Starring: Dwayne Johnson, Ian McShane, John Hurt, Rebecca Ferguson, Rufus Sewell, Joseph Fiennes, Aksel Hennie, Ingrid Bolsø Berdal, Reece Ritchie, Tobias Santelmann, Peter Mullan, Isaac Andrews, Joe Anderson, Stephen Peacocke, Nicholas Moss, Robert Whitelock, Irina Shayk
OUR RATING: ★★½
Story:
Action fantasy adventure directed by Brett Ratner, loosely based on the graphic novel Hercules. The story follows Hercules (Dwayne Johnson), the son of Zeus and a human woman, who is haunted by his tragic past. Now he works as a mercenary, accompanied by a band of loyal followers, including Amphiarus (Ian McShane) and Autolycus (Rufus Sewell). However, things get complicated for Hercules when the ruler of Thrace, King Cotys (John Hurt), and his daughter, Ergenia (Rebecca Ferguson), seek his help to defeat a savage and terrifying warlord.
Our Favorite Quote:
‘No matter how far you run, no matter how fast you go, the beast will follow. Man cannot escape his fate.’ – Amphiaraus (Hercules) Click To Tweet
Best Quotes (Total Quotes: 65)
[first lines; on a stormy night, we see Hercules being born]
Iolaus: [voice over] You think you know the truth about him? You know nothing. His father was Zeus. The Zeus. King of the gods. His mother, Alcmene, a mortal woman. Together, they had a boy. Half human, half God. But Zeus’ queen, Hera, saw this bastard child as an insult, a living reminder of her husband’s infidelity. Alcmene named the boy Hercules, which means “glory of Hera,” but this failed to appease the goddess. She wanted him dead.
[one night as Alcmene puts young Hercules down to sleep, suddenly two serpents emerge from the eyes of a Hera statue in the room and slither their way to Hercules, but he snaps their necks]
Iolaus: [voice over] Luckily, he took after his father.
[we see an adult Hercules treads through a swamp in the middle of the night]
Iolaus: [voice over] Once he reached manhood, the gods commanded him to perform Twelve Labors, twelve dangerous missions. If he completed them all and survived, Hera agreed to finally let him live in peace.
[suddenly the Lernaean Hydra emerges from the swamp in front of Hercules]
Iolaus: [voice over] He fought the Lernaean Hydra!
[Hercules slices off their heads one by one; next we see Hercules running through the wintry woods]
Iolaus: [voice over] He battled the Erymanthean Boar!
[Hercules takes down the boar with his club]
Iolaus: [voice over] But his greatest labor was the Nemean Lion.
[we see Hercules in a cave, the lion’s hiding place who Hercules suddenly comes face to face with]
Iolaus: [voice over] This was no ordinary beast. It had a hide so tough, no weapon could penetrate it.
[Hercules shoots an arrow at the lion but the arrow doesn’t penetrate and the lion jumps to attack Hercules]
Iolaus: [voice over] But even this monster was no match for the son of Zeus.
[as the lion goes to attack, Hercules grabs its jaws and snaps it in half]
[Macedonian Coast, Northern Greece, 358 BC]
Gryza: What a load of crap!
[we see Iolaus, Hercules’ nephew, tied up and hanging over a wooden pike right below his groin]
Iolaus: Every word is true.
Gryza: You know what I think? This friend of yours doesn’t even exist.
[the other men laugh]
Iolaus: Laugh all you want. He’s coming, and be warned, Gryza, he despises pirates.
Macedonia has been good to us. Plenty of villages ripe for pillaging. We are here to stay.
[to one of his men]
Gryza: Finish him.
[the pirate starts to burn the rope that holds Iolaus]
Gryza’s Pirate: The more you struggle, the faster you drop.
Iolaus: Indeed, your fleet is strong. But…
[just then Iolaus sees a massive shadow behind them, Iolaus smiles]
Iolaus: Yet, as I was about to explain before I was so rudely interrupted. The Nemean Lion was strong, too. Yet, he still destroyed it. And not with a sword or a spear or arrows. No!
[suddenly Hercules appears wearing the skin of the Nemean Lion on his head]
Hercules: I did it with my bare hands! Or so they say.
Gryza: Hercules.
Hercules: Is this all the men you have?
Gryza: There’s forty of us, one of you!
Hercules: The king of this land has offered me gold to dispose of you. So leave, or die. I get paid either way.
