'' is a
Film produced by
Columbia Pictures in
1963 . Directed by
Don Chaffey , in collaboration with stop motion animation expert and pupil of
Willis O'Brien , (the animator of King Kong)
Ray Harryhausen , this film is famous for its
Stop-motion animated monsters including
Harpies , the bronze giant
Talos , the crashing rocks, and the
Hydra that guards the
Golden Fleece . The Golden Fleece was given from
Hecate who was the guardian
Goddess of
Colchis . The sequence where seven
Skeleton s rise from the earth and attack the heroes is still widely considered to be among the greatest achievements of 20th century motion picture
Special Effects .
This movie features a score composed by film composer
Bernard Herrmann , who is also notable for other of Harryhausen's fantasy films including ''
Mysterious Island '' and ''
The Seventh Voyage Of Sinbad ''.
Pelias (
Douglas Wilmer ) usurps the throne of
Thessaly by killing his own half-brother, King Aeson. However, there is a prophesy that he will be overthrown by a man wearing one sandal. Years later,
Jason (
Todd Armstrong ), Aeson's son grown to manhood, saves the life of Pelias during a chance encounter in the countryside, but loses a sandal as a result. He does not know that he has rescued his father's murderer, but Pelias recognizes his nemesis.
He persuades Jason to undertake a dangerous quest to steal the fabulous
Golden Fleece , hoping that he will be killed in the attempt. Men from all over
Greece compete for the honor of joining Jason. Since their ship is the ''Argo'', they are dubbed the Argonauts. Among those chosen are
Hercules (
Nigel Green ) and
Acastus (
Gary Raymond ), the son of Pelias, who is sent by his father to sabotage the voyage.
Meanwhile, on
Mount Olympus , the gods
Zeus (
Niall MacGinnis ) and
Hera (
Honor Blackman ) wager on Jason's adventure. Hera communicates with Jason, telling him that she wishes him well, but that Zeus has restricted her aid. The mortal can call on the goddess for help only a few times.
Many dangers threaten the expedition, among them a run through a strait flanked by large rock cliffs that crash together frequently, crushing any ships attempting to pass between them. When they run perilously low on supplies, Jason turns to Hera. She guides him to an island, but warns him to take only provisions aboard. However, Hercules finds a storehouse guarded by an enormous bronze statue of
Talos and steals some of of the contents. The statue comes to life and causes much mayhem before Jason manages to destroy it using Hera's advice. Hercules' young friend
Hylas (
John Cairney ) is missing and presumed dead; the guilt-ridden strongman refuses to leave without finding out what happened to him, so the Argonauts depart without him.
They eventually reach
Colchis , the land where the Fleece is to be found. Acastus betrays Jason, telling King
Aeëtes (
Jack Gwillim ) about their mission, but Jason is aided by
Medea , the king's daughter. Jason and his men kill the
Hydra , the many-headed monster guarding the Fleece, take the treasure and flee. Aeëtes then gathers and sows the teeth of the Hydra, which immediately sprout armed skeletons who pursue and battle Jason and some of his men (in a famous four minute
Stop Motion sequence that took special effects wizard Ray Harryhausen four and a half months to produce"Jason and the Argonauts." Culver City: Columbia TriStar Home Video, 1998.). When all but Jason are killed, he escapes by jumping off a cliff into the sea.
With the quest fulfilled, he, Medea and the surviving Argonauts return to Thessaly in triumph.
- The skeletons' shields have designs of other Harryhausen creatures, including an Octopus and the head of the Ymir from 20 Million Miles To Earth .
- Ray Harryhausen regards this as his best film.
- The previous Ray Harryhausen films were generally shown as part of a double feature in "B" theatres. Columbia was able to book this film as a single feature in many "A" theatres in the United States.
- The character of Jason, as played by Todd Armstrong, was re-voiced by British actor Tim Turner. Turner's voice was well-known as the narrator of the '60s Rank series ''Look At Life''. He was also the narrator of trailers in many British films in the '50s, '60s and '70s, including the one for this movie, and provided the voice of Dr. Peter Brady, the titular hero of the popular late '50s British TV series, '' The Invisible Man '' (1958).
- While filming footage of the Argo off the coast of Italy , shooting was interrupted when a replica of the Golden Hind sailed into view. The British television series '' Sir Francis Drake '' (1961) happened to be filming in the same location. Producer Charles H. Schneer shouted, "Get that ship out of here. You're in the wrong century!" at the British crew, dispelling any tensions that arose from both shots being lost.
- Nancy Kovack's voice was dubbed by Eva Haddon. Some sources say the revoicing was done by Honor Blackman
