Hercules

Hercules is a very entertaining film. The one-liners have held up over 20 years later (did I just make you feel old there?) and the film features a cast of very likeable characters. It seems to be one of the forgotten films by Disney and is one of the few animated films that is not rumoured to be turned into a live action remake. If it has been awhile since you have watched Hercules, I would recommend giving it a rewatch.

Premiered on: June 14, 1997 at the New Amsterdam Theatre in New York City

Directed by:

John Musker
Ron Clements

Produced by:

John Musker
Ron Clements
Alice Dewey

Based on: Greek Mythology of Heracles

Sequels: Hercules: Zero to Hero (1999)

Cast:

Tate Donovan – Hercules
Josh Keaton – Teenage Hercules (speaking voice)
Roger Bart – Teenage Hercules (singing voice)
Danny DeVito – Philoctetes
James Woods – Hades
Susan Egan – Megara
Frank Welker – Pegasus
Rip Torn – Zeus
Samantha Eggar – Hera
Bobcat Goldthwait – Pain
Matt Frewer – Panic
Hal Holbrook – Amphitryon
Barbara Barrie – Alcmene
Jim Cummings – Nessus / Thebians
Mary Kay Bergman – Thebians / Nymphs
Corey Burton – Titans
Wayne Knight – Demetrius
Paul Shaffer – Hermes
The Muses:
Lillias White – Calliope
Cheryl Freeman – Melpomene
LaChanze – Terpsichore
Roz Ryan – Thalia
Vanéese Thomas – Clio
The Fates:
Amanda Plummer – Clotho
Carole Shelley – Lachesis
Paddi Edwards – Atropos

Supervising Animators:

Richard Bazley
Nancy Beiman
Anthony de Rosa
Andreas Deja
Ken Duncan
Brain Ferguson
Eric Goldberg
Randy Haycock
James Lopez
Dominique Monfery
Richard Purdum
Nik Ranieri
Michael Show
Oskar Urretabizkaia
Ellen Woodbury

Music by:

Alan Menken
David Zippel

Songs:

“The Gospel Truth I”
“The Gospel Truth II”
“The Gospel Truth III”
“Go the Distance”
“One Last Hope”
“Zero to Hero”
“I Won’t Say I’m in Love”
“A Star is Born”

Academy Awards: Best Song – “Go the Distance” (nomination)

The Story:

Hercules begins with showing a collection of ancient Greek statues and artifacts. A narrator begins the story about the golden age of powerful gods and extraordinary heroes in ancient Greece. The scene zooms in on a vase as he continues talking about the greatest and strongest hero, Hercules. On the vase is a picture of Hercules fighting a lion. The narrator asks “what is the measure of a true hero? That is what our story is…”

The narrator is interrupted by the Muses who are on the vase. They complain that the narrator is making the story very boring and they will take it from there. They start to sing “The Gospel Truth I” and introduce themselves as the goddesses of the arts and proclaimers of heroes. Their story starts long before Hercules was born. The world was down on luck and giant brutes called Titans ran amuck. It was a big mess and Zeus came along to clean it all up.

The scene then zooms towards Mount Olympus and the title card appears.

At the gates of Mount Olympus, Zeus and Hera are throwing a party to celebrate their new baby boy. Baby Hercules picks up Zeus by his thumb and Zeus is happy that Hercules is so strong like his father. Hermes appears with flowers for Hera and says that Orpheus did the arrangement. He tells Zeus that it is a fabulous party and he hasn’t seen that much love in a room since Narcissus discovered himself. Hercules grabs a lightning bolt from Zeus and Hera tells her husband to keep the bolts away from the baby. Zeus thinks that the kid can’t hurt himself and to let him have a little fun. Hercules bites into it and gets a little shock. He throws the bolt away and it destroys a pillar that instantly rebuilds itself.

Zeus gives a thank you speech for all of the wonderful gifts the guests brought for the baby. He motions to a gigantic pile of golden gifts. Hera reminds Zeus about their gift for Hercules and out of a cloud, Zeus makes baby Pegasus. The two babies are very happy to be friends.