[to his men]
Gryza: Make him bleed.
[five men charge towards Hercules and he knocks them all down with a single blow]
Iolaus: Five men with a single blow! Still think you can destroy the son of Zeus?
Gryza: Bring me his head!
[the rest of Gryza’s men start charging]
Hercules: Seems they need more convincing, Autolycus.
Autolycus: That’s why we’re here.
[Autolycus throws his knives at some of the men killing them]
Hercules: Atalanta.
[Atlanta starts killing them with her arrow]
Hercules: Amphiaraus.
[Amphiaraus kills one of the pirates with his spear]
Amphiaraus: May Zeus forgive you.
Hercules: Tydeus.
[Tydeus jumps down and takes out more men with his axe, then together they take down the pirates one by one]
[Gryza hears Hercules killing all his men]
Gryza’s Pirate: Die, Hercules!
[suddenly there’s silence and one of Gryza’s pirates appears making Gryza think he’s killed Hercules]
Gryza: Ah, good man.
[suddenly the man collapses revealing Hercules standing behind him, just then Iolaus ropes begin to burn off and gets closer to falling onto the pike]
Iolaus: Hurry! Hurry! Uncle! Uncle, hurry! Hurry! Hurry!
[Hercules walks over to Iolaus and pushes him to safety before he falls onto the pike]
Iolaus: Any longer, Uncle…
Hercules: And the girls would finally be safe from your attentions.
[Hercules smiles at Iolaus then turns to the rest of the pirates]
Hercules: The rest of you may go.
[pointing to Gryza]
Hercules: But not you.
[suddenly Hercules takes one powerful swing of his club at Gryza]
[Autolycus counts the dead bodies of the pirates they’ve just killed]
Autolycus: Thirteen, fourteen, fifteen, sixteen, seventeen…
Atalanta: That was fun.
Autolycus: …eighteen, nineteen, twenty. Twenty pirates at two gold pieces a head, minus the headless ones. Let’s see.
Hercules: Not a bad night.
Iolaus: You see how the pirates ran? My story softened their resolve.
Autolycus: Their resolve must be broken, Iolaus. When you spread the legend of Hercules, make it bigger, scarier. The more they believe Hercules is truly the son of Zeus, the less likely
they are to fight.
[just then Amphiaraus makes the fire they’re seating in front rise by dropping herbs into it]
Amphiaraus: Oh!
Hercules: Amphiaraus?
Amphiaraus: Mm?
Hercules: Care to join us here on earth?
Amphiaraus: A lion and a crow in strange alliance, fighting across a sea of corpses.
[Amphiaraus puts more herbs into the fire making it rise again]
Autolycus: If you’re going to use those herbs, Amphiaraus, at least share.
Amphiaraus: Huh?
[the others laugh at Amphiaraus]
[Hercules and his comrades are in a tavern eating and drinking, Atalanta is playing a game with another man holding their hand over fire to see who can keep it there longest]
Man at Tavern: Hold it! Hold it! Hold it! Hold it! Fight it!
[suddenly the other man take his hand away, no longer able to keep his hand over the fire]
Atalanta: Keep practicing, boys! So who’s next? You? You?
[sat at table Hercules empties their bag of gold payment onto the table]
Autolycus: That’s a pretty sight.
Hercules: One more payday, Autolycus, that’s all we need.
Autolycus: Then we get to live like the kings we’ve served.
Hercules: Or live simply.
Autolycus: You still dreaming of barbarian lands?
Hercules: Beyond the Aegean, at the shores of the black sea. That is where I will live out the rest of my days in solitude.
Autolycus: Boring, if you ask me.
Hercules: Maybe so, Autolycus. But I’ll never find peace unless I move as far away as possible.
Autolycus: What of Tydeus? Without you to temper his rage, I fear what he may become.
Hercules: Tydeus will go with me. Civilization has become too civilized for us.
Iolaus: Uncle! Join us, the girls are eager to welcome you.
[Hercules looks at Autolycus he waves his hand in refusal, Hercules then joins Iolaus as he takes them to meet two women]
Iolaus: See? I told you I knew Hercules.
Vixen #1: Are you his servant?
Iolaus: I’m his nephew.
Vixen #2: Are you, really?
Iolaus: I tell of Hercules’ Twelve Labors, like the Nemean Lion, the Apples of the Hesperides, the Belt of Hippolyta with its buxom naked Amazons and exciting bondage. I immortalize him…
[just then Autolycus interrupts him]
Autolycus: He talks, while the rest of us fight. It is a wonder you share the same blood as Hercules.
