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Disney's Hercules

post #1 of 28
12/6/05 at 10:30pm
Thread Starter 
Listening to the soundtrack again, I have to say this is one of the most schitzophrenic scores in Disney history.

--Begins with a rousing gospel-style number.
--The big centerpiece song is a "lite-rock" anthem covered by Michael Bolton
--The only song that I actually like on its own merits is "I Won't Say (I'm In Love)", which is structured like a 60s girl group tune.
--Danny DeVito's not even trying.
--There's no Villain song, which is usually the highlight of the picture.

In short: WTF, Menken?
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post #2 of 28
12/6/05 at 11:34pm
I think thats the best you could say about any song from Danny Devito, really.
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post #3 of 28
12/7/05 at 12:07am
Thread Starter 
Susan Egan belts the shit out of that song (I Won't Say), though.
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post #4 of 28
12/7/05 at 5:48am
I agree with all of those points. By the time Hercules came along, Disney was just coasting along on The Formula. Although how they managed to leave out the villain song, I don't know. Maybe Woods just didn't want to sing. It is the only Disney film I can remember in which the love song was the highlight, though.
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post #5 of 28
12/7/05 at 9:12am
What's worse: shitty Disney film with good tunes or a good Disney film with shitty music?

Both this and Tarzan both prove the latter is far more preferable.
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post #6 of 28
10/21/06 at 10:46am
It may be the first time i've watched it in full since it's release. The hydra fight is great, and I fully agree on the soundtrack being all over the place.
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post #7 of 28
10/21/06 at 5:30pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Crow
What's worse: shitty Disney film with good tunes or a good Disney film with shitty music?

Both this and Tarzan both prove the latter is far more preferable.
Except Tarzan was a shitty film with shitty music.
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post #8 of 28
10/21/06 at 5:32pm
Isn't this due for a double dip?

I don't think it warrants a Platinum issue, but it should be updated with a new tranfer at least.
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post #9 of 28
10/21/06 at 5:38pm
Thread Starter 
Watching "The Little Mermaid" again and the special features on the new DVD really spells out how much Howard Ashman was an essential part of his partnership with Menken. After he died, Menken's never been able to achieve what they did with "Mermaid" and "Beauty and the Beast."

"Newsies?" "Hercules?" "Poca-friggin-hontas?" I don't think so, Tim.
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post #10 of 28
10/21/06 at 5:58pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by RathBandu
Watching "The Little Mermaid" again and the special features on the new DVD really spells out how much Howard Ashman was an essential part of his partnership with Menken....
Minor derailment: Also, it spells out how really depressing The Little Matchgirl is.

That was a really great doc on that disc, too. It was refreshingly honest and I'm always pleased to see when those behind the scenes at Disney don't feel the need to censor themselves when they let loose a 'hell' or 'damn' or somesuch (since kids wouldn't really find much to enjoy with such an analytical documentary anyway).
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post #11 of 28
10/21/06 at 6:42pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by RathBandu
Watching "The Little Mermaid" again and the special features on the new DVD really spells out how much Howard Ashman was an essential part of his partnership with Menken. After he died, Menken's never been able to achieve what they did with "Mermaid" and "Beauty and the Beast."

"Newsies?" "Hercules?" "Poca-friggin-hontas?" I don't think so, Tim.
Yet he knocked the Hunchback score out of the park.
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post #12 of 28
10/21/06 at 6:50pm
Lillias White is the voice of the first muse, Calliope. She's one of the actresses who played Effie in Dreamgirls on stage. She's fucking incredible.
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post #13 of 28
10/23/06 at 1:13am
I liked the Disney version of Hercules, but it always bothered me that they felt obligated to change the mythology for the kids (making him a God that turns "mostly" mortal via some baby formula).

Zeus seduces and knocks up a mortal woman in the original tale. Hera gets jealous, trouble for Herc ensues...