Hades appears and no one is happy to see him, except Zeus. He asks him how things are in the underworld and Hades says it is a little dark and a little gloomy. Then he gives Hercules a sucker that is shaped like a skull and covered in spikes. He tries to stick it in Hercules’ mouth but he baby grabs his finger with all of his strength. Hades is not happy about his throbbing hand and Zeus just tells him to enjoy the party. Hades says that unlike those other gods lounging around in their clouds, he has a full time gig that Zeus forced on him. So he can’t stay. Zeus tells Hades that he needs to slow down and not work himself to death. Zeus thinks his pun is absolutely hilarious and everyone laughs. Hades angrily leaves.

The Muses appear and warn the audience about making Hades mad because he has an evil plan. A vase shows Hades down in the underworld. The Muses sing “The Gospel Truth II” and explain how mean and ruthless Hades is. He has a plan to shake things up. He floats down the River Styx in a boat above the lost souls and then comes to some steps and yells for Pain and Panic. They come running and are super klutzy as they report for duty. Hades tells them to let him know the instant that the Fates arrive and Pain and Panic tell him that the Fates are already there. Hades is very angry with them and they start bowing and declaring that they are worthless worms as they turn into worms. Hades says that he will maim them after his meeting.

The Fates are holding a mortal’s string of life and then they snip it with some scissors. A scream rings down to the underworld and one of the Fates shouts “incoming!” A soul floats down. Hades appears and apologizes for being late and the Fates say that they knew he would because they know everything about the past, present, and the future. They are fighting over a single eyeball as they speak.

Hades wants to know if the new baby Hercules will mess up his takeover plan. The Fates say that they are not supposed to reveal the future and so Hades starts to flatter then and say that his fate is in their hands. So they show him in a vision in the one eyeball that in eighteen years, the planets will align and that will be the time to act and release the Titans. Then Zeus will finally fall and Hades will rule all! Hades is very excited about this but then the Fates tell him a word of caution. If Hercules fights, Hades will fail. The Fates disappear as Hades dwells in his anger about Hercules. He asks Pain and Panic a riddle, how can they kill someone who is immortal. They can’t! So first they must turn Hercules mortal and he grabs a poison that will do that.

Back on Mount Olympus at nighttime, Hercules and Pegasus are sleeping curled up in the crib. A dark shadow appears. Hera and Zeus wake up to the sounds of a struggle and they run to Hercules’ room. Only Pegasus is there; Hercules is gone and the crib is overthrown. Zeus is so angry and a lightning storm strikes.

Pain and Panic are flying down to earth with baby Hercules. They give him the poison in a bottle and Hercules drinks it. His golden glow disappears as he becomes mortal. Pain and Panic talk about how they can’t kill Hercules until he has drank every last drop. They hear someone approaching and they start to panic. They run and leave the baby behind. The bottle goes flying and breaks. The last drop of poison dissolves on the ground.

A farmer and his wife appear and find the crying baby. They can’t find anyone nearby and think that the baby was abandon. Pain and Panic turn into snakes and slither up to kill Hercules. Alcmene, the wife, thinks that since they have prayed to the gods for so many years for a child, this is their answer. Her husband, Amphitryon, sees the medallion that the baby is wearing with his name on it.  The snakes appear and Hercules grabs them, beats them, ties them in a knot, and throws the snakes far away, while laughing the entire time. Hercules still has his strength. Alcmene and Amphitryon are very surprised!

Pain and Panic turn back into themselves and are very scared of what Hades will do when he finds out. Pain points out that he will only be made if he finds out.

Then the Muses speak and say that the gods searched for the baby but it was too late. By the time they found him he was mortal. They sing “The Gospel Truth III” and explain that since he did not drink the last drop, Hercules has kept his strength. Zeus and Hera are so sad about their son. Hercules could never come home and they had to watch him grow up from above. Alcmene and Amphitryon adopt Hercules.