[the two women laugh; to Iolaus]
Hercules: Have fun.
[Hercules starts walking off]
Hercules: Ladies.
[Hercules joins Tydeus at his table]
[a woman named Ergenia enters the Tavern, as she goes to approach Hercules Atalanta stops her]
Atalanta: What do you want with Hercules?
Ergenia: My words are for him, not you.
Hercules: Atalanta, it’s alright.
[Atalanta steps aside and Ergenia goes over to Hercules]
Ergenia: You certainly are a hard man to find.
Hercules: Maybe I don’t want anyone to find me.
Ergenia: Well I’m not just anyone. My name is Ergenia, daughter to Lord Cotys.
Hercules: Your father is most fortunate to have such a beautiful heir.
Ergenia: My father is most unfortunate. He battles a warlord, Rhesus. Our land is torn by civil war. Every day villages are destroyed, crops ruined, innocents slaughtered.
Hercules: We all have problems.
Ergenia: Well, perhaps I can convince you to make our problems your own.
Autolycus: Unfortunately, my lady, Hercules is fully committed till the Feast of Dionysus. We could, however, advance you to the front of the line, for the right price.
Ergenia: Hm. I thought heroes fight for glory.
Hercules: But mercenaries fight for gold.
Ergenia: Lord Cotys is a rich man.
Autolycus: I like him already.
Ergenia: If you agree to aid him, he will pay your weight in gold.
[Autolycus pushes a plate of food towards Hercules]
Autolycus: Eat up.
[Iolaus sees Hercules’ Nemean Lion head and a crow carved on a shield near them and remembers Amphiaraus earlier words]
Iolaus: “A lion and crow in strange alliance.”
Amphiaraus: Told you.
[Hercules considers Ergenia’s proposal for a moment]
Hercules: Where are we going?
[he smiles at Ergenia]
[Hercules, his comrades and Ergenia travel to Thrace, Eastern Greece]
Ergenia’s Maiden: It is good to see you safe, my lady.
[Ergenia walks over to General Sitacles]
Sitacles: This war claims more victims every day. We were concerned, my lady.
Ergenia: Thank you, General Sitacles.
[referring to Hercules standing next to her]
Ergenia: I was well protected.
Sitacles: Ah. The mighty Hercules. An honor. Though not quite as big an honor as I expected.
Ergenia: General, go tell my father Hercules is here.
[Sitacles leaves]
Iolaus: Uncle?
[referring to the large statue of Hera]
Iolaus: Hera. Impressive.
Ergenia: It’s meant to be. It took five years and a thousand men to build her temple. Hera is the patron goddess of Thrace. Everyone knows the legend, how Hera seeks to destroy Hercules. Perhaps the right cause might finally reconcile you.
[Ergenia’s son, Arius, runs over to her with excitement]
Arius: Mother!
Ergenia: Arius.
[Ergenia embraces Arius before he goes over to Hercules]
Arius: You’re Hercules.
Hercules: That’s right.
Arius: My name is Arius. I know all your labors by heart. You killed the giant Geryon with a single blow, cleaned the Augean stables in one night…
Ergenia: Hercules is probably tired.
Arius: And the Labor of the Hide, and the Labor of the Mares.
Ergenia: That’s enough, Arius. Come along.
[Hercules chuckles as Ergenia walks Arius away]
Ergenia: Stay away from him. Men who deal in violence attract violence.
Arius: But he’s Hercules. He’s no mere mortal, he’s the greatest!
Sitacles: Lord Cotys will see you now.
[Hercules and his comrades walk over to Sitacles]
Sitacles: Have you ever met royalty, Hercules?
Hercules: Once or twice.
[Hercules recalls three years earlier at the palace of King Eurystheus, Athens, as Hercules is brings the heads of the Hydra, he is reunited with his wife Megara and children]
Hercules’ Sons: Father!
[his two sons and Megara embrace him]
Hercules: Megara.
Megara: Welcome home, my love.
[the crowd at the palace applaud Hercules]
King Eurystheus: Hercules!
[later he meets with Eurystheus]
Hercules: Whenever I’m here, I imagine this is what Elysium must look like.
King Eurystheus: Well, men like us have the means to create our own paradise on earth.
[pointing to a peacock]
King Eurystheus: Look. Magnificent, aren’t they? Well, do not keep us in suspense. Are we safe from the monster Hydra?
