Thrills but little depth in ‘Percy Jackson & The Lightning Thief’

Cert PG

Family

Percy Jackson (Logan Lerman) is struggling at high school and rowing constantly with his mother Sally (Catherine Keener), who has married a loser called Gabe (Joe Pantoliano).

During a visit to a museum, the troubled teenager learns a shocking secret: he is the son of Poseidon (Kevin McKidd), god of the sea, and a war is brewing because Zeus (Sean Bean) believes — quite wrongly — that Percy has stolen his lightning bolt. Moreover, best friend Grover (Brandon T Jackson) is a satyr, charged with protecting Percy from evil.

Spirited away to Camp Half Blood, Percy begins his training with centaur Chiron (Pierce Brosnan) and the other demi-god children including Annabeth (Alexandra Daddario), daughter of Athena, and Luke (Jake Abel), son of Hermes.

When Hades (Steve Coogan) enslaves Percy’s mother and promises her safe return in exchange for the stolen lightning bolt, the teenager embarks on a quest to the underworld accompanied by Grover and Annabeth.

Percy Jackson & The Lightning Thief is an all-action adventure inspired by Greek mythology, which seamlessly melds live action and computer trickery.

Chris Columbus’s film recalls ‘Harry Potter And The Philosopher’s Stone’, sacrificing in-depth characterisation for the sake of eye-popping thrills and a brisk pace.

Star Rating: 3/5