Jason and the Argonauts Jason and the Argonauts

1963. Morningside/Columbia. D: Don Cooper really makes the most of the pic- Chaffey. Scr: Jan Read, Beverley Cross. Ph: turesque, rocky Italian locations, giving Wilkie Cooper. Art: Geoffrey Drake. Mus: a vivid freshness to the outdoor scenes. Bernard Herrmann. Associate Producer Bernard Herrmann's magnificent score and Creator of Special Visual Effects: Ray catches the right combination of the epic Harryhausen. Model Sculpture {uncred- ited): Arthur Hayward. and the grotesque. It is at its most mem- Cast: Todd Armstrong, Nancy Kovack, orable during the skeleton battle where Gary Raymond, Laurence Naismith, Niall his ominous woodwind themes lead into MacGinnis, Michael Gwynn, Douglas high-speed staccato rhythms accompa- Wilmer, jack Gwillim, Honor Blackman, nying the fight itself. Patrick Troughton, Nigel Green, Andrew It is more than half an hour before Faulds. the first animation sequence but Chaffey Rating: Stop-Motion: insures that we do not get restless. These opening passages — Hermes' prophecy Jason is Harryhausen's best-known to Pelias, the storming of the temple, work and his own favorite among his Jason rescuing the drowning Pelias, films. Even the most cynical of audiences Jason's visit to the gods in Olympus and respond to the grandeur of the episode the selection of the Argonauts — still en- with Talos, the giant bronze statue that tertain after repeated viewing and have comes to life, and to the bizarre thrills of a liveliness and sense of grandeur miss- the battle with the seven sword-wield- ing from many much more lavish Holly- ing skeletons. wood epics. Don Chaffey's efficient direction of They include a number of minor the live-action passages makes it hard to Harryhausen effects, all carried off flaw- believe he is the same director who was lessly. Hera (Honor Blackman) appears later responsible for the lifeless One Mil- as a cloud of smoke beside the river, with lion Years B.C. (1966). The script by Jan what looks like a miniature shrub placed Read and Beverley Cross enthusiastically in front of her to merge the composite. conjures up a credible version of ancient Hermes grows to a great height in front Greece, with an essentially simple plot of Jason and disappears. Jason converses sparked by a variety of colorful charac- with the huge Olympians, merely a ters and good dialogue. The credit for pawn-sized figure on a chessboard (de- this must go more to Read than Cross. picted by means of excellent traveling Read co-wrote the excellent script for mattes). Olympus is a fine miniature, Harryhausen's next picture, First Men in matted around a central area in which the Moon, whereas Cross was later re- the actors perform in long shots. And sponsible for the unimaginative treat- the disc thrown by Hercules and Hylas ments for Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger, are stop-motion models shot against a Clash of the Titans and the unfilmed rear projection —although just how Force of the Trojans. Cameraman Wilkie Harryhausen got the water to splash is a

367 Jason and the Argonauts

In this publicity shot from Jason and the Argonauts (1963), parts of the feet of the giant Talos disappear beneath the matte line. No such flaw occurs in shots actually seen in the film.

mystery. (It may be a superimposed Zeus announces from above, "We have third element.) not yet finished with Jason." It's a shame Chaffey, Read and Cross maintain that the scripting excellence was not sus- this level of enthusiasm throughout the tained to the end. Talos episode, but thereafter the film The encounter with Talos on the starts to degenerate into little more than Isle of Bronze is a magnificent concep- a series of effects set-pieces, and the tion and makes good use of its beach and film's sense of purpose is lost. In fact, the cliff locations. It is marred only by the end of the film is quite unsatisfactory inconsistent scale of the huge statue — (and unclassical) because the conflict too large when it picks the ship out of with King Pelias, whom Jason is proph- the water and too small when Jason esied to overthrow, is completely ig- struggles to loosen the plug in its heel. nored. The story ends abruptly after Otherwise this is a classic Harryhausen Jason has seized the Golden Fleece while episode consisting of a series of unfor-

