This is from someone who has seen every single Ray Harryhausen Movie several times! But BEFORE diving in.....FIRST: Let us FOCUS on the Title's Content and Context.....
Probably could write volumes about his many films! WHY??? You might be asking Yourself! OK!... Fair enough Question! HERE, this Review is my Answer:
Ever since the age of 10, (the year of the release of THE 7th VOYAGE Of SINBAD) Ray Harryhausen has been my #1 Favorite "Behind the Scenes" Hollywood Hero! Five of his films are in my DVD Collection, and I've seen almost ALL of them between 4 and 8 times! He made his last film, CLASH OF THE TITANS, in 1982, when he was 62 years old. When 7th VOYAGE was released, I remember looking at the movie poster and seeing Harryhausen's name listed after, "Special Effects By..." and I knew I had seen his name before, but I couldn't remember where, exactly. Within seconds of SINBAD's first scene with Harryhausen's signature "Dynamation" (READ: Stop-Motion) Special Effects, I realized he was the genius behind most of my other favorite films: IT CAME FROM BENEATH THE SEA-1955-Giant Octopus tears down Golden Gate Bridge!; EARTH VS. THE FLYING SAUCERS!-1956-Flying Saucers turn our Capital into steaming rubble! 20 MILLION MILES TO EARTH 1957-Venution Monster grows to gargantuan size, leaves Rome in Ruins! After that first viewing of 7th VOYAGE, every release of a new Harryhausen movie became a MAJOR life-event for me! Between 1958 and my 1959 summer vacation in Colombia, I saw 7th VOYAGE 4 or 5 times, in a movie theater. (In those days it was usually 8 to 12 years before films found there way to Broadcast TV!) Leonard Nimoy, one of Harryhausen's legion of fans since his early 20's, when IT was released, does a commendable job narrating CHRONICLES. Oddly, one of the documentaries great strengths proves to be, simultaneously, its biggest weakness! Its refreshing that Harryhausen does a lot of the explaining himself. That's very unusual in a documentary such as this...The problem is that Ray, God Bless him, was really not accustomed nor well-suited to appearing BEFORE THE camera!
He mumbles a bit at times, and his delivery is clearly that of a 78 year-old non-professional! I took off a 1/2* because of this.
OVERALL: 8.5********* Recommended ONLY for Special Effects and/or long-time Sci-Fi buffs and for those with a general interest in the history of the cinema!
ENJOY! / DISFRUTELA!
Ever since the age of 10, (the year of the release of THE 7th VOYAGE Of SINBAD) Ray Harryhausen has been my #1 Favorite "Behind the Scenes" Hollywood Hero! Five of his films are in my DVD Collection, and I've seen almost ALL of them between 4 and 8 times! He made his last film, CLASH OF THE TITANS, in 1982, when he was 62 years old. When 7th VOYAGE was released, I remember looking at the movie poster and seeing Harryhausen's name listed after, "Special Effects By..." and I knew I had seen his name before, but I couldn't remember where, exactly. Within seconds of SINBAD's first scene with Harryhausen's signature "Dynamation" (READ: Stop-Motion) Special Effects, I realized he was the genius behind most of my other favorite films: IT CAME FROM BENEATH THE SEA-1955-Giant Octopus tears down Golden Gate Bridge!; EARTH VS. THE FLYING SAUCERS!-1956-Flying Saucers turn our Capital into steaming rubble! 20 MILLION MILES TO EARTH 1957-Venution Monster grows to gargantuan size, leaves Rome in Ruins! After that first viewing of 7th VOYAGE, every release of a new Harryhausen movie became a MAJOR life-event for me! Between 1958 and my 1959 summer vacation in Colombia, I saw 7th VOYAGE 4 or 5 times, in a movie theater. (In those days it was usually 8 to 12 years before films found there way to Broadcast TV!) Leonard Nimoy, one of Harryhausen's legion of fans since his early 20's, when IT was released, does a commendable job narrating CHRONICLES. Oddly, one of the documentaries great strengths proves to be, simultaneously, its biggest weakness! Its refreshing that Harryhausen does a lot of the explaining himself. That's very unusual in a documentary such as this...The problem is that Ray, God Bless him, was really not accustomed nor well-suited to appearing BEFORE THE camera!
He mumbles a bit at times, and his delivery is clearly that of a 78 year-old non-professional! I took off a 1/2* because of this.
OVERALL: 8.5********* Recommended ONLY for Special Effects and/or long-time Sci-Fi buffs and for those with a general interest in the history of the cinema!
ENJOY! / DISFRUTELA!