HERCULES

This 1997 Disney animation was a failure at the box office, and although I found it passably entertaining it sure has some problems.

Take the romance between Hercules and Meg.  According to Wikipedia she was written as a 1940s screwball comedienne.  Even if that idea is a good one it's not executed very well - she came across to me as more of an older woman who has been around the block a few too many times, and therefore her romance with Hercules always made me uncomfortable given how young and naïve he is. 

The quality of the animation is very basic at times, and the songs aren't especially memorable although I did appreciate the jazz, gospel and R&B aspects of the music.

Then there's Danny DeVito voicing Phil, a satyr who is Hercules' trainer.  He's meant to provide comedy but I rapidly found him quite tedious.

The film therefore has to lean heavily on James Woods' voice-performance as Hades, the villain of the piece, to spark the film into life.  No matter that it is heavily influenced by Robin Williams' iconic performance as the genie in 'Aladdin', it at least makes this film watchable.

RATING: x Find Something Better To Do