368 Jason and the Argonauts gettable images and a novel conclusion. bly intricate matte which allows us to Talos, with his stiff, metallic movements see his legs through the hole. and black, soulless eyes, is one of the Varying the perspective to heighten screen's great bogey men. No man in a the drama, Harryhausen cuts from an costume could have evoked the same imposing low-angle shot looking up at presence. the statue to a shot looking over Talos' Hercules (Nigel Green) and Hylas shoulder at the Argonauts fleeing in their (John Cairney) stumble on the awesome boat. When Talos turns and walks away, Valley of Statues — the tiny actors walk there is a slight jiggle in the lower half of across the bottom of an extreme long the matte where the registration has not shot with four huge statues seamlessly been held steady. matted into the landscape. Inside the In a long sequence, Talos cuts off base of Tabs' statue they find a horde of the sailors' escape route, stepping over treasure. A long shot of the interior uses the exit from the harbor and destroying a matte painting dripping with jewels. their ship. He pivots stiffly, planting one Outside again, Hercules hears an omi- foot on the other side of the channel nous creak of metal and looks up to see (which may well have been put there by Talos' head turn towards him. This clas- matte photography if it is not an actual sic low-angle shot, with Hercules' head location). Several very good traveling inserted in the lower right hand corner mattes allow the camera to look up at by means of traveling matte, is a gen- Talos from the sailors' point of view as uinely haunting nightmare image. Bros- the boat nearly drifts through his legs. nan (in Movie Magic) calls it "one of the Medium shots of Talos looking down at great moments of cinema." the Argonauts are intercut with several Six cuts show the great statue clam- long shots of the tiny boat sailing below. bering off its pedestal and, in a deft He swaps his sword hand again, touch, leaning back stiffly as though ad- stoops and picks up the boat, with justing to its sudden consciousness. Harryhausen effectively cutting between Three static-matte long shots show Talos live-action shots of the actors being emerging from behind a cliff, the sailors thrown about, a prop of the boat shaken running about in the lower foreground. from side to side in the air, and stop- In one of these, Harryhausen has his cre- motion long shots of Talos holding a ation swap his sword from one hand to miniature of the boat, tiny animated the other, giving it an extra bit of vital- oars and the broken mast falling into the ity. In three more cuts, Talos stoops and sea — probably suspended on wires for a his huge hand appears through a hole in few frames. After dropping the boat, the rocks, trying to reach the scattering Talos turns and walks away. sailors. Harryhausen adds an important There is a pause in the action as the touch to this static-matte set-up by su- sailors swim to shore, then Talos reap- perimposing a cloud of dust, thrown pears. A dramatic camera move pans into the air when the statue drags his from Jason and his men to the sight of hand back again. When Talos gets up he Talos striding past some far-off rocks — walks past the hole in the cliff, a credi- it looks as though Harryhausen has

