If you managed to miss it, The Lightning Thief is the first of the bestselling teen series Percy Jackson and the Olympians (a five book series) and is AWESOME. Everyone has been reading them for the last two years, and they are well worth it. We're not talking Harry Potter popularity, but certainly up there with Twilight.

So when Mr. Otter and I went to see this movie, after all the hype and anticipation, I was ready to like it. I mean, how could they mess this up? the book is about a kid who finds out that the reason his life is wierd because he's actually a demigod (Greek gods) and he's being chased by monsters and has to go live in a camp for half-breeds. There he discovers that someone has stolen Zeus' lightning rod, that he's the prime suspect and that if Zeus doesn't get it back, things will be VERY BAD. So he sets off on a quest with a couple of friends, running into many of the characters and situations of Greek mythology and story. It's funny and fast-moving with lots of action. Perfect for a movie.

So we caught the cheap matinee on an afternoon we both had off.

And after the movie, Mr. Otter professed himself well pleased.

That's because you didn't read the book, I said, and walking home proceeded to give him chapter and verse on how they DID manage to mess it up.

Yes, the special effects were awesome. Yes, the casting was pretty good, overall. I especially loved Steve Coogan as Hades, and the kid playing Grover the satyr was great. Oh, and I just realized Poseidon was Kevin McKidd, from Topsy-Turvy and Rome. But...

THEY REWROTE THE BOOK. BADLY. I can see why they would take out some characters and subplots, it's only a two hour movie. But they gave EVERYTHING away at the start...there was no wondering who Percy's dad was, or what was really going on...it was all handed out on a silver platter. And they CHANGED THE ENDING. Obviously, Chris Columbus has no intention of filming all five books, because he's already shot down the plot of the rest of the series. And that's a shame, because the ending they came up with was just not very good. A decent end for any movie, sure, but every person I talked to who had read the book was VERY unhappy with it.

So this otter says: don't watch it. Read the books instead. You'll be ever so much happier.