[Hercules drops the bag and opens it to reveal the heads of the Hydra]
Hercules: The Hydra’s heads, your majesty.
[Eurystheus looks at the head more closely and sees it’s the head of man with a mask on his head]
King Eurystheus: The masks of serpents. No wonder men thought they were monsters. You’ve done your sovereign a great service. Come, let the people have their hero.
Announcer: All hail King Eurystheus. And the mighty protector of Athens, Hercules!
[the crowd cheers]
Crowd: Hercules! Hercules! Hercules!
King Eurystheus: A man faced with such adoration might be tempted to think himself a God.
Hercules: I only want to be a husband and a father.
[as the crowd cheers Hercules turns and looks at is wife and three children, then suddenly he has a vision of his family screaming, and the walls covered in blood]
Sitacles: Lord Cotys awaits.
[Sitacles takes Hercules and his comrades to Cotys]
Lord Cotys: Hercules. Welcome. An honor to host such a legend.
Hercules: Lord Cotys.
[Cotys notices Hercules’ comrades standing behind him]
Lord Cotys: But in legend you fight alone.
Hercules: My reputation would not exist without my comrades.
[he introduces each of them]
Hercules: Autolycus of Sparta. Tydeus of Thebes. Atalanta of Scythia. Iolaus of Athens. And Amphiaraus of Argos.
Lord Cotys: Amphiaraus? The famed seer of Argos.
[Cotys walks over to Amphiaraus]
Lord Cotys: It is said you have glimpsed your own death, so you fight each battle knowing that it is not yet your time to die. What else can you tell of the future?
Amphiaraus: Only what the gods see fit to reveal.
Lord Cotys: A shame. It would have been a great gift to know the outcome of this war.
Amphiaraus: The gods can be frustrating sometimes, Lord Cotys.
[Cotys laughs, he then walks over to Atalanta]
Lord Cotys: With respect, I fear that the task ahead might not be suitable for a woman, even if she is an Amazon warrior.
[suddenly Atalanta turns and proves him wrong by shooting two arrows at the helmets of two guards, making them stick to the door behind them, Cotys turns to her and holds up his hands]
Lord Cotys: I stand corrected.
[later that night as they are dining with Cotys and his men]
Lord Cotys: When the kings of yesteryear built this citadel, it was intended as the high seat of all Thrace. But now Thrace is divided.
Sitacles: This war has depleted our forces, we’re left with nothing but farmers and merchants to replenish our army.
Lord Cotys: It takes every one of us to resist Rhesus. People think that he cannot be killed by an ordinary mortal. Only by a God.
Sitacles: Rhesus is a sorcerer. His magic words confuse men, bend them to his will. He leads an army of monsters; half horse, half human.
Iolaus: Centaurs?
Atalanta: You’ve actually seen them?
Sitacles: They have been seen.
Come, Hercules. Let me show you what misery Rhesus has brought us.
[Cotys and Ergenia show Hercules the refugee camps]
Lord Cotys: Every week, more refugees arrive seeking my protection, most of them covered in blood, crippled or burnt by Rhesus’ men. I feared nothing could ever be good again, till you arrived.
Hercules: I’m just a mercenary fighting for gold.
Lord Cotys: How we view ourselves is of little consequence. How others perceive us is important. And your name, like it or not, is a rallying cry.
Ergenia: I have seen too much reality to trust in legends, and I am not alone. Nobody has any faith anymore. The people need a hero, they need someone to look up to. My son believes in you. Bring us peace, and I will believe in you, too.
[Hercules meets with his comrades]
Hercules: I’m convinced these are good people.
Autolycus: I see. And who’s more convincing, Cotys or his daughter?
Atalanta: All the gold on earth is not as convincing as a pair of breasts.
Autolycus: Maybe, but gold never ages.
Hercules: Which is why I got them to double our price.
Autolycus: Double your weight in gold? Well done.
Hercules: Amphiaraus?
Amphiaraus: If it be the will of Zeus.
Iolaus: Which title sounds more terrifying to our enemies? “Hercules: Savior of Thrace”, or “Hercules: A legend is Born?”
Autolycus: Both sound terrifyingly boring.
Atalanta: What are we supposed to do with an army of farmers?
Hercules: Train them.
Amphiaraus: Oh, shit.
