Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief (2010)
Average Rating: 5.3/10
Reviews Counted: 141
Fresh: 69 | Rotten: 72
Though it may seem like just another Harry Potter knockoff, Percy Jackson benefits from a strong supporting cast, a speedy plot, and plenty of fun with Greek mythology.
Average Rating: 5.2/10
Critic Reviews: 32
Fresh: 12 | Rotten: 20
Though it may seem like just another Harry Potter knockoff, Percy Jackson benefits from a strong supporting cast, a speedy plot, and plenty of fun with Greek mythology.
liked it
Average Rating: 3.4/5
User Ratings: 228,536
Movie Info
A teenager discovers he's the descendant of a Greek god and sets out on an adventure to settle an on-going battle between the gods.
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Cast
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Logan Lerman
Percy Jackson -
Brandon T. Jackson
Grover -
Alexandra Daddario
Annabeth -
Jake Abel
Luke -
Sean Bean
Zeus -
Pierce Brosnan
Mr. Brunner/Chiron -
Steve Coogan
Hades -
Rosario Dawson
Persephone -
Melina Kanakaredes
Athena -
Catherine Keener
Sally Jackson -
Kevin Mckidd
Poseidon -
Joe Pantoliano
Gabe Ugliano -
Uma Thurman
Medusa -
Julian Richings
Ferryman -
Bonita Friedericy
Hysterical Woman -
Annie Ilonzeh
Aphrodite Girl -
Tania Saulnier
Aphrodite Girl -
Marie Avgeropoulos
Aphrodite Girl -
Luisa D'Oliveira
Aphrodite Girl -
Christie Laing
Aphrodite Girl -
Marielle Jaffe
Aphrodite Girl -
Elisa King
Aphrodite Girl -
Charlie Gallant
Lotus Land Bellhop -
Chelan Simmons
Lotus Land Waitress -
Andrea Brooks
Lotus Land Waitress -
Natassia Malthe
Lotus Land Waitress -
Jocelyn Ott
Lotus Land Waitress -
Max Van Ville
Seventies Kid - Casino -
Serinda Swan
Aphrodite -
Dimitri Lekkos
Apollo -
Ona Grauer
Artemis -
Stefanie von Pfetten
Demeter -
Conrad Coates
Hephaestus -
Ray Winstone
Ares -
Erica Cerra
Hera -
Dylan Neal
Hermes -
Luke Camilleri
Dionysus -
Holly Hougham
Grover Girl -
Ina Geraldine
Grover Girl -
Raquel Riskin
Grover Girl -
Yusleidis Oquendo
Grover Girl -
Janine Edwards
Grover Girl -
Valerie Tian
Cute Girl -
Violet Columbus
Nymph Warrior -
Sarah Smyth
Pretty Girl #1 -
Merritt Patterson
Pretty Girl #2 -
Julie Luck
WGHP News Anchor (Video... -
Andrea Day
Field News Reporter -
Stan Carp
Old Fisherman -
Suzanne Ristic
Maid at Motel -
Richard Harmon
Smart Ass Kid -
Doyle Devereux
Museum Employee -
Maria Olsen
Mrs. Dodds/Fury -
Robin Lemon
Museum Tour Guide -
Tom Pickett
Parthenon Janitor -
VJ Delos-Reyes
Parthenon Janitor -
Tim Aas
Parthenon Janitor -
Keith Blackman Dallas
Parthenon Janitor -
Spencer Atkinson
Parthenon Janitor -
Maya Washington
Percy's Classmate -
Victor Ayala
Percy's Classmate -
Zane Holtz
'50s Tough -
Eli Zagoudakis
Son of Ares -
Rob Hayter
Son of Ares -
Loyd Bateman
Son of Ares -
Shawn Beaton
Son of Ares -
Jarod Joseph
College Buddy -
Reilly Dolman
College Buddy -
Julie Brar
Cute Girlfriend -
Dejan Loyola
Boyfriend -
Mario Casoria
Cook -
Dorla Bell
Waitress -
Carolyn Adair
Watiress With Cleaver -
Jade Pawluk
Screaming Diner -
G. Patrick Currie
Stuffy Croupier -
Damian Arman
Warrior -
Mariela Zapata
Warrior -
David L. Smith
Poet -
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All Critics (141) | Top Critics (32) | Fresh (69) | Rotten (72) | DVD (10)
I thought it was mischievous and witty and amusing and I was just sort of drawn into it.
It's not enough to compensate for the computer-game-style plotting, which is largely based on us picking up narrative nuggets that mechanically slot into place later on.
Top CriticDirector Chris Columbus has brought together the modern and mythical spheres with sharp pacing and a nifty sense of fun that atone for the film's dippier moments. It's his most enjoyable effort since Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets.
Dutifully Potteresque it begins, and dutifully Potteresque it ends.
Has all the CGI sorcery of a Harry Potter pic, but none of the magic.
Percy Jackson, you are no Harry Potter. You are not fit to walk in a hobbit's wake.
