Product Description

Hallmark Hercules
As Alcmene (Elizabeth Perkins, FindingNemo), Princess of Thebes, awaits the return of her husband Amphitryon (Timothy Dalton) from war, the viruous bride falls victim to the licentious Zeus and finds herself carrying the great god's child. Born Hercules (Paul Telfer, Spartacus), the strapping lad is rejected by his mother, envied by his brother Iphicles, and loathed by Zeus's wife Hera. Unbeknownst to Hercules, his wife the priestessMegara and her sons are merely tools of the vengeful Hera, plotting against him and initiating events that lead to banishment from his people.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #14416 in DVD
• Brand: Hallmark
• Released on: 2005-09-06
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD-Video, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: 3.00 pounds
• Running time: 127 minutes

Amazon.com
Hercules is the enjoyable, full-length version of a truncated television miniseries starring Scots actor Paul Telfer in a revisionist telling of the mythical Greek hero's life. Reputed to be the son of Zeus and Hera-worshipping priestess Alcmene (Elizabeth Perkins), Hercules is born a fraternal twin but half-brother to Iphicles (Luke Ford), son of Amphitryon (Timothy Dalton). Though he is raised under the latter's protection and counsel, Hercules has an unrelenting streak of bad luck that finds him accused of murder, rape, and the killing of his own children. With such a black cloud hanging over him, Hercules seeks redemption through his famous Labors. Sean Astin, Leelee Sobieski, and Leeanna Walsman co-star in a complex story of intrigue, revenge, and hope, full of gleaming swords and fairly good special effects, including a passable centaur and multi-headed hydra. Written by Charles Edward Pogue (Dragonheart). --Tom Keogh

Customer Reviews

Hercules
Case in good condition - DvD not scratched - Slow shipping, but otherwise happy with purchase

Overly long and droll
I love watching anything regarding mythology but this was a horrendous mini-series. To start with, most importantly and most noticably, the editing is AWFUL. Its all over the place and clearly noticable. It jumps way too much and you have to sort of get your bearings and remember what you just watched 2 seconds ago. It is very distracting and perhaps the most negative aspect about this mini-series. Secondly, the acting was, at times, cringe-worthy. I don't understand how a film with well-known accomplished actors could flub up so bad. I must say, I really liked Timothy Dalton in this. He was the only one who seemed genuinely interested in actually acting. The man that plays Hercules had his high and low points. I was even dissapointed in Sean Astin.

Also, if you are not terribly familiar with the story of Hercules, this mini-series will only complicate the matter. It is congested and just too messy at times to make sense. The script is poor and even for a mini-series, it was too long. Again, it mostly goes back to the bad editing. It just jumps annoyingly from one scene to another.
Visually, the film also fell short. I know the budget isn't grand but the effects at times were cheesy and appalling. I loved the look of the Cleopatra Mini-Series, and that is even older than this! All in all, I am actually surprised that I sat through the whole thing. I've only seen it once but I think the run time on TV was something like 6pm-12am. I would never watch this again. It was almost unbearable. I usually don't give anything a 1 star rating, but I feel that strongly after having to watch this awful series.

Too much editing for an otherwise great movie
I actually saw part of this movie on the Sci-Fi Channel and thought it was a very unique re-interpretation of the Greek myth. The casting and acting, while not first class, were overall very well done and I was surprised that I actually enjoyed it tremendously and wanted to own the DVD. However, I do not understand they decide to issue an abridged version on the DVD, cutting out numerous scenes that are integral part of the story. Otherwise, I would give this a 5 stars. Try to catch the un-abridged series if you can on cable. The DVD does not do the movie/script/interpretation justice.