Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief (2010) film review

It's the 21st century, but the gods of Mount Olympus and assorted monsters have walked out of the pages of high school student Percy Jackson's Greek mythology texts and into his life. And they're not happy: Zeus' lightning bolt has been stolen, and Percy is the prime suspect. Even more troubling is the sudden disappearance of Percy's mother. As Percy finds himself caught between angry and battling gods, he and his friends embark on a cross-country adventure to catch the true lightning thief, save Percy's mom, and unravel a mystery more powerful than the gods themselves. Written by 20th Century Fox

Starring: Logan Lerman, Brandon T. Jackson, Alexandra Daddario, Sean Bean, Pierce Brosnan Directed by: Chris Columbus Produced by: Greg Mooradian, Guy Oseary, Mark Morgan

Rated PG for action violence and peril, some scary images and suggestive material, and mild language.

Run Time:119 min

Another young adult book turned movie. This type of marketing has been building popularity for years. Unlike Harry Potter and Chronicles of Narnia not all books make good movies, some that have crossed over due to the popularity of Potter and Narnia have not been that successful. However this is not the case with this movie, many critics I found have given Percy a C or B rank, I would have to agree with the latter or higher. I found Percy Jackson and the lightning thief to be very exciting and held not only my interest but also the attention of 13 year old daughter who (with a habit of talking throughout almost every theatrical presentation) did not make a peep for the whole 120 minutes.

As I said this is based on a young adult novel, readers of this series will notice some discrepancies and lack of attention to detail between the book and film. This has become a normal practice in Hollywood for years, I hope they will wake up someday and start staying true and accurate with novel based film.

Acting was good, even with the large number of young newcomers. Logan Lerman did an excellent job in his lead role as Percy Jackson, I hope he does not develop a Danial Radcliffe size ego. also found Uma Thurman's portrayal of Medusa to be a treat.

Gods in human form as big as a new york sky scrapers, satyrs, centaurs, a Minotaur the size of big rig, I deeply enjoyed the highly visual special effects and action sequences. Greek mythology could not get more exciting then this.

I have not read the books yet, but after seeing this film, I now have a strong desire to learn what happens next in the life of Percy Jackson & the Olympians.

I feel the series will generate a new found interest in Greek mythology and that of all cultures, which is a great way to generate interest in our younger generations.

Harry Potter fans have a new hero and he is Percy Jackson! Lets hope his stories continue beyond seven books.