This is a blog for IDS 101-17 (fall 2016) at Willamette University
Thursday, November 3, 2016
Disney's Hercules fanfic
Disney’s Hercules is a very interesting film. In contrast to the many violent stories of redemption Hercules embarked on, Disney’s Hercules is basically 80% of a Superman story and 20% of the training montages of sports movies such as Rocky and Karate Kid. While it's understandable that Disney wouldn't want to have a murderous sociopath as their hero, the story and main character they came up is incredibly generic. The Disneyfied Hercules is a super strong hero whose quest to selflessly help people and discover his true path brings him into conflict with Hades, an intelligent and scheming villain who seeks to gain absolute power. During his journey, Hercules falls in love with a sarcastic woman named Megara who Hades kidnaps in order to control Hercules. This story arch is the bread and butter of comic books. While it can be argued that superheroes are the modern versions of Greek myths and have certainly been inspired by numerous Greek myths, I think Disney could have made a more original story instead of making a Superman film with a Rocky/Karate Kid style training montage. While I dislike the generic story, I do find Disney’s version of Hades to be hilarious. James Wood’s version of the God of Death proves to be a very entertaining supervillain due to his catchphrases and snarky attitude. Although different from the traditional version, I welcome Disney's version due to how funny he is. Other than that, Disney’s Hercules is nothing special. Like Disney’s Aladdin, there are a ton of references to pop culture and homages to other Greek myths such as the Iliad, the Odyssey, and the tragic tale of Orpheus. I’m very surprised that Disney was able to throw in an Oedipus Rex reference in a family film. However, these references don’t compensate for the way the film ignores the original myths such as portraying Hera, as the caring mother of Hercules. The film even ignores many of Hercules’s actions such as taming the man eating horses of King Diomedes. Other feats such as his battle with the Erymanthian Boar are quickly depicted in a montage. While I don’t blame Disney for toning down the blood and violence of the original myths, I would have welcomed a film that respected the source material more.
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