Clash of the Cartoons

Rating: 8/10 (2 October 2005)

There's very little you can do to influence Disney artists. Or Disney fans. They're always going to harp on horrid failures that they praise as innovations (Hunchback, Pocohontas, Mulan). And they will never admit that the light-hearted, comedic Hercules was the big step in Disney's revolution concerning style and storyboarding in the past twenty years.
Big deal; it's true.
Herc was the first time Disney decided to run on fast, colorful frenzy and coy shots at the material instead of cutesy sidekicks alone for comedy. A direct predecessor to Emporor's New Groove? You better believe it.
With a "grecian" style and a gospel swing, this film comes on strong with guns blazing and hardly stops for air. A little strong is the Oscar-winning song, "Go the Distance," but I guess Micheal Bolton was flavor of the week then. What can't be ignored is how repeatedly watchable this film is, and that's important with kiddie fare, since parents must endure multiple viewings.
This film does butcher its subject matter in a way nothing short of savage, it's true. No myth remains intact as the storyboard scrambles to include every monster ancient Greece had to offer, and it's sad to see Medusa, the minotaur and other greats fly by without so much as a by-line.
Still in all, the mainstay of the film is the wry humor, and some very fun wordplay. If you want the myths straight, never go to Hollywood; even Harryhausen (otherwise known as The Man) cut-and-pasted mythology to suit his films.
If there are spots where Herc lacks polish it's probably because the artists were rushing to finish it and work on Mulan, which is unthinkable when you see the products. Still that's the word I get directly from a former member of Disney. I met him in 2001, when he was working for dreamworks on "Ice Age." He explained that Disney artists were awed by the "deep, original ideas in Mulan," and considered Herc "just another cartoon." Well, what can you say? He was all excited about "Ice Age" too.