[the next day Hercules begins training Cotys’ soldiers]
Hercules: In war, there is one thing more important than killing: surviving. My companions and I will show you how to stay alive, so that you may return home to your farms someday.
[he turns to Autolycus]
Hercules: Autolycus.
Autolycus: Shield wall! Form!
[the soldiers huddle in close together holding their shields in front of them, suddenly Tydeus charges at them and easily knocks then down]
Hercules: Corpses! Every last one of you! Because your shield wall was weak. Dead. Dead. Very dead.
[one of the soldier smiles at Hercules]
Hercules: Soldier, many lives depend on you. When attacked, lock your feet in the ground. You understand?
Soldier: Yes, sir.
Hercules: When a shield wall is strong, nothing can ever defeat it! You must learn to work together, react together. When you do, each individual will become a link in a chain that will be stronger than iron.
Autolycus: I hope the enemy has a sense of humor.
[to the soldiers]
Autolycus: Right! Today’s lesson, how not to stab yourselves!
[to Cotys; Hercules enters Cotys’ chamber as he is meeting with his scouts]
Phineas: It is imperative that we strike now, my lord, given this opportunity.
Lord Cotys: Ah! There you are! Hercules, my scouts have brought news. Rhesus is on the move.
Phineas: Archers who shoot lightning from their bows. And infantry of four thousand strong men, their minds bewitched. Demons march with them.
Hercules: So now we’re fighting demons.
Phineas: No stranger than the monsters I hear you faced, Hercules. My lord, Rhesus is preparing to attack Bessi lands. He will be on them within six days.
Lord Cotys: If the Bessi fall, we’re next. Unless we intercept him.
Hercules: Your men need weeks, if not months, of training before they’re ready.
Lord Cotys: The Bessi are a fierce but primitive tribe. If we do not protect them, then there will be a bloodbath.
Hercules: Face Rhesus with an untrained army and you risk losing far more than a single battle.
Phineas: My lord, Rhesus is coming. I vouch my life on it.
Lord Cotys: The longer Rhesus lives, the more villages will be burnt and the more innocents will be killed.
[turning to Sitacles]
Lord Cotys: Assemble your men, we march tomorrow.
[Sitacles and Phineas leave the room]
Lord Cotys: Hercules, the gods have offered us a gift. We must not squander it.
Hercules: Are your gods going to be fighting with us?
Lord Cotys: No. The son of Zeus will.
[later that night Sitacles watches Atalanta as she sharpens her sword]
Sitacles: I’ve seen how you watch over Hercules. Tell me, how did a woman, beautiful woman, fall in with these hardened men? Killers? Son of Zeus need a woman’s protection?
Atalanta: Oh, I don’t protect him. I protect you from him.
[Sitacles touches her face]
Sitacles: Hmm.
[Atalanta pushes his hand away, suddenly Sitacles points his knife under her throat but Atalanta quickly shoves the knife back under his neck, Hercules walks over to them]
Hercules: General, from now on, maybe you should favor the company of your men.
[Sitacles walks off]
Hercules: He pulled a knife?
Atalanta: It was only a small prick.
[Hercules smiles]
[Arius wanders around in the night when he hears a snarling noise, he looks in the darkness and suddenly Tydeus lunges at him, Arius runs off in fear screaming when he is caught by Hercules]
Hercules: Your mother told you to stay away. You should listen.
Arius: What’s wrong with him?
Hercules: Tydeus is my most loyal warrior. He was born in war. When I found him, he was more animal than human. He never speaks of what he saw, he never speaks at all. But he relives it every night. Come, let’s find your mother.
[Hercules leads Arius away]
Arius: When I grow up, I want to be a great hero, like you.
Hercules: Like me?
Arius: No hero is greater than Hercules. I know all your labors. Like the Cretan Bull, you wrestled it for seven days and seven nights.
Hercules: Uh…that’s a bit exaggerated.
Arius: And struck it forty-nine times with your club.
Hercules: Maybe not quite that many.
Arius: Until it fell dead and Crete was saved. It’s my favorite labor. Also Queen Hippolyta’s Belt, with its buxom Amazons and exciting bondage.
Hercules: Do you even know what that means?
Arius: No.
[Hercules laughs]
[Hercules takes Arius to Ergenia who is at the hospice tending to the refugee’s wounds]
Arius: Mother.
Ergenia: Arius. You’re supposed to be in bed.
Hercules: Why are you in the hospice?
Arius: My mother saves people’s lives.
