movie that is overflowing with grand stop-motion, and entertaining characters with a thrilling story to match. Clash of the Titans is a certified pop culture classic sure to spark your imagination.

Runtime: 1h 58m

Director: Desmond Davis

Genre: Action / Adventure / Family / Fantasy

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Trading Places (1983)

Louis Winthorpe III is a successful Philadelphia commodity broker with a mansion, manservant and fiancee. Billy Ray Valentine is a hustling beggar con man. Winthorpe's employers, the elderly Duke brothers, make a bet that by switching the lifestyle of the two, Billy Ray will make good becoming a respectable businessman and their man, Winthorpe, will take to a life of crime. Suddenly Louis finds himself uncomprehendingly with no job after being accused of theft, no home and only a new acquaintance, glamorous hooker Ophelia, prepared to help him. Valentine now has a lovely establishment, a servant and limo, a grand paycheck and a respectable job. However, the two catch wind of the Duke's bet and set out to get their own back. This is an amazing original comedy featuring two of my favourite comedic actors who definitely made it the joyful viewing it is: Dan Aykroyd as Louis Winthorpe III and Eddie Murphy as Billy Ray Valentine. The two are incredibly funny and share their comedic moments equally throughout, having some great ones together too. Not only do these two bring the film to life but also Denholm Elliott, as Coleman the butler and Jamie Lee Curtis, as Ophelia the hooker who helps out Louis. The two have some amazing scenes too and help out in the revenge on the Dukes. This is also another underrated Christmas movie, from the 80s. This is certainly one of my favourites that I watch each festive season. The film takes place during Christmas which can be seen throughout from trees to decorations and snow. One day Winthorpe bumps into Valentine who is apologetic, trying to hand him back his dropped briefcase when Louis accuses him of robbing him, shouting for the police. He is chased through the building where the Dukes see the ordeal and decide to make a bet to switch their places and see if they would adjust to the opposite lifestyles. Here we see Louis accused of theft, humiliated, kicked out of his house, rejected by his fiancee and losing his money and cards. Valentine meanwhile, is given Louis' house, butler, job and is brought into the higher end of society and wealth. At first, he uses his wealth to give out money and have parties before changing into a real businessman, as the Dukes intended. This opening part of the film is a clever comedy showing the greed and misuse of power and wealth. We see Winthorpe resort to a life of crime of stealing and threatening Ray with a gun. Concluding the bet we find out that the Dukes betted a messed up amount to ruin a man's life and now plan to swap them back but, little did they know, they were overheard by Valentine. After telling Winthorpe, the two make their move to ruin them in a typical revenge plot fashion. It is however shown confusingly during the trading floor scene that I had a hard time following since I don't know a great deal about the trade market, but I'm not the only one. As before stated, the actors drive this film but I think my favourite has to be Eddie Murphy as Billy Ray Valentine. Despite being his second film, following 48 Hrs. (1982), this was a huge boost to his fame and career. He is hilarious from the get-go and as he acquires his power, his original ways and humour never leave. The best scene in the film has to be the train sequence, where they try to stop Beeks, who is delivering the Dukes a secret report illegally on the state of the market. The scene where they go in disguised is so funny because of how confused and unamused Beeks is. When he catches onto them swapping his briefcase he tries to stop them which then leads to that infamous Gorilla scene. If you know, then enough said. Overall, this is a fantastically brilliant comedy that is still relevant and stands the test of time. It has a well-rounded cast, crazy antics, a bit of dark humour, some nudity and some festive cheer. Also, who doesn't want some dreadful old millionaires get their just reward in a splendid revenge plot? It is certainly one of a kind and very classic 80s that is great viewing.

Runtime: 1h 56m

Director: John Landis

Genre: Comedy

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Lethal Weapon (1987)

Roger Murtaugh is an ageing family man and a sensible veteran police officer just trying to make it through the day unscathed. Martin Riggs is a suicidal loose cannon cop who doesn't care if he even lives to see the end of the day. Reluctantly thrown together to solve the mysterious murder of a banker's daughter, the unlikely duo uncovers a dangerous ring of drug smugglers employing ex-military mercenaries. After a tragic turn of events, the mission becomes personal and the mismatched investigators must learn to trust one another as they wage a two-man war against a deadly criminal organization. I loved this buddy cop film and this is certainly one that shaped the subgenre going forward. The 80s really seemed to like their non-traditional Christmas films and, it seems, for festive action movies too. If you enjoyed this film then you will also love Die Hard (1988) which is another action-oriented unconventional Christmas flick. We follow two different cops who have very different ways of thinking and lifestyles but are going to need to put them aside to solve this crime. Our heroic duo is Roger Murtaugh (played by Danny Glover) and Martin Riggs (Mel Gibson). Every moment these two are on screen together I know I am in for a treat. Their contrasting ways of working and living lead to so many hilarious, as well as heartfelt, moments that make them such an enjoyable team. Murtaugh is constantly reminded of his age and the danger he's constantly in, which becomes quite frequent with his new suicidal loose cannon maverick cop partner, Riggs. I so enjoy when Riggs would do something so reckless that it sends Murtaugh into a frenzy, causing him to shout a lot and panic. This was certainly the case during the scene where Riggs helps a man about to jump off a building by handcuffing himself to the guy and jumping for him to safety, where he is left laughing and the guy screaming to be cut loose from him. From there Murtaugh goes ballistic shouting at him which always cracks me up. Especially when he brings out his iconic line said in all 4 films, "I'm too old for this shit!" Both actors do a fantastic job and show off their skills throughout. I love how Mel Gibson can switch from a helpful officer to a crazy wide-eyed madman in the next. Danny Glover's frequent breakdowns and worried expressions are so good never failing to make me laugh. This can be said for all their interactions as the comedy element of this film is just as great as the action. My other favourite part has to be the shooting range scene. This displays both of the duo's shooting skills but most especially that of Riggs' who manages to shoot out a smiley face on Murtaugh's headshot target, from the furthest distance. Each shares a huge deal of character development throughout their time together and helps one another out as their mission goes on, even when Murtaugh's family gets involved in the mess. The action sequences in this film are amazing and very extreme. I mean they take matters into their own hands and the way things get done is definitely not how the police do things. Seeing a 1v1 between Riggs and villain Joshua in a full-on fist fight, after throwing down their guns, was very thrilling. Many brutal shootouts also take place, alongside some torture. This film warrants its 18 rating for sure. Overall, this is a superb movie that balances action, comedy, thriller and crime perfectly, creating the ideal buddy cop flick. The characters are entertaining and engaging with plenty of enjoyable banter. Even better this counts as some non-traditional Christmas viewing being set during the season and there being many Christmas lights, trees, songs and decorations scattered everywhere. It makes for some extra viewing, but can be watched all year round. Finally, this film deserves a watch simply for Riggs' marvellous mullet. I mean look at it, such a sight! Also, check out the sequel for more action in Lethal Weapon 2 (1989).

Runtime: 1h 49m

Director: Richard Donner

Genre: Action / Crime / Thriller

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