The next scene shows a runaway cart filled with hay. Hercules is pulling the cart and Amphitryon and his donkey are sitting in the seat of the cart. They are terrified with how fast they are going. They go to a marketplace and people run away in fear. Hercules comes to a stop and he has run a hole right into the ground. Amphitryon comments that he was not sure what they were going to do when old Penelope the donkey twisted her leg but Hercules does not mind pulling cart. He tries to be helpful by picking up the whole large pile of hay at once and Amphitryon tells him not yet because he needs to bargain first. Hercules puts the hay down and Penelope goes flying. Amphitryon just sighs and tells Hercules to stay with the cart as he goes off.

Hercules sees a man nearby struggling with a large vase. He goes to help out the man who starts to thank him but stops when he realizes it is Hercules. He doesn’t want Hercules’ help and tells the boy to run along. Hercules then leaves the store and a frisbee lands near him. A group of teenagers ask him to throw it back but then gasp when they realize it is Hercules. Hercules asks if they need an extra guy and they say no, they already have five players and want to keep it an even number. They run off before Hercules can correct the math and they calls Hercules a geek. Hercules sits on a well as the frisbee goes flying by again. He runs to catch it and then knocks into a pillar. The pillar breaks and ends up destroying the whole marketplace. Hercules keeps trying to stop the destruction but only makes it worse. It even destroys the entire vase store.

The vase store owner is very mad and says that this is the last straw! Everyone around is yelling at Hercules and says that he is dangerous. They tell Amphitryon to keep Hercules away from them.

That evening on a hilltop, Amphitryon is telling Hercules to not let things get to him. But Hercules thinks that they are right, he can’t fit in. He feels like he doesn’t belong there and thinks that he should be someplace else. Amphitryon is about to tell Hercules the truth but Hercules says that he knows what he is saying doesn’t make any sense and he walks away.

Hercules goes to another hilltop and starts to sing “Go the Distance” as it becomes night. He sings about wanting to belong and then he goes home and his parents want to talk to him. They explain how they just found him as a baby and then he has so many questions. They give him the medallion and tell Hercules that it has the symbol of the gods on it. Hercules wants to go to the temple of Zeus for some answers. He says that Amphitryon and Alcmene are the greatest parents in the world but he needs to find answers. They understand and hug him goodbye the next morning as he sets out on the journey. He continues to sing “Go the Distance.”

Hercules reaches the temple and asks the statue of Zeus to hear him and answer who he is and where he belongs. The wind starts to blow and a lightning bolt strikes the statue of Zeus and he comes alive. He reaches down to pick up his son and Hercules starts screaming and tries to run away. Zeus finally picks Hercules up and comments that the boy did not know he had a famous father, did he? He comments that Hercules has his mother’s eyes and his father’s chin. Hercules is very confused; he is a god? He asks Zeus why he was left on earth and if his parents even wanted him. Zeus says that they loved Hercules with all of their hearts but that someone stole Hercules from them and made him mortal. He explains that only gods can live on Mount Olympus. He then tells Hercules that if he proves himself to be a true hero on earth, he will become immortal again and can live on Mount Olympus. Hercules asks how he can do that and Zeus says to find Philoctetes, the trainer of heroes. Zeus then whistles and Pegasus comes flying down. He is very excited to see his master! The pair fly off to find Philoctetes and Hercules promises not to let Zeus down! Zeus turns back into stone.

Hercules sings a reprise of “Go the Distance” about how he wants his hero’s welcome.

On a gloomy and broken down island, Hercules asks Pegasus if he is sure that this is the right place and Pegasus nods. Hercules sees water nymphs and hears a goat bleating in the bushes beside him. He thinks that the little goat is stuck and he pulls him out of the bushes. It is an angry satyr and he tells Hercules to butt out. Hercules yelps and drops the satyr. The nymphs gasp and run away. The satyr chases them and they disappear as flowers and trees. The satyr says that the nymphs can’t keep their hands off of him and one of the trees slaps him. He then sees Hercules staring and asks if he has even seen a satyr before? Hercules admits that he has not and asks if he can help them find Philoctetes. The satyr says with lacklustre that they can call him Phil and Hercules enthusiastically shakes his hand. Phil screams in pain and then Pegasus licks him. Phil is very annoyed with the both of them.

