When I was a kid growing up in the late 90's and early 2000's, I've watched this movie dozens of times on video and loved every moment of it. As time went by, I've seen plenty of other Disney films that are hit and miss (the recent Strange World included) and looking back at this film, it's a little bit underrated than I thought.
Now, this film isn't without it's problems, but when you look up the recent news that Disney's gonna remake this into a Tik Tok version which in turn isn't a good sign for the studio, you can tell that at least there was some effort put into this upon it's release back in 1997.
Like I said, it's not without it's problems. It isn't very accurate to the Greek Mythology and while the main character Hercules isn't awful, he's just a bland carbon copy of Aladdin from that movie.
That being said, everything else is good. The animation style is very unique for a comedic take on the Greek Mythology. Yes it may not be on par with the epic visuals of the other Disney films of the Renaissance, but the designs had some creativity and don't feel like Saturday morning cartoons (looking at you, The Magic Voyage). Even the visuals are stunning to look at.
The pacing is very nice and doesn't have a dull moment, and the music from Alan Menken, while not on par with Beauty and the Beast and Aladdin, is still good in it's own right as are the songs especially Go The Distance. The voice acting from everyone involved is very entertaining especially Susan Egan, Danny Devito, and James Woods who shines as the sly hilarious Hades, Lord of the Underworld. Also, while the story has certain cliches we've seen in other films, it makes up for it with some good comedy especially with Hades who's also terrifying with his temper tantrums.
Overall, Hercules may not be a masterpiece, but it's one of Disney's most underrated animated movies next to Atlantis: The Lost Empire and Treasure Planet. Plus I'm glad it already turned 25 this year.
Now, this film isn't without it's problems, but when you look up the recent news that Disney's gonna remake this into a Tik Tok version which in turn isn't a good sign for the studio, you can tell that at least there was some effort put into this upon it's release back in 1997.
Like I said, it's not without it's problems. It isn't very accurate to the Greek Mythology and while the main character Hercules isn't awful, he's just a bland carbon copy of Aladdin from that movie.
That being said, everything else is good. The animation style is very unique for a comedic take on the Greek Mythology. Yes it may not be on par with the epic visuals of the other Disney films of the Renaissance, but the designs had some creativity and don't feel like Saturday morning cartoons (looking at you, The Magic Voyage). Even the visuals are stunning to look at.
The pacing is very nice and doesn't have a dull moment, and the music from Alan Menken, while not on par with Beauty and the Beast and Aladdin, is still good in it's own right as are the songs especially Go The Distance. The voice acting from everyone involved is very entertaining especially Susan Egan, Danny Devito, and James Woods who shines as the sly hilarious Hades, Lord of the Underworld. Also, while the story has certain cliches we've seen in other films, it makes up for it with some good comedy especially with Hades who's also terrifying with his temper tantrums.
Overall, Hercules may not be a masterpiece, but it's one of Disney's most underrated animated movies next to Atlantis: The Lost Empire and Treasure Planet. Plus I'm glad it already turned 25 this year.