The premise of Percy Jackson and the Olympians is simple, all of those stories you learned in school about Greek Gods, their various half-mortal children and the quests and monsters they took on... all of that was real, and it still goes on today. Percy Jackson (Logan Lerman) thinks he's a normal kid. He has dyslexia and ADHD, but works through his daily life at the Yancy Academy with his best friend Grover (Brandon T. Jackson whom I remember best from Tropic Thunder) and his favorite teacher, Mr. Brunner (Pierce Brosnan). What he doesn't realize is that Grover and Brunner are actually there to watch and protect Percy until he is ready to learn his true identity as the son of the Sea God, Poseidon (Kevin McKidd, Rome, Made of Honor and Grey's Anatomy). You see, Grover is actually a satyr (half human, half goat) and Percy's protector (in-training), and Mr. Brunner is actually the legendary centaur trainer-of-heroes, Chiron, and all of this is revealed to Percy when another teacher turns out to be a minion of Hades (Steve Coogan also from Tropic Thunder, as well as several British productions).
As it turns out, someone has stolen Zeus' weapon, the Master Bolt, and Zeus (Sean Bean, The Lord of the Rings), believes it's Poseidon's son who is "The Lightning Thief". While Percy can remain safe at Camp Half-Blood, a place where all demigods can go to be trained, the life of his mother (Catherine Keener, Being John Malkovich and Capote) is threatened and Percy takes off in a cross-country quest to delve into Hades and win her back (because, you see, even the God of the Underworld believes Percy has the Master Bolt). Accompanying Percy is, of course, Grover and a daughter of Athena, Annabeth (Alexandra Daddario), who has the starting embers of a romantic interest for Percy.
Guided by advice from one of Hermes' sons, Luke (Jake Abel), the trio stop at three key locations around the country before venturing into the underworld. On this adventure, they will run into Medusa (Uma Therman), face a Hydra and even fall victim to the Lotus Eaters (an ancient cult that holds you hostage for years without you knowing it).
There are quite a few differences between the film and the source material, most notably missing are several of the twists and turns the book takes, as well as the true underlying plot that ties the entire five-book series together. While this was missing from the film, I didn't mind the missing elements. If a sequel is made, "Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Sea of Monsters," to follow this film, then the details about the overarching plot can easily be squeezed into that film. As it is, The Lightning Thief does a good job of standing-alone, if need be, but still introducing the world and characters to the movie-going audience in case a sequel is released.
The high-definition packaging of Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief not only comes with the Blu-ray release, but also a DVD and Digital copy. While the Blu-ray version is far superior with the special effects looking spectacular in high definition, the other two versions are always a treat to have around. Besides the three-version combo, Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief also has a few perks above and beyond the film's DVD-only package. Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief comes with the same "Discover your Powers Quiz" and "The Book Comes to Life" featurette of the DVD as well as an additional five deleted scenes (for a total of 10). It also has a look at the creation of Camp Half-Blood, an interactive menu system that tells you more about the various gods and their children as well as an overview of the production hosted by Jackson and a featurette about the film's classical feeling score with Christophe Beck. There really is a lot here to make the difference between the DVD release and the combo-pack worth the purchase.
Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief is a great family-friendly title with the the most threatening part probably being the couple of times Hades shows up in a fiery-demonic form. Outside of those over-the-top scenes, the film presents a fun action adventure experience that can be enjoyed by everyone. At the very least, Percy Jackson is worth a rental, and if you plan on purchasing it afterwards, then definitely invest in the Blu-ray combo pack, since it's well worth it.
