I’ve seen a real wizard this evening. The legendary Ray Harryhausen gave a brief talk in the Dominion Cinema before a classic screening of Jason and the Argonauts as part of the Edinburgh International Film Festival. I’ve grown up delighting in the fabulous creatures Ray brought to cinematic life over the years and it was a huge treat to see and hear the man himself. What can you say about a man who was inspired as a lad in the 30s by King Kong, then went on to work with his hero, effects pioneer and the man who gave the original Kong life, Willis O’Brien? A man with his own Oscar and his own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame? Those of you who love fantastic film – especially those of you of a certain age for whom Ray’s creatures were your first cinematic forays into fantasy – I’m sure get exactly where I’m coming from on that score. What was especially nice is that it wasn’t just older geeks like myself on a nostalgia trip, a lot of the audience had brought their kids with them, quite a few the same sort of age I was when I first saw these movies; I wondered how the CGI-raised kids would take to this 60s stop-motion monster fest, but they all seemed to love it.
Wed, Jun 25, 2008
Conventions and events, Film, TV and radio