Hercules says that he needs help to become a hero and Phil says no. He goes inside his tree trunk home. Hercules goes to open the door and accidently rips it right off. Phil says that he is retired and Hercules protests that he has to do this! He asks Phil if he has ever had a dream, if there was ever something that he wanted so badly that he would do anything. Phil sighs and invites Hercules to come inside so that he can show him something. Pegasus tries to go inside as well but can’t fit in through the door.

Inside, Phil shows Hercules a collection of memorabilia of all the heroes he had previously trained. Phil says that they had all let him down and none of them could go the distance. Even Achilles who had it all, but that heel of his! Achilles was barely nicked and then he was history. Phil admits that yes, he did have a dream once to train the greatest hero and that people would look at that hero and say “that’s Phil’s boy.” But dreams are for rookies.

Hercules insists that he is different and that he can go the distance. He runs outside to show him. Hercules spins a giant shield of stone and it goes flying. Phil is impressed but he thinks that he is too old to train and walks away again. Hercules tells Phil that he needs to become a hero to join his father Zeus. Phil starts to laugh at him and does not believe him. Phil then sings “One Last Hope” and he is about to say no one more time when Zeus smites him. So Phil agrees and continues to sing as he gets his old training ground ready. They start to train and Hercules grows up and becomes stronger. He succeeds in his training and says that the next stop is Mount Olympus.

Phil says not to get ahead of himself but that they will do a test in Thebes. They fly off the island to the big tough city of Thebes. On the way, they hear a scream and Phil says that it is the basic D.I.D., a damsel in distress. They fly down and through some bushes they see a damsel trying to escape from Nessus the river guardian.

Phil tells Hercules to first analyze the situation without barrelling in without thinking, but Hercules is gone already. He is marching up to Nessus and tries to politely tell him to put the damsel down, but he keeps stumbling over his words. Hercules is even more nervous after she tells him to go away. Hercules thinks that she needs help and she replies that she is a damsel and is in distress but she can handle it. Nessus then punches Hercules and Phil yells at him to grab his sword. Hercules grabs a fish and Nessus laughs at him. The girl is not impressed. Phil yells at Hercules to use his head and so Hercules rams Nessus with his head and the river guardian goes flying. Phil thinks that wasn’t bad, not what he had in mind, but not bad. The damsel also goes flying into the river and Hercules helps her up. Hercules says that was a dumb move and she agrees. Nessus comes running back and he fights with Hercules. Phil is next to the girl and is cheering Hercules on. She asks if Wonderboy is for real and Phil says of course, and then he climbs on her lap and says that he is for real as well. She pushes him into the river.

Hercules defeats Nessus and then asks Phil how he did. Phil says that Hercules made many mistakes and he can’t let his guard down over a pair of big goo-goo eyes. As he is speaking, Hercules notices the girl watching them and he is smitten with her. He walks over to her and ignores Pegasus trying to high five him, making Pegasus jealous.

The damsel introduces herself as Megara, or Meg is what her friends would call her if she had friends, and Hercules is completely tongue tied when she asks for his name. He is finally able to blurt it out as she is leaving. Phil and Pegasus are annoyed with him and then Hercules offers to give Megara a ride. Pegasus flies off and Megara says that she does not think that he likes her very mush. Hercules denies this and says that Pegasus would be more than happy to, but Pegasus drops an apple on his head in response. Megara says that she will be alright because she is a big tough girl and can handle anything. She leaves and Hercules dreamily waves after her.

Phil reminds Hercules that they have a job to do and Thebes is still waiting. They fly off and Megara watches them from the trees. She heads into a dark part of the woods and finds a bunny and a gopher. They turn out to be Pain and Panic and Hades appears. He asks her what happened; he thought she was going to persuade the river guardian to join his team for the uprising. He uses chess-like pawns of the river guardian and other creatures to demonstrate. Megara says that she gave it her best shot and Hades says that instead of subtracting two years from her sentence, he will add two on. She protests that it was not her fault, it was that Wonderboy, Hercules. Pain and Panic are trying to figure out where they know that name from and Hades is very angry at the mention of it. He grabs Pain and Panic and they say that they were able to make him mortal, which is a good thing. Hades also grabs Megara and says that fortunately for the three of them, there is still time to correct the mistake, but no more foul-ups!