And turning the Greek chorus into a group of black women was already done in Little Shop. Menken, you're repeating yourself.
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post #14 of 28
10/23/06 at 1:50am
Thread Starter 
What's amazing to me about Hunchback is not Menken's score, but that Stephen Schwartz wrote lyrics that didn't completely suck.
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post #15 of 28
10/23/06 at 2:02am
I Won't Say is a GREAT song, and the movie is entertaining enough. It's been a while since I've seen it, so my glasses may very well be rose colored, but I don't think it was shit at all.
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post #16 of 28
10/23/06 at 5:59am
Why is anyone surprised this sucks? It's Disney, goes without saying.
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post #17 of 28
10/23/06 at 9:02pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by General Zod
Why is anyone surprised this sucks? It's Disney, goes without saying.
Er, come again?
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post #18 of 28
12/6/06 at 12:55am
Gerald Scarfe's designs (some of which are reprinted in his gorgeous new coffee table book) and Matt Frewer's voice are this film's only 2 redeeming features.
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post #19 of 28
10/25/07 at 2:01pm
Thread Starter 
Inspired by the recent Disney nostalgia, I watched this again last night. It was better than I remembered, but still fell somewhat short. The animation was gorgeous on everyone except for Phil and Hercules, believe it or not. But Hades -- through Woods' performance and his design -- really is one of the all-time great Disney villains.

The gospel-style muses work a lot better in the context of the film than they do on the soundtrack and "Zero to Hero" is a really stellar, gorgeous to look at number. However, the high point remains "I Won't Say I'm In Love," because I am a big girl and it's a great song.

I also think that Megara is one of the more underrated Disney heroines. She's sassy. I liked that.
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post #20 of 28
10/25/07 at 2:30pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by RathBandu
I also think that Megara is one of the more underrated Disney heroines. She's sassy. I liked that.
I think you mean "selfish" and "underhanded". Not unlike Aladdin's character in... well, Aladdin.
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post #21 of 28
10/26/07 at 3:52am
I actually agree with the comment on Meg. The former slut who falls in love with the hero is sort of a different take for a Disney heroine.

I really liked the Gerald Scarfe designs; the look of the film is great. But the Disney formula was so on rails by this point that no amount of visual flair could save the film. Once they broke into the "I want something more" song right on schedule, I was already bored.
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post #22 of 28
10/29/07 at 3:30am
So is Mulan good? I remember I really liked it in theaters because I convinced myself it was manly with all the... death.
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post #23 of 28
10/29/07 at 7:19am
I quite liked Mulan. I even enjoyed Eddie Murphy's role despite it just feeling wrong wrong wrong. The battle sequence with the avalanche is pretty exciting and Jerry Goldsmith's score is fantastic. The songs are totally forgettable except for Reflections (which sounds nice) and Be A Man (which I get a kick out of). It was nice to have such a low-key romance in the film as well, since it was really just Mulan's story. Her scenes with her father were very subtle and tender.
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post #24 of 28
10/29/07 at 11:32am
Thread Starter 
Mulan accomplishes the feat of actually making a Donny Osmond song bearable. Plus, the final fight sequence in the Forbidden City/Tienanmen Square is fucking aces.

I was talking to a friend about how Meg's past is pretty shady, and she said, "Oh, yeah, she's the first Disney heroine who used to be a hooker." I thought that was pretty funny.
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post #25 of 28
10/29/07 at 11:46am
I love Mulan. Every time I hear "I'll Make a Man Out of You", it ends up being stuck in my head for days. In fact, just bringing it up here is probably going to have the same effect now. Dammit.
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post #26 of 28
10/29/07 at 12:31pm
Mysterious as the dark side of





THE MOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOON
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post #27 of 28
10/29/07 at 12:43pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Greg David
I love Mulan.
Eddie Murphy was the dragon. To my mind, his second best performance.
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post #28 of 28
3/23/11 at 10:27pm

Have this playing in the background.  I check in whenever James Woods' Hades is onscreen.  Hercules himself is dull dull dull.  Crush on Meg.  Love that snarky voice.

 

And why do I still know the lyrics to her song!?

 

EDIT:  God... I love the animation on the fat jiggly Titan that cries for Hercules to face him.  So good.


Edited by mcnooj82 - 3/23/11 at 10:39pm
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