HERCULES (2014): A REVIEW

Man, demigod, mercenary? This is one film that has them all!

If I had to use one word to describe 2014’s Hercules (starring Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson in the title role), it would be: “Subtlety.” Should two words be needed, they would be: “Excellent Craftsmanship.” For more words on the topic, well, that is the purpose of this review!

Everyone knows that Hercules is the son of Zeus by Alcmene, and that Zeus’ wife Hera was infuriated by this dalliance on the part of her husband. She intended to kill Hercules even as an infant, despite Alcmene’s attempt to placate her by naming the boy after the queen of the gods. But Hercules took after Zeus and remained nigh indestructible, foiling Hera’s every attempt on his life. However, over time Hera was convinced by the rest of the gods that if Hercules could complete Twelve Labors, she would leave him alone. And so he took on the Lernean Hydra, the Erymanthian Boar, and even the Nemean Lion. Now he gets to fight pirates while wearing the lion’s skin.

Or so the stories say, at least. Reality is somewhat different; in this case, Hercules is as mortal as anyone else. But the general consensus from the public is that no mere mortal could face such monsters, and so the legend grows. It is a good story and it helps Hercules with his job as a mercenary.

Not just his job, either. After all, one man can only do so much, even one man with the near-fantastical strength which Hercules does possess. Hercules has a crew of helpers: Autolycus, the Spartan amoral knife-thrower; Atalanta, the Scythian Amazon; Amphiaraus, the seer (played to perfection by Ian McShane); Iolaus, the Athenian storyteller and Hecules’ nephew, and finally there is the mute, psychologically scarred Tydeus of Thebes. Each of these individuals have their own skills with which to help Hercules in his tasks, though they are not always seen and do not feature in the tales that Iolaus spins to scare their enemies. For news about a man doing impossible feats may be respected and the man anticipated…

...but the stories of the demigod son of Zeus, while some might scoff at them, will be easier to believe and much, much harder to counter.

It is the myth that Ergenia, Princess of Thrace, comes to hire on her father’s behalf. Lord Cotys is beset by a warlord named Rhesus, who “twists men’s minds” with his “spells” and threatens to take Thrace from its rightful ruler. Hercules might be swayed by a just cause but Autolycus makes it clear that the group must be paid. “I thought Hercules fought alone,” Ergenia says with a knife-edged smile.

“I would not be here without my friends,” Hercules replies. Hire them as a unit or not at all, but Ergenia needs him and, thus, the rest of them. At the very least, Hercules is worth his weight in gold, surely.

Convinced on his entrance to Thrace that these are “good people” in need of help, Hercules accepts his friends’ needling as they make certain he has not been bewitched by the princess’s charms. They are assured otherwise when he admits that he got the Thracians to double their price. But before they can fight a warlord, they need an army that can stand up to and then out-match his army.

Yet all is not as it seems. Hercules is not the only one who needs a legend. There are others, too, who must tell tales to get what they want….

This is a very good “B movie.” It doesn’t quite reach the level of a top-tier film, despite the Rock’s stellar performance and McShane stealing every scene he can manage, supported by a cast of character actors and actresses who know their craft and execute their parts well. Nevertheless, Hercules is a thoroughly enjoyable film with some of the best acting and subtle storytelling nuances I have seen in years.

A second watch is needed to catch more of the subtleties and twists of craftsmanship. Despite the fact that the film presents Hercules’ origins as less than godly, faith is not mocked within the tale. Amphiaraus in particular emphasizes this since he is a seer, and too many of his predictions come true to be mere accident or the fog of some drug-induced dream. Do the gods truly speak to him? There are so many things he manages to predict accurately that one must wonder.

Hercules never definitively states that the gods do or don’t exist. For the most part, their existence isn’t a matter of import; even if they do have power and life there is no explicit reason for them to feature in the tale. What matters more than the gods being real is that the people believe they are real, and truthfully, from a historical perspective and a character one, that is more important to a story. For this film to abide by what actual Ancient Greeks believed rather than scoff at their religion or treat it as a farce is an achievement all by itself.

Therein lies a great deal of the movie’s power: it takes the setting and the myths seriously and treats them with respect. It does not wink at the audience or throw out jokes meant to mock anyone’s intelligence. It treats the time period and the people who lived in it as they were – real people with real beliefs that helped them to live good, honest lives and deal with truly horrible enemies who were often fellow men. Monsters like the hydra and the lion would be preferable!

But what makes the movie shine brightest is the excellent craftsmanship in the acting. Autolycus (Rufus Sewell) is loyal but amoral, meaning he will be blunt and look for opportunities to increase the group’s payout. Iolaus (Reece Ritchie) is a storyteller and not a warrior; the group takes special care to keep him out of the line of fire precisely because he is a creative person, and they do not want him to lose that gift. For her part, Atalanta (Ingrid Bolsø Berdal) is absolutely professional – a typical Amazon in modern media would be screaming some variation on, “I am woman, hear me ROAR!” every moment the writers could manage it, but Atalanta has no time for such games and does not stoop to this.

Amphiaraus is fantastic as the wiser-than-he-seems yet still potentially mad seer, who has no problem either teaching men to kill or killing them himself. During one scene, he rides around in his chariot after extending hidden blades from it to kill large swathes of enemy combatants. The whole time he has a slight smile on his face.

One would expect the Rock to perform well as Hercules, but this version of the character has none of his familiar jollity. As the Rock said when the film came out: “I trained and worked harder than ever for 8 months for this role. Lived alone and locked myself away (like a moody 260-lb. monk) in Budapest for 6 months while filming. Goal was to completely transform into this character. Disappear in the role. Press journalist asked me today, with the mental & physical toll the role had on me, would I do it again? Not only would I do it again.. I’d do it ****ing twice.” The Hercules in this film doesn’t nod and wink to the audience, nor is he a brute who cannot plan ahead. No, he is cunning and a leader whole armies will follow, once he has whipped them into shape!

Most masterful of all the actors for the heroic characters is Aksel Hennie, who plays Tydeus. “Born in war” in Thebes, he was discovered as a feral child in the middle of a city filled with the dead. Rather than cast him out or treat him as an animal, Hercules adopted Tydeus and made him part of his crew. Even though he does not talk, Hennie shows that Tydeus knows he is broken and that the only reason he has any family – even by adoption – at all is thanks to Hercules. It makes him the most loyal of the crew and he is the character to watch throughout the movie.

In a world where craftsmanship has all but vanished and subtlety was thrown out the window screaming, Hercules may just be the film to add to your viewing list to improve your day. The art that went into this movie and which makes it such a great B-grade film is unfathomable today. Even if the movie itself never can reach the artistic tier, it happily allows a viewer to escape to another time and place. A time where legends and myths trailed in the wake of men who, while they were not demigods, were indeed more than they appeared.

So add 2014’s Hercules to your list of films to buy today. This is one story that should be saved for future generations to enjoy and for artists to learn from. Craftsmanship and subtlety are needed now more than ever, so do not let this treasure escape your grasp!