The Legend of Hercules

Renny Harlin's tepid and tedious sword-and-sandals epic will be long forgotten by the time Brett Ratner's Hercules, starring Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, opens this summer. One of the best-known figures in Greek mythology, the demigod Hercules has been portrayed onscreen by musclemen like Steve Reeves and Lou Ferrigno; now it's Kellan Lutz. Here, Olympian god Zeus impregnates mortal Queen Alcmene (Roxanne McKee), wife of the tyrannical King Amphitryon (Scott Adkins). Loathed by his stepfather and envied by stepbrother Prince Iphicles (Liam Garrigan), now-grown Prince Alcides/Hercules (Lutz)—clueless as to his true origins—is dispatched to Egypt, where he is ambushed and enslaved. Now, Iphicles can inherit the kingdom and marry Crete's Princess Hebe (Gaia Weiss), who has already publicly pledged her love to Alcides/Hercules. All of this is witnessed by the Queen's mentor Chiron (Rade Serbedzija) and Alcides/Hercules' fellow soldier Sotiris (Liam McIntyre). According to legend, Hercules tackled 12 great labors, including fighting the nine-headed Hydra and the Cretan bull. Aside from a brief and unimpressive skirmish with the Nemean lion, however, these tasks are ignored in favor of a choppy, insipid, utterly predictable love story. Except for McIntyre and Serbedzija, the acting here is ludicrous and laughable, particularly on the part of uncharismatic Lutz. Not recommended. [Note: DVD/Blu-ray extras include audio commentary by director Renny Harlin and star Kellan Lutz, trailers, and bonus digital and UltraViolet copies of the film. Exclusive to the Blu-ray release is a “making-of” featurette (15 min.). Bottom line: a decent extras package for a lame action-adventure film.] (S. Granger)