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[tab title="Movie Review"]
…in which the producers lie, cheat, and steal from star Lou Ferrigno so much so that he actually agrees to do reshoots for a movie that will never see the light of day for a much smaller price tag. That’s right, folks, Mr. Incredible Hulk himself is victim to the wrath of producers with an agenda. He had NO IDEA he was actually filming a sequel to 1983's Hercules until much later.
And then he was pissed. Hulk smash indeed. Maybe that’s why, when Herc strikes down all the fire monsters and mud demons and other creatures that stand in his way of retrieving the seven thunderbolts stolen from the gods, there’s a flash of light. Maybe.
Oh, how the mighty have fallen!
Remember how, in my Hercules review, I said that film – even if it was low in budget and in performances – did not suck? Well, no doubt about it, The Adventures of Hercules II certainly does all the sucking most claim that one is guilty of. You think Hercules was bad? That it couldn't get any worse? Hold my beer.
My Goddess, it doesn't get much worse than the dunderheadedness of this film. The Adventure of Hercules II explodes into nothingness right out of the gates with a recap of the original film. Wow. Scratch the surface concerning the making of the movie and you will easily see why. This one was supposed to be a gladiator flick; an Italian sword and sandal adventure with ninjas and all sorts of high-kicking creatures.
The differences in the narrative structure between the first and the second are the first clues that something is insanely wrong. It turns out, due to a pretty crummy producers’ viewing of The Seven Magnificent Gladiators, they went into panic mode, refusing to follow-up their successful Hercules movie with the piece of shit movie that the hired director had submitted. Wasn't. Going. To. Happen.
So they turned to writer/director Luigi Cozzi to fix the flawed movie. He could only shoot so much more material on the budget they provided. And then, because the reshoots would involve Ferrigno, they convinced the actor that he was actually filming additional scenes to fix the problems with The Seven Magnificent Gladiators for a pint-sized check for his time; much lower than what he was wanting. “This shitty movie will sink your career if you don’t,” they suggested. “You must do these reshoots,” they argued. Well, they won.
The Adventures of Hercules II is a suck-fest salvage job. That’s right, the immediate sequel to Hercules was originally a fantasy/adventure film that had nothing to do with that Greek hero. That’s why it comes across so ridiculously loopy. And the rotoscopic effects only add to the sheer visual lunacy as the battle between Herc and Minos (William Berger) is reused (along with other scenes)…in space! Sure, it has more monsters and more fights, but little else makes any damn sense.
Featuring actresses Milly Carlucci as Urania and Sonia Viviani as Glaucia, The Adventures of Hercules II definitely has no shortage of babe power. The main problem is that it is a movie of reshoots and clever editing. Herc doesn’t show until 20 minutes into the picture and, as it begins with a highlight reel from the first adventure, it remains little else.
This is fantasy gone gonzo at its absolutely worst. The Adventures of Hercules II is largely a freewheeling affair of let’s see what works – a video game of visuals (albeit on a limited budget) – that makes little sense and, ultimately, stalled Ferrigno’s career. Either way, the actor was doomed. But what a fantastical ride it was…
The Adventures of Hercules II is now available on blu-ray thanks to Shout! Factory. This one, ultimately, is for completists only.
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[tab title="Details"]
MPAA Rating: PG.
Runtime: 88 mins
Director: Luigi Cozzi
Writer: Luigi Cozzi
Cast: Lou Ferrigno, Milly Carlucci, Sonia Viviani
Genre: Adventure | Action
Tagline: The Man With Supernatural Strength Returns to Battle the Forces of Evil!
Memorable Movie Quote: "Science and chaos have given me the power to eliminate you all!"
Theatrical Distributor: Cannon Film Distributors
Official Site:
Release Date: October 4, 1985
DVD/Blu-ray Release Date: August 22, 2017
Synopsis: When three traitorous goddesses steal seven magical thunderbolts with unearthly power, it falls to one man with the strength of one hundred to save the universe from eternal chaos and darkness: Hercules (the incredible Lou Ferrigno)! As an Olympian array of monstrous villains line up to claim Hercules' head, our protagonist must summon every last ounce of his formidable strength to defeat them all, recover the thunderbolts, and take to the cosmos itself for one final battle with his archnemesis, King Minos. The Adventures Of Hercules II features the man, the myth, the legend himself in his most titanic labor yet!
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[tab title="Blu-ray Review"]
Blu-ray Details:
Home Video Distributor: Shout Factory
Available on Blu-ray - August 22, 2017
Screen Formats: 1.85:1
Subtitles: English SDH
Discs: Blu-ray Disc; single disc set
Region Encoding: Locked to Region A
Shout! Factory delivers The Adventures of Hercules II with a fantastic-looking 1080p transfer. Sporting an aspect ratio of 1.85:1, the film is full of color and details. Fabric in clothing is visible as is the cheapness of the sets and the limitations in the locations. Greens are strong and so are blacks. The action sequences are vivid and expressed with a new clarity thanks to HD upgrade. The sound is presented in an adequate DTS-HD Master Audio Mono mix.
Supplements:
Commentary:
-
None
Special Features:
Thankfully, Shout! Factory gives us a nice NEW look at the making of the movie with a brutally frank interview conducted with Cozzi about the making of the movie. It is hilarious. A theatrical trailer rounds out the release.
- Hercules Is Back: Interview With Director/Screenwriter Luigi Cozzi
- Theatrical Trailer
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