Ergenia: Many of our physicians were killed during battle. So, out of necessity, I taught myself the art of healing.
Arius: If I could be like you, I would protect all of Thrace and no one would ever get hurt.
[Hercules smiles at him and then takes off the tooth of the Nemean Lion hanging around his neck and offers it to Arius]
Hercules: Here. I was going to give this to someone else, but I never got the chance. Only a hero may wear this. But to become a hero, you must grow strong.
[he puts the tooth around Arius’s neck]
Arius: Is this the Nemean Lion’s tooth?
Hercules: It is.
Arius: Thank you!
Ergenia: Thank you.
Hercules: Good night.
Ergenia: Good night, Hercules.
[Hercules turns and walks off]
[addressing the soldiers]
Amphiaraus: Have no fear. If you fall in the service of a just cause, your souls will go to Elysium, where they will dwell forever among the shades of heroes, like Theseus.
Autolycus: Odysseus!
Amphiaraus: And the great Achilles.
Autolycus: Or if you’re lucky, you’ll go to Hades, where all the fun people are.
[as Hercules walks among the soldiers he notices Iolaus among them dressed in their gear and holding up a shield, Hercules pulls him out of the line]
Hercules: Iolaus. Your place is beside Lord Cotys, where it’s safe.
Iolaus: I’ve been giving it a lot of thought, and I really feel I’m ready to fight.
Hercules: You’re a storyteller, not a warrior.
Iolaus: We share the same blood.
Hercules: And I will not see it shed. Chariot. Now.
[Iolaus scoffs at Hercules and goes over to the chariot]
[addressing the soldiers]
Hercules: Thracians, the shield wall is your home, your shelter. When you sleep, the wall is your blanket. When you fight, the wall is your armor. The shield wall will never break formation as long as there is breath in your body. Remember these words, and you will taste victory.
Lord Cotys: Move the army out!
Soldier: Move out!
[Hercules starts leading the soldiers to the Bessi Heartland, Central Thrace, then Hercules stops them as he notices something in the fog ahead of them]
Hercules: Halt!
Soldier #1: Halt!
Soldier #2: Halt!
Soldier #3: Halt!
[they walk closer and find dead bodies sprawled everywhere, including young children, and the heads of men mounted on spikes]
Lord Cotys: We are too late. Rhesus has already been here.
[to the soldiers]
Hercules: Leave the chariots. We’ll go down on foot.
[as they walk through the field of dead bodies]
Amphiaraus: The lion and crow cross a field of corpses. I hate being right all the time.
Hercules: Halt.
Soldier #1: Halt!
Soldier #2: Halt!
[Hercules goes over to check out one of the heads mounted on a spike]
Hercules: This head is rotting. A week old, at least. Yet some of these bodies are fresh.
[Sitacles bends down to check one of the fresh looking bodies and suddenly he attacks Sitacles, the body lying by Iolaus comes to and starts stabbing him in the foot]
Iolaus: Uncle!
[Sitacles kills the savage attacking him and Hercules rescues Iolaus, throws the savage over to Autolycus who kills him with his sword]
Autolycus: And we’ve walked into a trap.
[more of the savages come out from the hiding places, ready to attack]
Hercules: Shield a wall! Form a single square and protect Lord Cotys!
[he pushes Iolaus towards the soldiers]
Hercules: Iolaus, go!
Sitacles: Shield a wall!
[the soldiers line up with their shields up forming a wall]
Hercules: We’re here to help them. Why are they attacking?
Sitacles: This is Rhesus’ doing. They say his spells have the power to cloud minds, turn comrades against each other.
[to Cotys’ guards]
Sitacles: King’s guards, around Lord Cotys!
[the guards form a wall around Cotys]
Hercules: Amphiaraus, do we die in this battle?
Amphiaraus: My time’s not come yet. Not sure about yours.
Hercules: That’s comforting.
[the savages leader starts yelling and swinging his weapons around]
Amphiaraus: I think he wants a challenge.
[as the other savages join in with their leader and start yelling, Hercules breaks off the head of one of Atalanta’s arrows then puts on his Nemean Lion head on]
Iolaus: Hercules’ fists have been dipped in the blood of the Hydra! Lethal to anyone but him! Watch!
[the leader of the savages charges toward Hercules who punches the savage so hard that he flies backwards, with the arrowhead lodged in his skull]
Stephanos: Did you see that?
Nicolaus: The gods fight on our side!
