Hercules

82%

Tomatometer

56 Reviews

76%

Popcornmeter

250,000+ Ratings

Disney tackles Greek mythology in this animated feature. Hercules (Tate Donovan), a son of gods, was snatched as a baby by Hades (James Woods) and forced to live among mortals as a half-man, half-god. Now a teenager, Hercules needs to perform a rite of passage on Earth to prove himself worthy of living with the gods on Mount Olympus. With his plucky satyr sidekick, Philoctetes (Danny DeVito), along for the ride, Hercules must learn how to use his strength to defeat a series of evil creatures.

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Critics Consensus

Fast-paced and packed with dozens of pop culture references, Hercules might not measure up with the true classics of the Disney pantheon, but it's still plenty of fun.

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Critics Reviews

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Carol Buckland

CNN.com

Kids will love Hercules. It's fast-paced, it's funny, and it has a very positive message. Adults will enjoy it as well, thanks to its animated artistry and sly wit.

Jan 5, 2018

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Desson Thomson

Washington Post

[An] insipid, lifeless, animated feature.

Nov 16, 2009

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Susan Stark

Detroit News

Rated: 4/4

Oct 18, 2008

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Carson Timar

ButteredPopcorn

The film struggles to find a strong voice and identity as it drags itself through a rehashed story with weak characters that lack the iconic performances needed to elevate them.

Jan 16, 2023

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Rachel Wagner

rachelsreviews.net

I guess it's something different from Disney which felt refreshing and it made me laugh.

Rated: B

May 8, 2019

Full Review

Felix Vasquez Jr.

Cinema Crazed

One of [Disney's] more unique and outside the box animated adaptations.

Feb 26, 2017

Full Review

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Audience Reviews

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Nick R It's filled with a solid story, lovable characters, great music, and great voice acting. What's not to love about 'Hercules'? Oh sorry honey, I mean Hunkules! Rated 4.5/5 Stars • Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 10/01/24 Full Review Audience Member Absolutely one of the Disney Greats. Expertly balances the classic story of Hercules with enough comic relief to entertain everyone. Also, the Supremes-style muses? A genius musical treat. Rated 5/5 Stars • Rated 5 out of 5 stars 07/25/24 Full Review Dale R This is a coming of age story told through Greek mythology with Hercules being the main character. The actual story of Hercules from mythology is hinted at here and there, but not the main focus, because it is too dark for a Disney movie. This is a good movie that I think is worth your time, but there are some interesting creative choices that I think prevent it from being a great movie. James Woods plays the villain, Hades, as a quick talking politician with a temper and he knocks it out of the park. Hades is the stand out character of this film! The story of Hercules becoming a hero devolves in the middle into a social commentary on how we treat our heroes and sports stars. There are quite a few references to Rocky and Michael Jordan throughout the film, which may date it a little. The songs and score were written by Alan Menkin and individually the songs are great. But, there is a duality in them that I question the choice of. Any exposition in the script is told by the Muses and they sing in a gospel style. Using gospel music, a Christian genre, to tell a pagan story is an interesting choice. All the other songs sung by the characters and the score are fairly traditional, with modern twists. This creates a back and forth that I think takes a little away from the overall soundtrack. Even with these creative choices, I think this movie is worth your time. Rated 3/5 Stars • Rated 3 out of 5 stars 07/07/24 Full Review Audience Member Its criminally underrated . And probably the Best disney movie ever made. Yes better than the Lion King Rated 5/5 Stars • Rated 5 out of 5 stars 07/02/24 Full Review Gabriel Emil C A star is born from Disney. Rated 4.5/5 Stars • Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 07/01/24 Full Review Audience Member One of my all time favorite Disney animated films. A must see. Rated 5/5 Stars • Rated 5 out of 5 stars 06/09/24 Full Review Read all reviews

Hercules

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Cast & Crew

Ron Clements Director John Musker Director Tate Donovan Hercules Josh Keaton Young Hercules Roger Bart Young Hercules (singing) Danny DeVito Philoctetes

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Hercules

Hercules (1997)

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Synopsis Disney tackles Greek mythology in this animated feature. Hercules (Tate Donovan), a son of gods, was snatched as a baby by Hades (James Woods) and forced to live among mortals as a half-man, half-god. Now a teenager, Hercules needs to perform a rite of passage on Earth to prove himself worthy of living with the gods on Mount Olympus. With his plucky satyr sidekick, Philoctetes (Danny DeVito), along for the ride, Hercules must learn how to use his strength to defeat a series of evil creatures.

Director: Ron Clements, John Musker
Producer: Ron Clements, Alice Dewey Goldstone, John Musker
Screenwriter: Ron Clements, Irene Mecchi, John Musker
Distributor: Buena Vista Pictures
Production Co: Walt Disney Pictures
Rating: G
Genre: Kids & Family, Adventure, Animation
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Jun 14, 1997, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Jan 1, 2014
Box Office (Gross USA): $99.1M
Runtime: 1h 32m
Sound Mix: SDDS, Dolby Digital, DTS, Surround
Aspect Ratio: 35mm