Hercules can best summed up the film tagline, “Before he was a legend, he was a man.”
The most recent incarnation of Hercules, Dwayne Johnson, carries on the tradition of former strongmen Steve Reeves, and Kevin Sorbo in the title role convincingly.
Hercules is fantastic.
For all of you who watched the trailer and were as confused as I was, I'll explain as best I can without spoilers. The central conflict of the movie is Thrace is under attack and Lord Cotys paying Hercules and his band of mercenaries to save it. That's right, Hercules, in this telling, is a mercenary.
Hercules is also tormented by his past. According to legend, Hera hated Hercules, because he was a living reminder of Zeus' unfaithfulness to her, and she continually tries to kill him.
When Hercules became a man, the gods gathered together and came up with 12 labours that Hercules has to complete. If he completes them, Hera is to leave him in peace. If he doesn't it's because the terrible beast he was sent to kill got him first.
The final labour is killing the three-headed dog, Cerberus, guarding Hades, but Hercules has yet to complete it and I can't tell you why because, as said, no spoilers.
The story was well thought out and it run logically. The plot is solid, with only one minor deviation and an editing faux pas that leaves viewers confused time-wise.
While there were a couple of predictable parts, the movie keeps you guessing: who's telling the truth, who's the villain, is Hercules actually a demi-God and so on.
It has good pace, not so slow you were bored, but slow enough to understand what was going on. The film has a good balance of humor (watch Ian McShane's character) and violence. While the film isn't gory, there is literally a field of dead bodies in more than one scene, a reminder that with war there is a cost.
One of the most enjoyable parts of the movie is the subtle moments where you were able to see the impact that taking a human life has on the characters, where the horrors of war are tangible and awful and how they affect them.
Hercules is playing at Innisfail's Century Theatre until Aug. 7 at 7 p.m. every day except Aug. 4, with matinee presentations on Saturdays and Sundays. The film is rated PG-13.
