Hercules (1998, VHS)

So last night, after a stressful day where Miles tried to cut off Carter's finger with a pair of scissors, we needed a movie night. The kind with pizza and popcorn and blankets and pillows and cuddling in front of the idiot box so that I wouldn't put my 3 1/2 year old in the hospital and myself in prison. Because prison's internet time is too darn limited. We were going to watch "Madagascar," but ended up with "Hercules," because I hadn't seen it since 1997, and Miles and my wife Melissa hadn't ever seen it. So with Carter safely bandaged and soothed and tucked away into bed, we sat down...

Okay, so maybe "Hercules" isn't quite that bad. I enjoyed it when I saw it in the theater, but I also found myself thinking that I wasn't sure I liked the trend Disney was taking. Based on an ancient Greek myth, this movie, like so many other Disney movies based on history or great literature, strays greatly from the original. Hercules, the half-human, half-god who spends his time on Earth defending the helpless and defeating horrific monsters, is depicted as being the son of Zeus and Hera, King and Queen of the Greek gods. His humanness comes from the fact that he was fed a mortality potion..

So there was a huge party this weekend, which I m assured was an insanely good time. I wouldn t know. I wasn t there. So where, you ask, was I? What could have been more fun than consuming copious amounts of alcohol, listening to terribly loud music and attempting to hit on every beautiful woman around? What could I possibly have been doing? I ll tell you. I was at home, babysitting some of my younger cousins. So what s so great about that? Well, aside from the fact that they re really quite a lot of fun and I absolutely love them to bits, it also means that I get to watch a kiddies movie in..

Disney often looks to myths, legends, fairy tales, historical events, historical myths, mythical history, etc., for the subject matter of their animated films. Then they apply a "Disneyfication" process to them, resulting in something that is wholesome and entertaining, but should not in any way be used as a documentary or reference to the original story. Disney's Pocohontas was nothing like the true Native American princess, for instance. Now they've turned to ancient Greek mythology with Hercules. Like other Disney films, it's fun for all ages, but don't expect to pass your high school...