[the soldiers cheer]
Iolaus: Hercules! Hercules! Hercules…
Soldiers: Hercules! Hercules! Hercules! Hercules! Hercules!
[to the soldiers]
Atalanta: Battle position!
[the soldiers hold out their spears, as the savages are about to attack Atalanta kneels and starts praying]
Atalanta: Lady Artemis, if I am to fall, let me be judged…
[the savages start attacking, Hercules, his crew and the soldiers fight back]
Sitacles: Stand fast! Hold your position!
[the savages start overpowering the soldiers]
Sitacles: Do not yield!
[to the soldiers as the fighting continues]
Hercules: No retreat! Stay in the wall!
Sitacles: Hold the line! Do not yield! Defend Lord Cotys!
[as the savages break through the soldier’s shields]
Sitacles: The wall has been breached! Seal up the shield wall! Defend Lord Cotys!
[as the savages start attacking the Cotys’ guards Cotys and Iolaus get their swords out ready to fight; to the guard next to him]
Sitacles: Whip!
[Sitacles starts using the whip on the savages]
Iolaus: Hercules!
Hercules: Bring the chariots!
[suddenly one of the savages stabs Hercules from behind, Hercules manages to grab him by the throat and throw him at a rock]
Sitacles: Defend your Lord!
[when he sees his friend being killed by of the savages]
Stephanos: No!
[Hercules and Amphiaraus each ride a horse-drawn chariot, Amphiaraus’s chariot extends blades which kills the savages it comes in contact with, Hercules starts riding around and killing every savage in sight with his sword]
Hercules: Advance!
[Hercules and Amphiaraus kill most of the savages and the rest run off; to the soldiers]
Sitacles: Make way!
[the soldiers allow Cotys and Iolaus to walk through them]
Lord Cotys: Where is Rhesus?
[we see Rhesus sitting on his horse watching them from afar]
[as the soldiers tend to their wounded Hercules goes over to Cotys who is sitting alone in deep thought]
Hercules: Lord Cotys.
Lord Cotys: We came here to save this village, but, no, they killed half my army. Rhesus. This is all his doing.
Hercules: And yours. I warned you, your men are brave, but untrained, unprepared for battle. Give me time to make warriors.
Lord Cotys: Very well.
[as Hercules turns to walk away Iolaus sees the wound the savage had given him]
Iolaus: Cover up, before your loyal army sees you bleed like a mortal.
[he covers Hercules’ wounds so that the others won’t see his wound]
[Sitacles looks at the bodies of the dead soldiers]
Sitacles: Phineas. You plead your life.
Phineas: And I gladly offer it.
[Phineas kneels down]
Phineas: I failed to see this trap. The fault is mine! Spare the other scouts.
[as Sitacles raises his sword to behead Phineas Autolycus interrupts him]
Autolycus: General Sitacles. I think we’ve lost enough men for the day, haven’t you? But just to avoid future misunderstandings, I’ll be taking charge of your scouts from now on. Is that clear?
[Autolycus pulls Phineas up to his feet and leads him away]
Phineas: Thank you.
Autolycus: Another mistake, I’ll end you myself.
[he pushes Phineas aside]
[Ergenia arrives with her maidens and tends to Hercules’ wounds in his tent]
Ergenia: I’m applying a salve of mint, chamomile and clay to seal the wound. This is extract of lithops for the pain, a powerful sedative.
[she pours the liquid sedative in a cup and offers it to Hercules]
Ergenia: It should rest you after consuming it. It may have certain side effects.
Hercules: I don’t need it.
Ergenia: Ah, forgive me, I forgot. No mortal can harm Hercules. And, uh…your lion’s hide is indestructible? Drink, son of Zeus.
[she offers the sedative to Hercules again and he takes it]
Ergenia: Arius’ father was the same, he distrusted medicines.
Hercules: Where is he now?
Ergenia: Taken by the gods before my son was born.
Hercules: I’m sorry. I never knew my father.
Ergenia: Well, he must have been very, very strong.
[they both laugh]
Hercules: Tell me about Arius.
Ergenia: Oh. He’s a good boy. And someday, he will make a fine king. Do you have any children?
[Hercules doesn’t reply and his smile fades]
Ergenia: Do they live in Athens?
Hercules: Thank you for your care.
[he hands the cup of sedative back to Ergenia who looks clearly hurt by Hercules’ lack of response]
Ergenia: The sedative will help you rest.