369 Jason and the Argonauts moved his animation camera in closer partial miniature floor is skillfully mat- and simply panned across the pre-shot ted into the beach setting in the shot background plate. After three cuts of where Talos hits the ground, allowing Talos behind these rocks, a fourth has the puppet to throw a shadow. The head him step around the same rocks, clev- and limbs are realistically animated as erly helping to disguise the composite: they break away. The satisfying narra- The matte which initially follows the top tive twist here is that Hylas is crushed of the rocks is replaced by a horizontal under the statue as he tries to retrieve one along the beach. the very spear which Hercules had stolen A number of non-matte medium from the treasure trove —the act which shots of the puppet (most dramatically a had incited Talos' revenge in the first shot which tilts up from his waist to his place. head, and an impressive full-view low- The conclusion to the Talos episode angle view) are intercut with long shots is one of many sequences in a Harry- of the Argonauts throwing rocks and hausen film that reveals the identity of spears. Talos swipes at them with his films that had a profound effect on him huge sword, which nearly fills the frame when he was young. In The Last Days of in one rear-screen shot as it swishes past Pompeii (1935), with special effects by the sailors. His enormous foot swings Willis O'Brien, the Colossus, a huge, past Jason, who is waiting for an oppor- helmeted, sword-bearing statue, cracks tunity to get at the statue's weak spot, its and collapses during the climactic vol- heel. After a low-angle view looking up canic eruption, falling on top of a fleeing at Talos' back, Jason runs over to the extra. heel. In some shots, a non-animated The harpies episode is as bizarre a prop of the foot is used, matted onto the vignette as you could wish for and Har- beach; closer shots, in which Jason actu- ryhausen adds touches of grim humor ally releases the plug at the back of the to the antics of these pesky creatures heel, employ a full-scale prop. Several which contrast neatly with the grandeur medium shots show Talos looking down of the Talos encounter. The temple ruins with concern. provide another attractive location. Steam and ichor, the statue's life- Patrick Troughton gives a whole-hearted blood, escape from Talos' heel. Although performance as the tormented blind her- it looks like a live-action fluid, the ichor mit Phineas. Herrmann's light and was actually strips of cellophane that quirky score adds its own bit of magic. were turned on a wheel frame by frame However, this is not a great anima- to simulate a falling liquid; it is a totally tion scene. The first section, which takes convincing effect. Talos drops his sword, place in daylight, suffers from graininess growls and clutches his throat as though in the background plate and a poorly suffocating — a characteristic moment of matched floor inlay. The two puppets are Harryhausen pathos. The puppet is mo- nightmarish creatures but have to be tionless for a few seconds as Harry- shot almost entirely in long shot because hausen adds a series of cracks to it, then they are facially lifeless and would not it topples over, straight at the camera. A stand up to closer scrutiny. And Harry-

370 Jason and the Argonauts

Harryhausen's harpies torment Phineas the blind man (Patrick Troughton) in Jason and the Argonauts, hausen has problems with the strobing cuts). The creatures attack Phineas and of the wings in some shots, which is dis- there is lots of implied interaction in two tracting. But these are complaints which long cuts as they teasingly snatch at him only arise after repeated viewings: The with their feet. One of them grabs his first time around, the scene has enough walking stick, a flawless effect in which shock impact to obscure the faults. the stick is pulled away by invisible Many of the armature components wires. A floor inlay around a miniature of the harpies came from Mysterious Is- of a stone table is poorly matched but land's phororhacos, which was stripped does allow the puppets to throw shad- down and dismantled. ows, an important ingredient in any In the first animation cut, one of composite. When one of the harpies the noisily flapping harpies lands on a pushes the table over, Harryhausen ani- stone pedestal. A second harpy lands on mates the dishes sliding to the edge but the side of a ruined column (in three cuts away before the fruit actually falls to

371 Jason and the Argonauts the ground, so as to avoid time-con- columns (providing a natural matte suming wire-supported animation of line) and take to the air. miniature props. An impressive long shot shows One harpy unwinds a strip of cloth them flying behind two columns to- from Phineas' clothing —an effect again wards Phineas —the matte follows the using an invisible wire and careful align- outline of both columns. After a closer ment of puppet and actor. It's an utterly shot of the harpies harassing Phineas, convincing effect and one of the classic the soldiers run into the temple and in a moments of interaction in Harry- series of nine cuts wave their spears at hausen's career. He adds an amusing bit the creatures flapping just out of reach. of characterization to a shot of the two There are two low-angle shots of the puppets on the ground, munching nois- harpies looking up at the net stretched ily on the fruit. In this cut, they hold over them. After the net is dropped, their wings out behind them, making there are two fine shots, making a com- very smooth movements. When the Ar- plex bit of animation look easy, with the gonauts arrive on the scene, the harpies harpies struggling underneath the net, fly off, seen in a very good rear-screen their wings crumpling as they slowly fall composite way off in the distance. The to the ground. On the ground, they are harpies are so small in this shot that surrounded by the Argonauts. This ex- Harryhausen may have used two smaller cellent composite really looks like one models. piece of film. The second part of the harpies Later there are five cuts of the episode takes place at night and is even harpies in the cage. Three of them are better than the first. The nighttime set- static mattes with the Argonauts stand- ting makes it more eerie and helps to ing on the left. The other two are mesh the composites — the harpies really medium shots of the models behind the look like they are in among the live- wooden bars (the closest we get to a action footage. And there is the visually good look at them). In one of them, a striking idea of a huge net dropped from harpy catches some tood tossed to it by the top of the ruins and a final comic Phineas. This closing moment catches role-reversal where the two harpies are the right tone of grim humor, and it held in a cage and forced to eat scraps makes a welcome change to have the thrown to them by Phineas. creatures spared the normally obligatory The sequence opens with an attrac- death scene. tive shot of the two harpies landing The live-action scene in which the where the food table used to be and sea god Triton saves Jason's ship from looking around for it. A terrific com- the Clashing Rocks is dramatically as posite—quite chilling as well —shows effective as any of the animation scenes. them crawling up some stone steps into But Harryhausen has problems with the the temple. Miniature steps are seam- beading of water droplets (which reveal lessly matted in among the real ones. the size of the studio tank) and a minia- Seen from inside the temple, the crea- ture mock-up of the Argo bobs along tures emerge from behind one of the unconvincingly in some cuts. Addition-

