Undeniably cheesy, but also very entertaining, writes Leni Ma'ia'i.
Director: Brett Ratner
Cast: Dwayne Johnson, Ian McShane, Rufus Sewell, Joseph Fiennes, Peter Mullan, John Hurt, Aksel Hennie, Ingrid Berdal, Reece Ritchie
Rating: (M)
3 stars out of 5.
Only a few months on from arguably the worst film of the year in the Legend of Hercules, a steroid-induced retelling has, somewhat, redeemed the mythical figure.
Brett Ratner decided to give the Hercules franchise some new, extremely muscled legs, and in doing so has given Hercules (Dwayne Johnson) a whole lot more humanity than I have seen done before. His 12 labours are condensed into the opening sequence so the film can focus instead on his post-labours life.
Hercules is played as a mercenary, whose amazing exploits are embellished by his storytelling nephew Iolaus (Reece Ritchie). They wander the lands with an A-Team-esque entourage of fighting talent, looking for their last big score so they can retire. The crew has a nice interplay of relaxed humour, highlighted by the gorgeous Ingrid Berdal who plays an archer who manages to save the very mortal Hercules on multiple occasions.
The crew soon finds employment with the King of Thrace (John Hurt), who has them protect his land from wandering armies of men and (supposed) centaurs. However, Hercules begins to question the morality of what they are doing.
Ratner tackles the idea of Hercules in an original fashion, but his execution is reminiscent of any other generic action film. Even so, he still manages to produce a very watchable and entertaining film.
Best thing: The best or the worst I'm not sure, but Dwayne Johnson's pre-battle speeches are hilarious.
Worst thing: It's the cheesiest thing you'll see this year.
See it with: A WWE fan.
