FILM: Hercules
DIRECTOR: Brett Ratner
CAST: Dwayne Johnson, John Hurt, Ian McShane, Rufus Sewell, Aksel Hennie, Peter Mullan, Ingrid Bolso Berdal, Reece Ritchie, Joseph Fiennes and Tobias Santelmann
This is the second film this year based on Hercules, the son of Zeus. The first being the Kellan Lutz-starrer “The Legend of Hercules”, which released in mid-January.
But unlike the previous film, director Brett Ratner’s “Hercules” is a revisionist take on the classic myth, based on Radical Comics’ “Hercules: The Thracian Wars” by Steve Moore.
The film begins with questioning the audience, “Do you know anything about the son of Zeus?” and it further goes on to explain the myth of the demi-god Hercules and how he overcame the 12 dangerous missions before being accepted as a legend. All this is narrated through a montage that forms a sort of a prologue to the tale.
Then the narration shifts to the Macedonian Coast of Thrace, where we actually encounter Hercules who isn’t the son of Zeus but a mercenary orphan albeit a selfless one, who over the years has engineered his reputation as a demi-god, allowing him to make good of the image he has created of himself. He is there to drive away the pirates who have infested the coast.
Along with him are a loyal band of warriors, and one storyteller. They are; the mystic fortune teller Amphiaraus (Ian McShane), his oldest friend and fellow orphan Autolycus (Rufus Sewell), warrior Tydeus (Aksel Hennie) who suffers from a post traumatic stress disorder, an ace archer Atalanta (Ingrid Bolso Berdal) and his nephew, the storyteller Iolaus (Reece Ritchie).
As Iolaus puts it, “Rumours spread, legends grow.”
Soon, Hercules and his group are coaxed by Ergenia (Rebecca Ferguson), the daughter of Lord Cotys (John Hurt) to fight in a civil war to combat a rebel army, led by Rheseus (Tobias Santelmann) who has nearly destroyed the land of Thrace.
In effect, Hercules becomes the general in charge of the army defending Thrace. After training farmers to become soldiers, he leads them on into a bloody battle. Soon he is victorious and is rewarded with a lot of gold.
But instead of rejoicing the victory, he realizes that he may have been fighting on the wrong side in this fight. Hercules is now faced with a moral dilemma. Should they take the gold and walk-away or stay and fight for justice, forms the crux of the climax.
Midway through the film, you realize that the premise of the story has a strong resemblance to the iconic Akira Kurosawa’s “The Seven Samurai”.
The performances are good and credible. With most characters having a back story, it is fun to watch them blurt out dumb remarks throughout the action scenes. Also there is an overload of messages; about the need to believe in yourself in order to accomplish great things.
There is also a substantial emphasis on; the eternal debate over destiny versus self-determination and the belief that people need a hero, someone to look up to.
Dwayne Johnson in the lead exudes great screen presence as Hercules, but unfortunately in the emotional scenes he comes across as stiff. Isaac Andrews as Arius, Ergenia’s son and Rebecca Ferguson fare well in the emotional melodrama, whereas Ian McShane offers comic relief.
What keeps you hooked is the rich earthy textures of the frames, the impressive production values and excellent 3D effects.
In spite of its flaws, it is a treat to watch “Hercules”. (IANS)
FILM: Lucy
DIRECTOR: Luc Besson
CAST: Scarlett Johansson, Morgan Freeman, Choi Min-sik
Luc Besson’s ‘Lucy’ bookends with voiceovers that has no co-relation to the subject.
It opens with a voiceover, which says – “Life has been given to us a billion years ago what have we done with it?”
The film closes on a similar note, “Life has been given to us a billion years ago, now you know what to do with it.”
Honestly, there have been no lessons in the interim narration. Instead, what we get is a tacky insight into the gritty underworld and drug mafia and a tinge of action and sci-fiction thrown in to titillate.
The premise of the film rests on the contention – what would happen if humans were to explore cent percent of their brain potential?
Packed with silly metaphors and innuendoes like the rat eating the cheese in a rat-trap or the leopard hunting his prey, ‘Lucy’ is the story of an innocent young woman, Lucy (Scarlett Johansson) who is forced to work as a drug mule for a Chinese drug-mafia, Jang (Choi Min-sik) and her condition that co-relates with an academic lecture delivered by Samuel N orman (Morgan Freeman).
In his discourses, the professor suggests what might happen if humans were able to use more than the 10 percent of their brain power.
The drug, CPH4 that is surgically implanted into Lucy’s belly leaks after one of her captors manhandles her. Instead of killing her, the drug works wonders on her. It drastically enhances her nervous system, setting her on a path to unlock the full potential of her brain.
She begins to discover a host of new abilities including morphogenesis, telekinesis, teleportation, mind reading and many other superpowers that defy our comprehension of human physiology.
Now armed with these powerful skills, she can control every aspect of her body’s function, other people’s bodies and finally all matter and energy around her, rapidly evolving into a super being.
It’s basically her journey from a helpless girl to a merciless warrior fighting against the drug mafia.
Jam-packed with sleek action, mindless car chase and punctuated with justifications for the storyline, the film is thin on logic as well as presentation.
The screenplay wavers while it speaks profoundly about, “Time. It i s not only a unit of measurement, without time we do not exist,” and “The purpose of life is to pass the knowledge that is accumulating.”
All these layers are lost as Besson seems to have charted the script in a hurry and without paying due consideration to its characters and their motivation.
The film is an outright Scarlett Johansson film. She delivers an intriguing performance much beyond expectations. Her transition from a vulnerable girl to an indifferent mutant is smooth, but ridiculed with logical defiance.
The rest of the cast do little to supplement Lucy in terms of humour or relatable empathy. They are mostly there to drag the story forward.
Morgan Freeman as the professor and researcher is wasted. His second scene, where he interacts with Lucy is beyond comprehension.
Overall, despite good production quality, decent visuals, and high action drama, Besson’s fans would be disappointed because of the lack of noir-action drama. For the thinking audience, the same hooks that make the film engaging makes it look ridiculous and absurd. (IANS)