372 Jason and the Argonauts

Harryhauscn's Hydra puppet from Jason and the Argonauts in an exhibit at London's Museum of the Moving Image. The exhibit recreates the basic concept of a rear-projection set-up. The camera is in the foreground; the puppet is on an animation table {complete with holes to secure the model); and previously filmed footage of Jason (Todd Armstrong) has been projected from behind onto a translucent screen. ally, some of the traveling mattes of the scene in which Medea (Nancy Kovack) sailors looking out at Triton and the prays in the Temple of Hecate, enhanced rocks are poor. Those who want to enjoy by two reasonable matte paintings. will engage a willing suspension of dis- The seven-headed Hydra that belief and respond to Herrmann's guards the Golden Fleece is one of pounding score, the excellent miniature Harryhausen's finest models, taking full rocks that cascade into the sea and the advantage of the unlimited potential of silent grandeur of Triton. Others will stop-motion: seven vicious, beaked probably sneer contemptuously. heads on snake-like necks, a scaly, finned Before the next stop-motion scene, body and two tails, with the limp body there is a fight on board the Argo be- of Acastus held in the coils in one of tween Jason and Acastus (Gary Ray- them. This is a nightmare creature that mond), a dance in the court of King only stop-motion could bring to life. Aeetes on the island of Colchis and a The setting is memorable: the fleece

373 Jason and the Argonauts glimmering on a gnarled, lifeless tree heads are intercut with superior travel- beneath a cliff face, the rocks bathed in ing matte composites of Jason standing an eerie blue light, the ground shrouded in front of the puppet. in mist. Harryhausen's stamina seems to Particularly good is a static matte be limitless as he animates all the in which the creature slithers in front of heads — apparently he did not chart the Jason, a miniature branch in the lower various directions of movement on foreground enforcing the illusion. In paper but kept it all in his head. several cuts it looks as though Harry- It's a well-designed scene with some hausen has matted around the live-ac- excellent composites but it's a shame tion tree and fleece, thereby allowing his that it was not developed beyond a sim- puppet to slither behind them; if so, it's ple battle with Jason and the Hydra's a very intricate matte and flawlessly subsequent death — it's all over too executed. The animation of a puppet quickly for such a magnificent model. Jason held in the Hydra's tail in three Unfortunately, there are no closeups of long shots is remarkably credible. An- the creature's heads —the model looks other clever composite has the live- detailed enough to withstand closer action Jason roll away from the tail along scrutiny and the scene would have the ground. benefited. (The design of the heads — The Hydra rears up over Jason, who sloping back into horns —looks like it stabs it twice in its chest. In a legendary may have inspired the superb Vermin- moment of camera trickery, he leaves thrax Perjorative in 1982's Dragonslayer.} his sword embedded in the puppet. Herrmann's score is curiously restrained Just what happens to the live-action and for once doesn't add much to the sword is open to speculation. A best scene. A rubbery full-scale prop of the guess is that there never was a live-action tail which ensnares Jason doesn't help, sword: Armstrong mimed the action and nor do live-action cut-away shots to Harryhausen meticulously lined up a Medea trying hard to look worried. But miniature with his hand. The Hydra these are minor complaints. writhes around, screaming in pain — but The sequence kicks off with a good by Harryhausen standards, his death shock effect, a close shot of the seven screams are restrained indeed. Six cuts heads lunging at the camera. In long show it dying, one head stubbornly tak- shot, the creature slithers out of the cave ing longer than all the others to expire, on a well-matched floor inlay. The limp and the tail giving a shuddery death corpse of Acastus in one of the tails is a rattle. Subsequently, the lifeless puppet convincingly animated puppet. In a nice is matted into several shots of Aeetes touch, the seven heads turn to look at arriving on the scene and calling down their catch. Two dramatic dolly shots fireballs to incinerate it: "Fetch me the from behind the Hydra's heads move in Hydra's teeth!" on Jason in the rear screen. The static If the Hydra sequence gives the im- mattes of Jason in long shot, slashing at pression that it is over too quickly, then the seven heads snaking in and out, are the climactic battle with the skeletons is excellent. Medium shots of the hissing quite the opposite. This four-and-a-half

