From the trailers and commercials, “Wrath of the Titans” seemed like it was going to be a vast improvement over “Clash of the Titans.” All of the talk surrounding the making of the film gave that impression too. However, it turns out that a great action film isn’t what people got when they went to the theater.

According to Rotten Tomatoes, “Wrath” earned a very low 25%. The audience gave it a generous 52%, even though they mostly hated it.

Critics felt that, aside from the special effects, nothing much was different. To quote consensus on Rotten Tomatoes:

“Its 3D effects are an improvement over its predecessor’s, but in nearly every other respect, Wrath of the Titans fails to improve upon the stilted acting, wooden dialogue, and chaos-driven plot of the franchise’s first installment.”

Yowza. If you thought that was brutal, here’s what the critics said individually:

“For those with a burning curiosity to know how The Lord of the Rings as directed by Michael Bay might look, Wrath of the Titans provides an idea.” –James Berardinelli, ReelViews

“This feeble follow up to 2010’s godawful Clash of the Titans sucketh the mighty big one.” –Peter Travers, Rolling Stone

“Worthington remains a distinctly humourless hero, which makes you long for the likes of a prime-time Harrison Ford or Arnold Schwarzenegger, who knew how to make a fondue out of cheese.”–Peter Howell, Toronto Star

“Wrath of the Titans is less of a sequel to the 2010 version of Clash of the Titans and more an apology for it.”–Dan Lybarger, KC Active

“Wrath of the Titans is a sequel that fails to improve on the original in any way.” Rob Carnevale, The List

You can view more reviews at Rotten Tomatoes.