Three million dollars were spent on Jason and the Argonauts – $250,000 on building a full-size Argo ship and most of the balance on the ‘Dynamation 90’ special effects created by Ray Harryhausen. It wasn’t difficult to see where the money went.
This lively and imaginative retelling of the Greek myth begins with a siege and slaughter by the power-hungry Acastus (Gary Raymond), who kills the entire royal family of Thessaly – except for the tiny baby Jason.
Years later, a grown Jason (Todd Armstrong, dubbed by British actor Tim Turner) returns home to make his rightful claim to the throne. But his people need more than a conqueror – they need inspiration.
When Jason hears of the magical Golden Fleece in the distant land of Colchis – with its legendary powers to guide a nation to prosperity – the quest is on.
After a pow-wow with Hera, queen of the gods and his own personal protector (Honor Blackman), he recruits a brave crew to man his ship, the Argo, and they set sail.
The Argonauts – including Hercules (Nigel Green) – and their dashing leader clash with a variety of titans and assorted mythic beasties along the way: the 100-foot bronze statue of Talos who comes to life, the bat-like and screech-happy Harpies, the seven-headed reptilian Hydra, and an army of skeletons (pictured) who skitter around with sword and shield.
Mercifully, there’s a lot of divine intervention along the way.
Hera, to the raised eyebrows of her Mount Olympus cohorts, frequently helps her boy out, and at one point, sea-god Triton (Bill Gudgeon) emerges from the churning seas and holds the huge Clashing Rocks apart so that the Argo can sail safely between.
Nancy Kovack, as the high priestess Medea (with her voice dubbed by Eva Haddon), was certainly pretty to look at and even coped well with the dialogue Jan Read and Beverly Cross wrote for her. But to boast – as a studio handout boastingly did – that her performance followed in the footsteps of Maria Callas (a renowned operatic Medea) was tantamount to entering the fantasy realms in which the film was set.
While very successful in Britain and critically well received, the film was a box office disappointment in the US. It ultimately became a perennial favourite on TV, continuing to thrill – and terrify – generations of viewers around the world.
Todd Armstrong followed Jason with the war film King Rat(1965), but his leading man prospects diminished surprisingly quickly, and only more minor supporting roles followed, including in Gunsmoke (1968) and Hawaii Five-O(1976).
He suffered an injury in 1992, which caused him to become addicted to painkillers. He took his own life later that same year, aged only 55.
Jason
Todd Armstrong Jason (voice) Tim Turner Medea
Nancy Kovack Medea (voice) Eva Haddon Acastus
Gary Raymond
Hera
Honor Blackman
Hercules
Nigel Green
Zeus
Niall McGinnis
Argos
Laurence Naismith
Hermes
Michael Gwynn
Pelias
Douglas Wilmer
King Aeetes
Jack Gwillim
Phalerus
Andrew Faulds
Hylas
John Cairney
Phineas
Patrick Troughton
Polydeuces
John Crawford
Lynceus
Aldo Cristiano
Castor
Ferdinando Poggi
Eupaemus
Douglas Robinson
Briseis
Davina Taylor Triton
Bill Gudgeon
Director
Don Chaffey
Video
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This lively and imaginative retelling of the Greek myth begins with a siege and slaughter by the power-hungry Acastus (Gary Raymond), who kills the entire royal family of Thessaly – except for the tiny baby Jason.
Nancy Kovack, as the high priestess Medea (with her voice dubbed by Eva Haddon), was certainly pretty to look at and even coped well with the dialogue Jan Read and Beverly Cross wrote for her. But to boast – as a studio handout boastingly did – that her performance followed in the footsteps of Maria Callas (a renowned operatic Medea) was tantamount to entering the fantasy realms in which the film was set.
Todd Armstrong followed Jason with the war film King Rat (1965), but his leading man prospects diminished surprisingly quickly, and only more minor supporting roles followed, including in Gunsmoke (1968) and Hawaii Five-O (1976).