374 Jason and the Argonauts minute sequence is Harry- hausen's masterpiece. The con- cept is startling, the rapid-fire editing and the enormous vari- ety of rear-screen set-ups are breath-taking, and the anima- tion is inspired. The pre-shot choreography of the live-actors fighting with thin air is skill- fully controlled, and the inter- action between puppets and ac- tors is frequently so intimate that the illusion is totally suc- This closeup of one of the seven heads of the Hydra cessful. This sequence can be reveals the extraordinary detail of Harryhausen's watched any number of times sculpting. (Photo by John Coley.) and it still amazes. Each time, it yields up new treasures, revealing the ature swords of the skeletons were par- extent of Harryhausen's determination tially cut away or extended frame-by- to go all out in this scene to do the best frame to create the illusion that they he knows how. were in contact with the Argonauts. One More crucial than the technical of the skeletons — but which one? — was merits, the sequence is successful on a the same model that had been used in dramatic level as well: The balance of The 7th Voyage of Sinbad. horror and black comedy is kept just The suspenseful build-up to the right. Inventive touches such as the shot skeletons' appearance is brilliantly staged of the screaming skeletons charging, a by Chaffey and Harryhausen. Aeetes, skeleton getting beheaded, Jason punch- confronting Jason and his men among ing another skeleton on the jaw when his the ruins of a clifftop temple, scatters sword seems to have no effect — all these the teeth from the Hydra and calls on insure that the audience is kept on the the "children" to appear. In a perfectly edge of their seats. Add to this Her- matched floor inlay, animated pieces of rmann's adrenaline-buzzing score and earth are pushed up by something below, you have the perfect animation scene. then a sword emerges, and finally the Harryhausen took four and a half first skeleton, pulling itself erect from a months to animate this episode. Some- stooped position. It is joined by six oth- times he would average as few as 13 ers, intercut with shots of the astonished frames a day —just over half a second of Argonauts. film. Hardly surprising when you con- For these shots, the skeleton pup- sider that in some cuts he was adjusting pets were concealed in a chamber be- heads, arms and legs for all seven skele- neath the miniature floor. One frame at tons, plus any finger or jaw movements a time, screws in hidden platforms be- that were also required. Additionally, neath each skeleton were turned, raising some composites required that the mini- them.

375 Jason and the Argonauts

The army of living skeletonsin Jason and the Argonauts. Herrmann's score is effectively advance behind another pillar on the silent during the tense moment when all right. seven skeletons stand ready, swaying With a terrifying scream, the skele- slightly. "Kill! Kill! Kill them all!" bel- tons charge, running at the camera in lows Aeetes, and in a side view they a superb medium shot. In a 1969 in- march forward in unison. A beautifully terview at Britain's National Film The- designed "reality sandwich" shot has the ater, transcribed in FXRH #4, producer three Argonauts retreating nervously in Charles Schneer mentioned that a shot the left foreground, Aeetes and his men of the skeletons charging was cut by the in the background and the seven skele- censor. "He felt that this was a bit too tons walking forward in the middle dis- much for the younger audiences. And tance. In another clever perspective, that came out, and it never went back, Harryhausen mattes around a pillar so and we were satisfied that this was the that as the Argonauts retreat behind only cut, even though it took two weeks one pillar on the left, the skeletons can of Ray's time." Is he referring to this

