JASON AND THE ARGONAUTS (1963) (film comments by Evelyn C. Leeper)
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Philip De Parto
Mar 6, 2026, 9:47:32 AM (13 days ago) Mar 6
to SFABC (nj) Movie Group
The following commentary is reprinted with permission from:
THE MT VOID
03/06/26 -- Vol. 44, No. 36, Whole Number 2422
03/06/26 -- Vol. 44, No. 36, Whole Number 2422
= = = = = = = = = =
JASON AND THE ARGONAUTS (1963) (film comments by Evelyn
C. Leeper)
C. Leeper)
JASON AND THE ARGONAUTS (1963): When Tom Hanks presented an
honorary Oscar to special effects artist Ray Harryhausen, he said:
"For some people, it's CITIZEN KANE (1941) or CASABLANCA (1942)
but, for me, I say JASON AND THE ARGONAUTS (1963) is the greatest
movie ever made."
This was marketed as a family film, and it is, as far as it goes.
But adults familiar with Greek mythology will know what comes
after the "happily ever after"ending. There are also a lot of
scantily-clad dancing girls with seductive movements and poses.
(Claiming a happy ending for this is like the "happy ending" of
IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE, in which all the poorer people of Bedford
Falls throw in their life savings to save George Bailey by making
up the money that the richest man in town stole and gets to keep.)
Jason may be brave, but he's also stupid: he announces to some
random guy he meets that he is there to reclaim the throne from
the evil King Pelias. Even if he weren't talking to Pelias, he
could be talking to a supporters of Pelias. It's as if someone
went to Occupied France in 1942 and told some random passerby that
he was a member of the Resistance.
Harryhausen uses the same techniques to show Jason on Olympus with
the gods (and later with Poseidon) as he used in THE 3 WORLDS OF
GULLIVER to portray Gulliver with Brobdingnagians. But the falling
rocks are now done with high-speed photography rather than stop
motion.
The crayon drawings for the credits are back, and the story takes
place largely on the sea, which has become another trademark. Only
EARTH VS. THE FLYING SAUCERS, FIRST MEN IN THE MOON, and VALLEY OF
GWANGI avoid the sea altogether.
Talos is impressive, but in at least one way it was probably
easier to animate than most of Harryhausen's, because it does not
need the fluidity of motion a living creature would, and also
won't have problem with fingerprints in the fur or some such
(although Harryhausen says it was difficult to get the appropriate
jerky motion when up until then he had been trying for smooth
motion).
Note that Hylas dies because he was holding the brooch pin that
Hercules had stolen. Clearly the "curse" was upon whoever had it
rather than whoever stole it, sort of like everything in the horde
had a homing beacon on it.
The scene of Sinbad fighting a skeleton in THE 7TH VOYAGE OF
SINBAD was clearly just a trial run for the scene here with three
people and *seven* skeletons.
Released theatrically 13 June 1963.
Film Credits:
<https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0057197/reference>
What others are saying:
<https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1010939-jason_and_the_argonauts>
honorary Oscar to special effects artist Ray Harryhausen, he said:
"For some people, it's CITIZEN KANE (1941) or CASABLANCA (1942)
but, for me, I say JASON AND THE ARGONAUTS (1963) is the greatest
movie ever made."
This was marketed as a family film, and it is, as far as it goes.
But adults familiar with Greek mythology will know what comes
after the "happily ever after"ending. There are also a lot of
scantily-clad dancing girls with seductive movements and poses.
(Claiming a happy ending for this is like the "happy ending" of
IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE, in which all the poorer people of Bedford
Falls throw in their life savings to save George Bailey by making
up the money that the richest man in town stole and gets to keep.)
Jason may be brave, but he's also stupid: he announces to some
random guy he meets that he is there to reclaim the throne from
the evil King Pelias. Even if he weren't talking to Pelias, he
could be talking to a supporters of Pelias. It's as if someone
went to Occupied France in 1942 and told some random passerby that
he was a member of the Resistance.
Harryhausen uses the same techniques to show Jason on Olympus with
the gods (and later with Poseidon) as he used in THE 3 WORLDS OF
GULLIVER to portray Gulliver with Brobdingnagians. But the falling
rocks are now done with high-speed photography rather than stop
motion.
The crayon drawings for the credits are back, and the story takes
place largely on the sea, which has become another trademark. Only
EARTH VS. THE FLYING SAUCERS, FIRST MEN IN THE MOON, and VALLEY OF
GWANGI avoid the sea altogether.
Talos is impressive, but in at least one way it was probably
easier to animate than most of Harryhausen's, because it does not
need the fluidity of motion a living creature would, and also
won't have problem with fingerprints in the fur or some such
(although Harryhausen says it was difficult to get the appropriate
jerky motion when up until then he had been trying for smooth
motion).
Note that Hylas dies because he was holding the brooch pin that
Hercules had stolen. Clearly the "curse" was upon whoever had it
rather than whoever stole it, sort of like everything in the horde
had a homing beacon on it.
The scene of Sinbad fighting a skeleton in THE 7TH VOYAGE OF
SINBAD was clearly just a trial run for the scene here with three
people and *seven* skeletons.
Released theatrically 13 June 1963.
Film Credits:
<https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0057197/reference>
What others are saying:
<https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1010939-jason_and_the_argonauts>
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