Trailer Review – Percy Jackson & The Olympians: The Lightning Thief

Years ago, I read a rumor online about a movie Francis Ford Coppola was working on, in which Greek gods came to New York City. The movie was never made, but the concept had me intrigued.

Just a few weeks ago, I picked up a copy of “The Last Olympian,” written by Rick Riordan. I was shocked to see that not only was it the fourth in the “Percy Jackson” series (I had never heard of them), but that the first, “The Lightning Thief,” was being turned into a movie for release next February. Since I’m not a fan of first-person fantasy, I had no interest in reading the books, but I found the prospect of the movie exciting, especially given that the Coppola film never came to be.

Well today, the teaser trailer for Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief debuted. It begins with ominous, magical, music and shots establishing the New York City setting, a boy stepping out of a taxi, into a building, being given a key by a doorman, and entering an elevator. He un-hoods and the camera slows down to reveal what appears to be a shorter Zac Efron (it’s not). The music bellows, as if to say “you know who that is, don’t you?”

The problem is: I don’t. And my feeling is that a lot of people aren’t going to either. Debuting with Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, it’s a certainty that much of the Potter audience has read the “Percy Jackson” books, or has at least heard of them. But this series has never hit that crossover level. Not yet, anyway. Not in print.

The movie’s tagline is clever: “Some heroes are made. And some are born…of the gods.” This plays on a clichéd line, but also gives us a sense of what the movie is about. But the phrase “born of the gods” isn’t really accessible. Unless the trailer is marketed solely to children who’ve read the book, the wording may leave them scratching their heads.

After the elevator seemingly travels at the speed of light to the top of the building, the doors open to reveal what I can assume to be Olympus, but actually looks more like Hogwarts. The title is revealed amidst clouds and mystery, and if no one was reading closely, would just assume that it said Harry Potter and the…

Maybe the movie will have its own visual style. Maybe it won’t be a Harry Potter knockoff. It’s directed by Chris Columbus, who directed the first two Potter movies (as the trailer wisely boasts). But after two years of back-to-back fantasy failures (The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian, The Golden Compass, The Seeker: The Dark is Rising), Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief  is going to have show audiences something new in order to step out of Harry’s shadow.

What do you think of the teaser trailer for Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief? Let me know.

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