Jason and the Argonauts (1963)

The legendary Greek hero leads a team of intrepid adventurers in a perilous quest for the legendary Golden Fleece.

Director:

Don Chaffey

Writers:

Jan Read (screenplay), Beverley Cross (screenplay),

Stars:

Todd Armstrong, Nancy Kovack, Gary Raymond

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Todd Armstrong	...	Jason
Nancy Kovack	...	Medea
Gary Raymond	...	Acastus
Laurence Naismith	...	Argos
Niall MacGinnis	...	Zeus
Michael Gwynn	...	Hermes
Douglas Wilmer	...	Pelias
Jack Gwillim	...	King Aeetes
Honor Blackman	...	Hera
John Cairney	...	Hylas
Patrick Troughton	...	Phineas
Andrew Faulds	...	Phalerus
Nigel Green	...	Hercules

Storyline

Jason has been prophesied to take the throne of Thessaly. When he saves Pelias from drowning, but does not recognize him as the man who had earlier killed his father, Pelias tells Jason to travel to Colchis to find the Golden Fleece. Jason follows his advice and assembles a sailing crew of the finest men in Greece, including Hercules. They are under the protection of Hera, queen of the gods. Their voyage is replete with battles against harpies, a giant bronze Talos, a hydra, and an animated skeleton army, all brought to life by the special effects wizardry of Ray Harryhausen.

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Plot Keywords:

golden fleece | hercules | skeleton | quest | battle | 

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Taglines:

The epic story that was destined to stand as a colossus of adventure!

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Genres:

Adventure | Family | Fantasy

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Certificate:

G

Details

Country:

UK USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

19 June 1963 (USA)

Also Known As:

Jason and the Golden Fleece

Filming Locations:

Italy

Box Office

Budget:

$1,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures Corporation, Morningside Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

104 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Presumably in order to capitalize on the success of The 7th Voyage of Sinbad, Ray Harryhausen originally conceived of the film as "Sinbad in the Age of Muses". The story would still have been set in ancient Greece and would have involved Sinbad joining Jason in the search for the Golden Fleece.

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Goofs

As the first harpy appears to torment Phineas, the wire holding it up is visible.

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Quotes

Zeus: The gods are best served by those who need their help the *least*.

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Connections

Featured in Jason and the Argonauts: An Interview with Ray Harryhausen (1995)

User Reviews

Come on people, this is fun

I usually write a review without reading other people's comments as I don't like it influencing what I have to say but in this case I read a few reviews of those who had seen Jason and the Argonauts and I was pretty stunned at the negative reviews. Like many, this was one of my favorite childhood movies. I loved the effects, the story of a hero setting out on a quest and the rest of the pomp and circumstance. The acting in Jason and the Argonauts is wooden, the story of King Pelias comes to no conclusion and we only get Hercules for a brief time but the movie is fun to watch, great to listen to and features effects that seen solid and get your respect, in spite of not being "up to today's standards." Personally, I feel that most of the digital effects today make it look like I'm watching a movie inside a movie instead of something that's supposed to be real. Jason and the Argonauts is old school black and white, with women being somewhat subordinate. Many programmed young people of today will be angry that this movie is an old tale of the hero slaying the dragon and getting the girl (and a fleece) but there it is and it's not a big deal. The movie takes liberties with greek mythology and some people hate that too but in that way it's no different then ninety percent of the movies in Hollywood. I feel bad that I feel I have to defend this movie against those that have missed the idea but I will. It's an adventure from a time when entertainment was more important then preaching a message, the characters aren't as bad as people say and Harryhausen's effects are still better then the fake digital junk out today, no matter how seamless the digital effects are. And Honor Blackmon rocks.

7.0/10