There have been plenty of other tomes on Ray Harryhausen's brilliance in stop-motion animation, but this new book relies on some previously undiscovered material found at his Los Angeles garage. In any case, however many times you see Medusa from Clash of the Titans or the skeleton warriors in Jason and the Argonauts, there is still a wow factor in what Harryhausen achieved without recourse to digital computers.
Early Animation and Models of Ray Harryhausen
It is fascinating to see the pictures of the marionettes - the "crude" string puppets which the teenage Ray Harryhausen created to help visualise the movement and construction needed to develop some of his best work. He was particularly inspired by the original 1933 version of King Kong, making versions of a tyrannosaurus rex, brontosaurus and Kong himself. His takes on nursery rhymes like The Story of Little Red Riding Hood, The Story of Rapunzel and The Story of the Tortoise and the Hare showed his exquisite flair for detail.
Prehistoric Monsters and Ray Harryhausen
It was the prehistoric genre that really motivated Harryhausen's formative and future work. The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms was his second movie and showed the dynamation or split-screen process whereby animated models could interact with live action. It worked a treat as do the photographs of the beast rampaging through New York. There is a sequence of storyboard pictures for One Million Years B.C. that show the precise pencil drawings that were crafted for a particular scene. One such unused sequence ended up in Valley of the Gwangi and was testament to Harryhausen's ability to transfer images and scenes in his head as well as on paper.
Behind the Scenes Shots of Sinbad, Jason and the Argonauts and Clash of the Titans
The last chapter is the most compelling even though Harryhausen's work on the Sinbad series and the myths and legends genre is well documented. There are some fine behind the scenes shots on The Golden Voyage of Sinbad and also a compelling read of random notes made by Harryhausen on Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger. One of the best moments of Jason and the Argonauts is the towering Talos and his original clay sculpture is included here. Scarily lifelike are the models of Calibos, Medusa and Pegasus filmed at the Pinewood Studios which bring back the very best memories of Clash of the Titans.
Fantasy Scrapbook is a welcome addition to the array of previous books on the famous animator, mainly because it brings something different to the table. Some of his less well-known sci-fi work is recognised too, including some stunning artwork for the unfilmed War of the Worlds. The commentary is respectfully neutral and it would be a welcome addition for a Harryahusen addict or even a casual fan of cinema. The CGI horror that was Clash of the Titans in 2010 makes you yearn for the brilliance of someone like Ray Harryhausen now.
Source: Ray Harryhausen's Fantasy Scrapbook (Harryhausen, Ray and Dalton, Tony, Aurum Press)
Join the Conversation