376 Jason and the Argonauts cut —left in by the American censor — matter how many of the skeletons are or was there a longer cut which we have knocked down, there are always others never seen? ready to rush in. The Argonauts jump up onto a Meanwhile, Jason has jumped back stone pedestal and there are three long- onto the pedestal, battling two skeletons shot static mattes in which they are at- in a cut that uses the earlier set-up with tacked by all seven skeletons. There is a the partial miniature pedestal. In a closer dizzying amount of activity in these shot not requiring a matte, Jason kicks shots with skeletons brandishing their one of the skeletons in the head and swords, getting knocked away and Jason sends it flying. As he does so, the other jumping over the sword of a skeleton skeleton jumps onto the pedestal, only who swipes at him. In these cuts, the to get slashed by Jason's sword and fall matte not only follows the line of the out of the shot. At the same moment, floor but also goes around the head of a a third skeleton jumps up onto the fallen statue, supplying a crucial fore- pedestal. ground element that breaks up the depth We now cut back to Phalerus who, of the shot. In closer shots, the vertical in a simple yet brilliant bit of interac- walls of the pedestal are miniature, al- tion, ducks as a skeleton charges him and lowing the skeletons to throw shadows throws it over his shoulder. At the same onto the set. A nightmarish medium time, a second skeleton picks itself up shot from the Argonauts' point of view from the ground on the right of the shot. has two of the skeletons grinning up at In a well thought-out closer shot, this the camera. The skeletons clamber up skeleton tentatively circles Phalerus onto the pedestal and pursue the fleeing and crosses swords with him. This ac- sailors. tion continues in a shot from behind One skeleton chases Phalerus (An- Phalerus as the Argonaut leans back drew Faulds) to a low wall, the matte line against the wall and lifts the skeleton following the outline of a fallen pillar in with his boot and sends it somersaulting the foreground which the skeleton runs clean over his head —another classic behind. In a closer shot, Phalerus swings moment of interaction achieved by care- his sword and it clearly passes in front of ful alignment. the skeleton's shield. Again, a partial As this skeleton is getting up, the miniature sword is wire-suspended for a other runs in. Phalerus leaps into the air few frames (or painted on glass) and to avoid its sword. In yet another set-up matched to the live one. of this sequence, Phalerus climbs over In another part of the ruins, the the wall only to see the skeleton also third Argonaut, Castor (Fernando Poggi), leap over it, joining his fallen comrade trips one of the skeletons, sending it on the other side. Almost imperceptible, crashing to the ground. As it gets up that part of the wall which the skeleton again, a second skeleton runs into the jumps over is a miniature, allowing it to shot and engages the argonaut in a sword throw a shadow. It crosses swords with fight. This is all superb high-speed ani- Phalerus again and there is an unforget- mation, reinforcing the feeling that no table closeup of the sneering skeleton,