Hercules, Phil, and Pegasus approach Thebes which is a very busy city. Phil tells Hercules to stick with him because it is a dangerous place. They almost get run over and Phil says that the people there are nuts because of all the turmoil.

A group of citizens are gathering water from a well. They are talking about the fires, floods, and earthquakes they have been having. Thebes has been going downhill and there are many monsters around.

Hercules interrupts and says that it sounds like they need a hero. They agree and ask who he is. Hercules introduces himself and says that he happens to be a hero. They laugh at him and ask if he has ever saved a town before or reversed a natural disaster. The Thebians walk away because they don’t think that Hercules can help. Phil yells after them that they don’t get it, the kid is genuine. The Thebians ask if he is the goat guy who trained Achilles and Phil starts to get very angry and starts to beat up one of the guys. They think that Phil and Hercules are crazy! One of the Thebians comments that they need a professional hero and not an amateur. They leave.

Hercules sits down on the sidewalk and thinks how he will prove himself a hero if no one will give him a chance. Phil says that they need a catastrophe. Suddenly they hear Megara asking for help and running through the crowds. She says that there has been a terrible accident and is so thankful that she has found Hercules. Outside of the town there were two boys playing in the gorge and then a rockslide happened. The boys are trapped. Hercules is very excited at his chance and he grabs Megara and they fly off on Pegasus. Phil tries to catch up on foot.

Megara has a fear of heights and so of course Pegasus flies wildly. They land near the rock slide and hear the boys screaming for help. Hercules picks up the large rock that they are directly under and the boys climb out. The crowd claps for him and he throws the rock away. The boys thank Hercules and say that he is very strong.

The boys run away and turn out to be Pain and Panic and they find Hades who is watching from a cliff above. Hades gives Megara two thumbs up as the leading lady. She is nearby and whispers down to Hercules to get out of there.

Phil finally catches up and Hercules tells his trainer how great he was. But then they hear a growl and a pair of eyes appear out of the cave the large rock was covering. A dragon-like creature attacks Hercules. The crowd screams and Hades watches with excitement. Phil shouts directions at Hercules as he fights the monster. The monster swallows Hercules and then turns to the crowd. But then from the inside of the monster, Hercules slices off the head. The crowd claps and cheers and Hercules collapses with exhaustion. He can’t even see clearly but Phil goes over to take him away to get cleaned up.

Pain and Panic are watching and freaking out because Hercules won. They think that Hades is going to be very angry about that, but the villain tells them to relax, it’s only half-time.

The monster gets up and grows three heads in the place of the one; it is a hydra! Phil gives Hercules his sword and then runs away. Pegasus flies down to help Hercules and they fight, but for every head that is cut off, more grow! Phil yells at Hercules to stop slicing heads! The hydra has Hercules trapped against the side of the mountain and so Hercules hits the mountain and starts a rock slide. The rock slide kills the hydra and lands on Hercules as well. Everyone thinks that Hercules is dead and the crowd gasps. Phil is very sad. Hades says “game, set, match!”

But then out of the hydra’s claws appears Hercules. He is alive and the crowd cheers and carries off the hero. Hades is very mad but Megara is pleased and claps along with the crowd.

The Muses then sing “Zero to Hero” and sing about how popular and great Hercules is. Hades keeps putting him up against monsters but Hercules defeats them every time. Thebes has created a large amount of merchandise themed to Hercules. His adoptive parents even got a brand new mansion and are very rich as well.

Hades is very angry with Hercules. He destroys a bunch of vases with Hercules face on it. He is also very mad at Pain for wearing Air-Hercs and at Panic for drinking out of a Hercules cup. He smites his minions. Megara points out that Hercules is just hitting every curve that Hades throws at him and this gives Hades an idea. He thinks that he isn’t throwing the right curves at Hercules and looks at Megara. Hercules must have one weakness. She tells him not to even go there; she has sworn off man handling. Hades reminds her that is what got her into the mess in the first place. She sold her soul to Hades to save her boyfriend’s life. Her boyfriend then ran off with another woman. Hades makes her a new offer. She will bring him the key to bring down Hercules and Hades will give her back her freedom.

