As far as my parents knew, this next movie was my first introduction to monsters and gore.

(Remember, they had no idea my sister and I were having nightmares over “Poltergiest.”)

I saw it at a friends house at a birthday party.  I told my parents afterward, and they were less-than thrilled about me doing so, but there was nothing to be done about it now.

Every time that it was on HBO, I made sure I watched it.  My parents were always good sports and watched it with me.

I think the things I remember most about this film were the shiny metal objects on display as gifts from the gods.

In “Clash of the Titans” Perseus is given a helmet that makes him invisible, a SHINY shield that has a mirror on the inside of it, and a bright sword (it was used to kill bad guys–nothing really special about it other than it was polished and light reflected off of it).  He was also given his trusted mechanical owl Bubo (the smartest and most loyal character in the movie) from Zeus and Hephaestus.

I wanted to be Perseus every day for a year after I watched that movie.  My mom took me shopping and I got a plastic toy sword that I convinced myself looked like Perseus’.  I started constructing togas out of my blankets, and then I started acting out my favorite action scenes (they were always sword fights, imagine that) in my bedroom with the door closed.

Perseus got to do everything a five year old boy wants to do.  Win sword fights, break in a flying horse and ride him to a far off land,  kill 8 foot tall scorpions, slew Medusa and the Kraken, and save the damsel (oh Andromeda–I had a crush on you!) Remembering these things is so exciting and depressing at once.  I yearn for those days again as an older man and know that those days are done, but remembering what I did and how much I enjoyed it always makes me smile.  Movies now rarely give me the joy I felt when I watched my first sword and sorcery movie at 5 years old.  Part of getting older I guess.

I want to be there with my son with these movies and experience that fun again with him.  Will he want to watch this movie?  Who knows?  I do believe that there is a “Clash of the Titans” for everyone out there, they just need to allow themselves to find it.  I’m here to help my son do just that.  It might not be a movie.  It could be a sport, a craft, music…who knows?  I just want to be there to see him find it and help him enjoy it like my parents did.

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