377 Jason and the Argonauts after which Phalerus forces the skeleton left side hacks Castor across his stomach away. and there is a delicious pause in the We now return to Castor in the frantic pace as both skeletons watch the same set-up as before, in a long sequence Argonaut fall forwards off the wall. In- that ends with his death. A skeleton geniously, Harryhausen's animation sug- swings its shield and knocks the Argo- gests that the skeletons are enjoying see- naut's shield away —a superbly effective ing him die. This shot is an especially suggestion of physical contact. Castor good composite because the actor seems then swipes at the skeleton with his to fall into the foreground past the skele- sword and sends it reeling. This is all tons, whose heads turn to look at him as seen in three quick cuts, where one he falls. It's a classic example of a static might have sufficed —the design indi- matte set-up fooling the eye into seeing cates Harryhausen's determination to an illusory depth. make this scene special. Jason is still battling with other The two skeletons chase Castor to skeletons on the pedestal. In a long shot, the ruins of a wall, vertical matte lines he knocks one to the ground, then an- allowing the puppets to seem to walk be- other, and fends off a third. In a closer hind either end of the wall. It is a bril- shot, he beheads the second skeleton liant touch to have a skeleton adopt a with his sword and its headless body threatening half-crouch and look hun- struts around for a while, arms out- grily along both sides of the wall for his stretched like a blind man. A shot of the intended victim — there seems to be no skeleton hunting on the ground for its end to Harryhausen's inventiveness dur- head was cut out after it induced chuck- ing this sequence. Castor is now up on les from a preview audience —Harry- the wall, clashing swords with the skele- hausen's fans would love to see this shot tons below, and there is another point- restored, but perhaps it was an instance of-view shot of the two puppets. One of the comic aspects of the scene going skeleton is knocked down and gets up too far. Even without this cut, this is still again in long shot as the other looks on. a great moment, always greeted with Castor jumps from this wall to an- gasps of excited delight by audiences. other, and one of the skeletons slashes at (The cut leaves a slight jump in Her- thin air as the Argonaut leaps over him. rmann's score.) In the next cut, the other skeleton is up Phalerus battles on, kicking one on the wall and jumps after Castor, a skeleton away and crossing swords with marvelously dynamic idea that required another in a static matte set-up. that the puppet be suspended on wires The next cut — with Jason engaging for a few frames. Castor is now at the top two skeletons on the ground in front of of another wall with a skeleton standing the pedestal —is one to treasure, con- on each side of the steps leading down — taining not only the satisfying moment a memorable design. The steps on the when he socks a skeleton in the jaw, but left are part miniature. He slashes one also two bafflingly good bits of camera skeleton's arm and it clutches it as trickery. Jason plunges his sword into though wounded. The skeleton on the the chest of a skeleton lying sprawled on

378 Jason and the Argonauts the ground and leaves it there. The against a wall by two skeletons. The sword begins life as a prop in the actor's sword of one of them passes behind the hand in the live-action footage but ends actor on two occasions and when up a miniature in the puppet; just how Phalerus strikes at a skeleton's shield, a and when the switch is made remains a partial miniature sword is introduced to mystery. It's a brilliant effect and a can- the shot so that it appears to be in front didate for best-ever effect in a Harry- of the shield. In a celebrated effect, a hausen film. skeleton plunges his sword deep into Equally baffling is the quick mo- Phalerus' chest, the miniature sword ment when the second skeleton runs being whittled away frame by frame to into the shot and its sword passes behind suggest it is piercing the actor. The pup- Jason. One way of achieving this would pet advances a step, really shoving the be to have hand-drawn mattes roto- sword in, and a nightmarish medium scoped for each frame, their outline fol- shot of the grinning skeleton suggests lowing Jason's moving body. But as far as that it is thoroughly enjoying itself. One is known, Harryhausen used this tech- skeleton runs out of the shot as Phalerus nique only once, during the flood se- falls forward. Because the actor falls quence in Clash of the Titans. It seems across the matte line, the second skele- more likely that he used a series of par- ton is able to seem to jump over his tial miniature swords, lining each up so corpse as it follows its comrade. that they ended where the actor's outline There are four final stop-motion began in the rear screen. As the sword is cuts at the clifftop. A medium shot of lowered by the skeleton, more of it dis- Jason forcing back three skeletons with appears behind the actor, then it reap- his spear is followed by a long shot pears as the sword goes lower still. It is showing the puppets falling in a heap — astonishing that Harryhausen should go a tricky bit of animation made to look to such lengths to improve the look of a easy. To his dismay, Jason sees three shot; he could so easily have just had his more skeletons running at him from the puppet hold the sword clear of the actor's temple (one of them is supported on body. wires for a few frames as it leaps down In four dramatic long shots, Jason is from the stone pedestal). As a last ges- chased to the edge of the cliff by three ture of defiance, Jason hurls his spear at skeletons. The invisible matte line runs the clattering horde, turns and jumps off through the irregular rocky terrain. As the edge of the cliff. The relentless skele- in the whole of this scene, the electric tons follow him and perish in the sea variety of the choreography never lets below. In this final cut, the cliff face is up: Jason knocks the skeletons away with miniature, and the actor actually jumps his sword, in a desperate bid throws his onto a mattress hidden by an area of shield at them, then repulses another live-action sea matted into the right with his spear. hand corner of the set-up. Phalerus' death scene also contains Jason and the Argonauts is a mile- moments of dazzling interaction be- stone film and its skeleton scene ranks as tween puppet and actor. He is trapped one of the most exquisitely designed and