At Zeus’ temple, Hercules is retelling all of his adventures to his Zeus. He uses Pegasus to demonstrate how he beat the monsters. Zeus is so proud of him. Hercules says that he has been waiting for that day for a long time, the day he can return to the gods. Zeus then explains that Hercules is not there yet because he hasn’t proven himself a true hero. Hercules argues that he has beaten every monster he has come across and that he is the most famous person in Greece. Zeus tells him that being famous and a true hero is not the same thing. Hercules asks what more he can do and Zeus tells him that he has to discover that for himself. He must look inside his heart. Zeus turns back into a statue. Hercules does not know what to do and Pegasus comforts him.

At Hercules palace, tours are going by and there is a lineup of his fans outside the gates. Hercules is posing for a vase painting while Phil is going over their busy schedule. Hercules is frustrated at what the point of all this is and the artist is very annoyed with Hercules for moving. The artist ends up scribbling all over the vase and marching off. On the way out, he throws the paint pallet at Phil. Phil tells Hercules that he can’t give it up now and that there is nothing he can’t do. Suddenly, a bunch of teenage girls come screaming in and surround Hercules. The hero yells for help and Phil says that they will do escape plan beta! He whistles by the front door and says that Hercules is out on the veranda. Megara closes the door behind them all from the inside and walks around the room looking for Hercules. She sees his feet hiding behind a curtain and he is so surprised to see her when she finds him. Hercules tells Megara that he missed her and she teases him about being such a famous hero. She says that he could use a break and talks him into playing hooky with her.

In the gardens at night, they talk about what they did that day. Pain and Panic are nearby disguised as birds and they tell her to stop fooling around and get the goods. Megara then pretends to fall and Hercules catches her. She says that she has weak ankles. He picks her up and brings her over to a bench to sit. She asks him if he has any weaknesses and Hercules says no. She teases him that he is perfect and Hercules tells her that as a kid, he just wanted to be exactly like everyone else. She asks if he wanted to be petty and dishonest because that is what everyone is like. Hercules tells Megara that she isn’t and she comments that he doesn’t know what she is like. He thinks that she is the most amazing person he has ever met. When he is with her, he doesn’t feel alone. Megara thinks that it might be better to be alone because then no one can hurt you. Hercules says that he would never hurt her and Megara says that she doesn’t want to hurt him so they should stop this before they do get hurt. They lean in to kiss.

Suddenly, Phil appears above on Pegasus. They are shining a light right into their eyes and yelling at them to break it up. Phil yells at Megara that she is on his list and tells Hercules that he is going back to the stadium for the workout of his life. Hercules gives Megara a flower before leaving. They fly off and leave Megara behind. Phil falls off Pegasus because Hercules is not watching where they are going since his eyes are back on Megara.

Megara smells the flower and can’t figure out what the matter with her is. She starts to sing “I Won’t Say I’m in Love.” The Muses join in and they sing about how conflicted Megara is about falling in love with Hercules verses her freedom.

Hades appears and asks what Hercules’ weakness is. She tells him to get another girl to figure it out because she is through. Hades says that she is forgetting that he owns her! Phil is nearby and overhears them arguing. Hades asks that if he asks for Wonderboy’s head on a platter, how will she respond. Megara begrudgingly answers “medium or well done?” Phil can’t believe what he is hearing, that she works for Hades. He runs off to find Hercules. Hades tells Megara that her freedom is flittering out of the window for nothing. She says that Hercules is different from other guys and that he doesn’t even have a weakness so Hades cannot beat him. Hades just smiles at her and says that he thinks Hercules does. He burns the flower Hercules gave Megara.

At the stadium, Hercules is working out and loving life. Phil arrives and tells him they need to talk, But Hercules cannot stop talking about Megara and thinks that she is something else!

Across the stadium, a very pretty female pegasus batters her eyelashes at Pegasus and he follows her out of the stadium. She turns out to be Pain and Panic and they tie Pegasus up.

