“Hercules” (1997) is an entertaining, animated children’s movie that can be enjoyed by all ages, with its upbeat music and fascinating storyline. This Disney movie follows the adventures of Hercules, a hero in Greek mythology (son of Zeus), as he attempts to regain his title as a God, after Hades, ruler of the underworld, kidnapped him as a child and turned him mortal.

 Disney movies are generally enjoyed by children and “Hercules” is no different. Between its catchy music and educational storyline, it is definitely worth watching for a family movie night. 

“Hercules” is a children’s movie that spins educational information, like Greek mythology, into a fun, animated movie. Many elementary-aged children learn about Greek mythology in school, but “Hercules” teaches it in a way that engages the young children’s minds and is also entertaining to older adults as well.

This particular Disney movie has very catchy music that lifts the spirits of the audience and positively impacts them. The intended audience is mainly children ages 5 and up, and it shows in the way that the music is written and in the way that the colors were chosen to engage the young mind. 

The voice actors bring life to the characters and they do an outstanding job of personalizing the movie. Roger Bart, Susan Egan, James Woods, and Danny DeVito all did an excellent job of using the personality of their characters to discover the correct voice that matches their body language and look. 

Not only was the voicing very accurate to the characters and their personalities, the outfits and design of the settings were accurate to the time period that the movie was set in. 

In this movie, Zeus is depicted as a caring father that loves his children and is concerned about them at all times. But, according to most Greek mythology stories, Zeus was nothing like this. He was a controlling God that neglected many of his children. So, while the movie was made to provide an example of a caring father, it is not accurate. 

One of the other flaws, is its “scary” scenes. It is a movie geared for a younger audience, yet some of the scenes may seem a little scary to little kids. One example of this is the scene that shows Hades and his endless pit of souls.

Overall, “Hercules” is an incredible movie that is entertaining to all ages, despite its target audience being children. I would easily recommend this movie to families with young children all over the United States.