It provides a great adventure movie for the family audience.
The premise of Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief holds great potential potential the film never realizes.
Percy Jackson is simply uninspired in every single meaning of the word. It's probably the crassest, most obviously derivative work of this sort since Eragon.
It kind of just builds up to a lot of Not Much.
Manages to pay its respects to the Greek myths and actually convey them as fun.
Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief proves to be a satisfying beginning to what is sure to be a promising film franchise.
Mildly diverting.
Just another mediocre fantasy flick, but if you enjoyed the books, I'm sure you'll enjoy the film.
An enjoyable PG-rated family adventure in its own right, but Columbus' film can't live up to the Potter gold standard, and it strays enough from Riordan's source material to make its tween readership blow a gasket every few minutes. [Blu-ray]
Not a perfect film, but the movie does have a certain passion that a lot of other franchise attempts have lacked. If you like Greek mythology and are looking for an antidote to Clash of the Titans, this may be what you're looking for.
A great family film, with just the right measures of action, mythological allusions, humor, and adventure.
Of all the would-be Potter projects that have hit the screen over the years, this is one of more polished and enjoyable ones.
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... a sprightly Harry Potter clone and an eye-candy-coated intro to Greek mythology.
While this flick may not have Harry Potter's complex world and multiple layers, it also doesn't have the angst and darkness. It replaces them with one thing in bulk: Fun.
Another attempted launch of a teen-aimed franchise, but this show-boat is rowing through the motions. Seen-that, been-there fantasy-epic stuff with dialogue more wooden and hollow than the Trojan Horse.
What surprised me is that I had some affection for an action adventure film the way I would have in the days of the Ray Harryhausen's best films.
A fun, effects-filled, escapist adventure, with several clever notions: Medusa sells garden statuary as a cover, and the Parthenon in Nashville is home to a hydra.
A safe, bland, test-marketed product made for tween mass consumption. Like most films arriving with ampersands and colons in the title, it's a bore.
It looks like the characters of color in Percy Jackson have been paired off, a remarkable choice in a movie that is, in essence, about the glories of half-breeds.
Audience Reviews for Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief
Super Reviewer
Director Columbus has improved very much since the beginning of his career. It is hard to believe that this film is coming from the same man who brought us films like Home Alone 1 & 2, Nine Months and Mrs. Doubtfire. Thankfully he later in his career went to direct two first Harry Potter films which were okay as an films but were quite flawed also. Percy Jackson & The Olympians: The Lightning Thief is his best film to date but it is not without it's problems too.
There are moments when more comedic moments does not fit together with pure fantasy or more serious material. There are also one extremely annoying sequence which takes place in Las Vegas and that whole scene feels totally pointless and makes an fatal use of horrible pop music in completely wrong place. On the positive side there is much more to appreciate still. Stephen Goldblatt's cinematography is stunning to look at and Christophe Beck's music is thunderous and fits perfectly to a film like this. I also liked the actors who were perfectly casted in their roles. Logan Lerman is a promising and good find as a title hero and there are talented names like Pierce Brosnan, Catherine Keener, Sean Bean, Uma Thurman and Steve Coogan in supporting roles. All of them give important nuances to this film and its story.
Graig Titley's screenplay which is based on Rick Riordan's novel is fascinating and rich adventure that also opens doors to a interesting Greek mythology with all the gods and their powers. It also works as an character study and a story about finding your place in world. Christopher Columbus and his crew create many outstanding set pieces and especially the final thunderous showdown between two major characters in the story is entertaining as its suspenseful to watch.
I am very interested to see sequel for this film if they ever end up in making a one. Percy Jackson is one of the better fantasy films of recent years and deserves to be seen. Especially by everyone who like adventure or fantasy or both of them together.
Super Reviewer
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- Gabe Ugliano: Woman!
- Sally Jackson: Hi Gabe.
- Gabe Ugliano: Where's my beer?
- Sally Jackson: It's in the fridge.
- Gabe Ugliano: So it's suppposed to magically float from the ice box and into my hand?
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- Luke: Wow...that's a sword, that's a sword.
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- Mr. Brunner/Chiron: Take this, it is a powerful weapon.
- Percy Jackson: This is a pen.
- Percy Jackson: WOW.
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- Zeus: What do you see?
- Poseidon: Thunderclouds.
- Zeus: With no lightning. Stolen.
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- Grover: Hey baby!
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- Mr. Brunner/Chiron: Percy take this, it's a powerful weapon.
- Percy Jackson: This is a pen?
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Latest News on Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief
June 17, 2011:
Wimpy Kid Director Hired for Percy Jackson SequelThor Freudenthal is on board to direct; Logan Lerman is under contract to star.
March 2, 2011:
Percy Jackson Sequel in DevelopmentThe first installment wasn't a huge hit, but Fox 2000 is still eyeing a sequel to "Percy Jackson and...
February 11, 2010:
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Foreign Titles
- Percy Jackson - Diebe im Olymp (DE)
- Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief (UK)