Hercules is still going on and on about how great Megara is and so Phil has to yell that she is a fraud to get his attention. She has been playing him the whole time. Hercules doesn’t believe him and throws Phil into a pile of weights. So Phil gives up and leaves. Hercules doesn’t stop him.

Hades appears and introduces himself to Hercules. Hercules says that he doesn’t have time and Hades says that he is a fast talker and quickly proposes his plan. Hades tells Hercules that he would be grateful if Hercules took a day off from his hero business. Hercules refuses and Hades says that he has some leverage that Hercules might want to know about. He snaps his fingers and Megara appears tied up in Hades smoke. Hercules rushes towards her but she disappears. Hades says that if Hercules gives up his strength for 24 hours, Megara will be free. Hercules asks if people will get hurt and Hades protests that Megara should be more important to him than that. Hercules makes Hades swear that Megara will be safe from any harm and Hades agrees; they shake on it and Hercules loses his strength immediately. Hades knocks him down with a large dumbbell and Megara reappears. Hades tells Megara that a deal is a deal and she is off the hook. He frees her but then says that she is a fabulous little actress. He tells Hercules that she was working for him the whole time. Hercules thinks that Hades is lying but then Pain and Panic appear disguised as the boys who were trapped under the rock. Megara tries to explain and runs to Hercules but he pushes her away. Pain and Panic teases Hercules about being a hero to zero. Hades leaves in his dark chariot.

The planets align and the Titans are released from their prison. Hades riles them up that it was Zeus who put them there and they need to get back at the god. They need to destroy Zeus! They destroy the land around them as they make their way to Mount Olympus. Hades stops them and points them in the right direction of Mount Olympus. He stops the Cyclops and says that he has a special job for him.

Hermes sees that Titans coming to Mount Olympus and goes to warn Zeus and Hera. Zeus yells to sound the alarm and they are going to fight back. The gods prepare for battle and fight the Titans as they climb the mountain.

The Cyclops goes to find Hercules and is destroying Thebes as he does. Thebians are shouting for Hercules to save them. Hercules goes to fight and Megara begs him not to because he will be killed without his strength. He says that there are worse things that could happen and leaves.

Megara finds Pegasus and frees him. She says that they need to find Phil to help talk some sense into Hercules. They fly off.

The gods are still fighting the Titans and are losing.

Phil is trying to leave Thebes on a barge when Pegasus and Megara arrive. She tells him that Hercules needs him help but he will not listen to her. Phil thinks it is good that Hercules learnt at least one lesson. Megara tells Phil that Hercules will die if Phil doesn’t help.

Zeus yells that he needs more lightning bolts but Hermes announces that everyone has been captured by the Titans. Hades appears and Zeus is mad that he is the one behind this.

Hercules is losing to the Cyclops. He is all beaten and bruised when Phil appears. He says that Hercules can take the monster! Hercules says that Phil was right all along about dreams being for rookies and Phil says that no, giving up is for rookies. He is back and is willing to go the distance. The Cyclops picks up Hercules and Hercules grabs torch as he does. He burns the Cyclops’ face and then ties up his feet and trips the Cyclops. The Cyclops falls off of a cliff. The pillar near Hercules starts to fall and Megara pushes him out of the way and gets squished instead. Hercules screams and tries to pick up the pillar. Suddenly his strength is restored and he is able to pick up the pillar off of Megara. Hercules asks what is happening and Megara tells him that Hades’ deal is broken because he promised that Megara wouldn’t get hurt but she did. He asks why she did and her response is that people do crazy things when they are in love. He is at a loss for words and Megara tells him that he hasn’t much time because he can still stop this. Phil says that he will watch over Megara and Hercules and Pegasus take off.

The gods are all in chains and Hades is sitting on a throne. Hercules appears and tells him not to get too comfortable. Hercules frees the gods and the Titans attack again. Pegasus beats up Pain and Panic and Zeus throws lightning bolts again. The Titans are destroyed as Hercules traps them all in the Tornado Titan and throws them off into the galaxy. Hades sneaks off and says that he has one small consultation prize; he has a friend that is dying to see him. Hercules realizes that he means Megara and takes off after.

