Jason and the Argonauts

Ray Harryhausen's legendary stop-motion artistry was at the center of many Hollywood sci-fi/fantasy films released during the 1950s and '60s, including 1963's Jason and the Argonauts, one of Harryhausen's best. Although Harryhausen is only credited as associate producer and special visual effects creator (live-action director Don Chaffey gets top listing), this is his project from conception through production. A retelling of the famous Greek myth in which the gods (characteristically) manipulate humans in their competitive games and wagers, the film stars Todd Armstrong as Jason, who is sent with a mighty ship and heroic crew on a quest to retrieve the Golden Fleece. Not surprisingly, the cast is overshadowed by Harryhausen's magnificent creations: the bronze giant that destroys Jason's vessel, the seven-headed Hydra (imported from another myth) guarding the fleece, the flying harpies, and the famed skeletons that sprout from the earth to battle Jason and his men. Harryhausen and his writers take some liberties with the story (most tellingly in Jason and Medea's romantic happy ending), but this is one of the great meetings of classic mythology and old-school Hollywood magic. This handsomely-mastered Blu-ray debut features two new commentary tracks (one by Harryhausen and film historian Tony Dalton, the other by director/fan Peter Jackson and visual effects artist Randall William Cook), as well as previously available extras, such as the documentaries “The Harryhausen Chronicles” and “The Harryhausen Legacy,” an interview of Harryhausen conducted by filmmaker John Landis, and the original skeleton fight storyboards. Recommended. (S. Axmaker)