Hercules

Reviewed by: Joe Blenkle

Rating:

Cast: The Voices of Susan Egan as Meg; Tate Donovan as Hercules; Samantha Eggar as Hera; Hal Holbrook as Amphitryon; Paul Shaffer as Hermes; and Charlton Heston as the Narrator

Studio: Walt Disney Pictures

Director: Ron Clements and John Musker

Screenplay: Ron Clements and John Musker

MPAA Rating: G

Release Date: June 27, 1997

Running Time: 92 Minutes

	Hercules picture is ©1997 Disney Enterprises, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

   Okay, I'll admit right up front that it's hard not to be biased in my review of Walt Disney's 35th full-length animated feature - Hercules. Over the past few months I have become acquainted with one of the stars of the film - Meg (better known as Susan Egan) -- and for several years I ran her official web page.
    Susan is also better known in another Disney role , as she played (and originated) the role of Belle in the Broadway stage production of Beauty and the Beast.
    But back to the present. Hercules opens today (June 27) in theaters nationwide and Disney fans are going to be pleasantly surprised at this film.
    For me personally, I felt Hercules fell a little short of other recent Disney outings like Aladdin and Beauty and the Beast, but it still holds the magic that all Disney classics do.
    The only real shortcoming of the film is that it didn't have nearly enough singing by our beloved Meg. Susan had only one featured song in the movie, "I Won't Say," which is a true pleasure to listen to as she sings about her feelings toward Hercules and her disbelief that she is falling for him.
    The movie itself is great. Hercules (Tate Donovan) is portrayed in this film a little differently than told in ancient mythology, but the general idea is the same. Part god and part mortal, Hercules sets out to be a "true hero," the only way he can earn his way back to Mount Olympus.
    But Hades (James Woods) has other plans. He is planning a hostile takeover over Mount Olympus and he has been advised by the Three Fates that only Hercules will stand in his way.
    He dispatches his bumbling henchmen Panic (Matt Frewer) and Pain (Bobcat Goldthwait) to kidnap the baby Hercules from Mount Olympus, take him to Earth, give him a potion to make him mortal and then do away with him.
    They only partially succeed, giving him all but a drop of the potion which turns him mortal, but lets him retain his god-like strength.
    Herc grows to manhood and sets out to find his roots, discovering he is the son of Zeus (Rip Torn). Zeus tells him that his only way to come back to Olympus is to become a true hero and to that end, Hercules seeks out the trainer of heroes, a satyr named Phil (Danny DeVito).
    Herc and Phil take on a relationship like Rocky and his trainer and indeed, some of the sequences are reminiscent of the Rocky movies.
    Phil soon gets Herc up to speed and it's off to challenge to world, defeat all the monsters and become a hero. Along the way, Herc becomes so famous that he has his own line of merchandise - everything from sandals to action figures (available at a store near you, I'm sure).
    But of course, everything isn't that simple. Hades is still out to get Hercules and this time has a secret weapon - Meg - a young woman who is working off her "life" sentence to Hades after dying to save the life of her ungrateful boyfriend.
    Meg doesn't want to get involved romantically ever again, but you can guess what happens and the rest is "history."
    Herc's sidekick flying horse Pegasus and Phil take a dim view of this distraction in Herc's life, but the hero won't listen to reason.
    Susan Egan and Tate Donovan do excellent jobs in the title roles. There is a lot of humor, heartbreak and romance...but I won't give away what happens, when or why.
    The story becomes as touching as Beauty and the Beast in the end and Hercules will have you leaving the theater with a good feeling inside. Return to The Movie Corner