Phil is comforting Megara and the Fates see her in their eyeball and are going to cut her string of life. Hercules races to her side but the string is cut and Megara dies. Hercules is too late and he picks up her body and cries, but Hercules believes that he can change this.

Down in the underworld, Hades is yelling and angry that he was so close. And he lost it all because Megara had to go all noble. Hercules appears in the underworld and he tells Hades to let Megara’s soul go. Hades brings him to the River Styx and he sees Megara’s soul but can’t grab her out. Hercules volunteers to take Megara’s place. He dives in and Hades says after him that Hercules will be dead before he can get to her. Hercules turns old and the Fates are about to snip his string of life. But they can’t as it has grown strong and golden.

Hercules grabs Megara’s soul and escapes the river. Hades is shocked! Hercules has been turned back into a god and he punches Hades in the face and then punches him into the River Styx and the souls devour Hades. Hercules leaves with Megara’s soul out of the underworld.

Hercules brings her soul back to her body and she breathes. She asks why he did that and he says that people always do crazy thing when they are in love. They go to kiss but then lightning strikes and on a cloud, Hercules and Megara are brought to Mount Olympus. Phil and Pegasus follow. At the gates, the gods are cheering and Hercules runs to meet his parents. He hugs Hera who says that she is so proud of him. Zeus calls him a true hero and says that a “true hero isn’t measured by the size of his strength but by the strength of his heart.” He tells his son that at last he can come home and the gates open for him.

Megara turns to leave and Hercules sees this. He says that this has been the moment he has always dreamed of but then he grabs Megara’s hand and says that a life without Megara, even an immortal life, would be empty. He wishes to stay on earth with her where he belongs. They kiss and Hercules turns mortal. The gods all cheer.

The Muses sing “A Star is Born.” Pegasus flies Hercules, Phil, and Megara back to Thebes and Hercules greets his adoptive parents. Zeus makes a star constellation of Hercules and they hear people comment that it is Phil’s boy.

The end credits play to “A Star is Born” and then a pop version is “Go the Distance.” At the very end, Hades is complaining about everyone else getting happy endings but him and that no one is listening to him.

Trivia:

• Phil refers to Thebes as The Big Olive, a parody of New York City’s nickname The Big Apple.
• One of my favourite lines from a Disney animated film comes from Hercules. When Pain and Panic are disguised as the boys trapped in the rockpile, one of them yells “Someone call IX I I” which is 911 in Roman Numerals. It makes me laugh.
• One of the monsters that Hades sends after Hercules during “Zero to Hero” is Scar from The Lion King. Scar is then the lionskin robe that Hercules is wearing while he is posing for the vase painting.
• Part of the tour near Hercules’ home is the Pecs and Flex Gift Shop where Thebians can purchase his Buns of Brawn workout scroll.
• There was a Disney Channel series called Disney’s Hercules: The Animated Series that aired from 1998 – 1999.
• Some of Phil’s rules are:

Rule #6: When rescuing a damsel, always handle with care
Rule #15: A Hero is only as good as his weapons
Rule #95: Concentrate
Rule #96: Aim

• Pain’s Air-Herc shoes are a parody of Nike Air. Nike was actually named after the Greek goddess of victory.
• The statue that Hercules accidently breaks the arms off of is the famous Venus de Milo, which is known for the mystery of her missing arms. The real statue is on display at the Louvre.
• The Muses parody the singing busts from the Haunted Mansion attraction during “I won’t Say I’m in Love.”
• The Muses’ presidings are:

Calliope – Epic Poetry
Thalia – Comedy
Clio – History
Tersichore – Dance
Melpomene – Tragedy

• The Spice Girls were considered to voice the Muses.
• The pop version of “Go the Distance” that plays during the credits was sung by Michael Bolton.

Representation in the Disney Parks: 

There is very little representation of Hercules in the Disney Parks. Hercules and Megara are rare characters that sometimes appear near the International Gateway in Epcot.

Check out the other films of Disney’s Renaissance:

The Little Mermaid (1989)
The Rescuers Down Under (1990)
Beauty and the Beast (1991)
Aladdin (1992)
The Lion King (1994)
Pocahontas (1995)
The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996)
Mulan (1998)
Tarzan (1999)