379 Jaws 3-D executed sequences in any fantasy film. film was one of them. It did much bet- Yet the two years it took to make and the ter business in Britain (which had less $3.5 million it cost failed to get the re- exposure to the Italian films), and be- sponse it deserved at the box office. A came one of that country's big money- flood of brainless Italian muscleman makers of the year. On television and in epics had just reached cinema screens at revival cinemas all over the world, it is a the same time as Jason & release, and au- perennial favorite, possessing a timeless diences just assumed that Harryhausen's appeal that delights young and old alike.

Jaws 3-D

1983. Alan Landsburg Productions. from inside the shark's mouth shows D: Joe Alves. Scr: Richard Matheson, Carl MacCorkindale struggling to get out, Gottlieb. Story: Guerdon Trueblood. Sug- only to be followed by the sound of teeth gested by the Novel "Jaws" by Peter Bench- crunching against bone. ley. Ph: James A. Conlner. Filmed in Arri- vision 3-D. Art: Woods Mackintosh. There is a lot of substandard blue- Mus: Alan Parker. "Jaws" Theme by John screen work, probably caused by the Williams. Special Visual Effects: Robert extra problems of shooting in 3-D. In Blalack, Praxis Film Works, Private Stock one shot, a miniature mini-sub has been Effects. so carelessly composited with a model of Cast: Dennis Quaid, Bess Armstrong, the underwater theme park that it is Simon MacCorkindale, Louis Gossett, Jr., possible to see clean through it. In a cli- John Putch, Lea Thompson. mactic shot of the giant shark swimming Rating: -to-to to Stop-Motion: ## straight towards the camera and smash- Steven Spielberg's original 1975 film ing through the glass window of the was a classic thriller, but the series pre- underwater control center, the shark dictably weakened with each entry. The miniature is held so immobile that it director of this third entry was Joe Alves, looks embarrassingly fake. the mechanical effects supervisor of the Most shots of the 30-foot shark use first two films, and he is unable to gen- either live-action footage of a normal- erate the excitement and menace which sized shark or an unwieldy full-size are crucial. Characterization — so mem- prop. In an attempt to avoid this un- orable in the original — is feebly stereo- wieldiness, one shot makes use of stop- typic. Worst offenders are the Brit- motion. The shark has rammed its head ish underwater photographer (Simon into the control center and is trying to MacCorkindale) and his assistant. But force itself further in to get at the people the film does contain one memorable inside. In a long shot filmed entirely in shark attack, in which MacCorkindale is miniature, an armatured puppet of the swallowed whole. An unsettling shot shark is stop-framed, its tail swishing

380 The Stop-Motion Filmography A Critical Guide to 297 Features Using Puppet Animation NEIL PETTIGREW

WITH A FOREWORD BY Ray Harryhausen

McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers Jefferson, North Carolina, and London

- Frontispiece: King Kong (1933), conceived by Merian C. Cooper and brought to life by Willis O'Brien, is still the yardstick against which all stop-motion characters must be measured.

British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication data are available

Library of Congress Cataloguing-in-Publication Data

Pettigrew, Neil, 1956- The stop-motion filmography : a critical guide to 297 features using puppet animation / Neil Pettigrew ; with a foreword by Ray Harryhausen. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0-7864-0446-9 Arrestox B library binding Alkaline paper : 50# Finch Opaque and 60* Sterling Litho Gloss ^y 1. Animation (Cinematography) 2. Puppet films — History and criticism. I. Title. TR897.5.P495 1999 791.43'3 — dc21 98-49799 CIP

©1999 Neil Pettigrew. All rights reserved

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