[as Ergenia leaves him in the tent, Hercules lies down and goes to sleep, he starts dreaming of his wife and sees the bodies of his dead children, we then see Hercules kneeling before Eurystheus with his hands in chains and covered in blood]
King Eurystheus: How could you do such a terrible thing? By law, I should execute you, but I believe a more fitting punishment would be to let you live. So you can walk the earth in torment, haunted by the knowledge that you alone are responsible for the death of your loved ones. The great Hercules, hands forever stained with innocent blood. Get out, you monster. Get out!
[suddenly Hercules wakes from his dream]
[after Hercules is woken from his nightmare he hears a noise and wanders out of his tent, he sees the dead bodies of the savages they’d killed earlier everywhere, but suddenly amongst them he notices the dead bodies of his wife and children, he then sees the three-headed dog of Hades, Cerberus, who starts eating the bodies]
Hercules: No!
[Hercules runs towards Cerberus and as it goes to attack Hercules he holds his spear up to kill Cerberus when it disappears, at the same time Tydeus comes up behind Hercules and puts his hand on his shoulder snapping Hercules out of his vision]
[the next morning Hercules is washing his face with water looking tired]
Amphiaraus: It happened again, didn’t it? Hmm? Another vision of Cerberus, the three-headed beast of Hades? The gods show you things they don’t share with others.
Hercules: There’s a word for that: madness.
Amphiaraus: When we were driven from Athens, I consulted the Oracle of Delphi on your behalf. Do you remember her prophecy?
Hercules: “Hercules must finish the labor that remains unfinished.”
Amphiaraus: And what is that, Hercules? Confront the beast that haunts you, only then will you find peace. I speak from experience. No matter how far you run, no matter how fast you go, the beast will follow. Man cannot escape his fate.
[Ergenia finds Hercules’ comrades sat around a fire]
Ergenia: Room for one more in your company?
Autolycus: It’d be a pleasure having female companionship for a change. Atalanta doesn’t quite count.
[to Atalanta]
Autolycus: No offense.
Atalanta: If only your manhood was as long as your tongue.
Autolycus: Both can satisfy in different ways.
[Autolycus smiles at Ergenia who turns to look at Iolaus]
Ergenia: You’re a famed storyteller, Iolaus. Grace me with a story.
Iolaus: Any particular subject, my lady?
Ergenia: Murder, of a woman and her three children. Is it true? Did Hercules slaughter his own family?
Atalanta: Who said so?
Ergenia: Oh, soldiers talk. They say if Hercules ever returns to Athens, king Eurystheus will have him executed.
Iolaus: Hercules had completed his labors and returned home. But Hera…
Ergenia: No myths. I want the truth.
Autolycus: No one knows the truth. Not for sure. We found Hercules alone. His wife, Megara and the children, dead. He remembers nothing.
Ergenia: Do you believe he is innocent?
Autolycus: We grew up together, both orphans, trying to survive in the streets of Athens. We found a home in the army, looked out for each other. Hercules’ strength set him apart. Kings of Athens started to send him on all the most dangerous missions.
Ergenia: The twelve labors.
Autolycus: And he took me with him. To fight by his side. And with each mission, our numbers grew. Scythia, the Amazon Kingdom where the royal family had been assassinated.
Atalanta: My family was gone, everyone was gone. Hercules helped me avenge their murder. He became my brother-in-arms.
Autolycus: Thebes, the city of corpses, where we found a single child, still alive.
[he looks at Tydeus]
Iolaus: Hercules took Tydeus in when everyone else saw nothing but a wild animal.
Autolycus: You know how rumor spreads, how a legend grows. Hercules’ deeds were so incredible, they could not possibly have been performed by a mere mortal. So, we played along. We encourage people to think Hercules was the son of Zeus. It’s good. Scares the enemy. Iolaus helps. He talks nice.
Ergenia: You’re very loyal friends. You’re avoiding my question.
Atalanta: Hercules is a warrior, and there is something that haunts warriors. It can cloud their minds. We call it “the blood rage.”
Ergenia: This rage afflicted Hercules.
Atalanta: He made me vow to keep the world away from him. To make sure that he would never harm innocents again.
Autolycus: And that, my lady, is the truth.
Amphiaraus: The truth…
[Amphiaraus suddenly rises his head from his sleeping position behind them]
Amphiaraus: Whatever the truth, the death of his loved ones haunts Hercules. Only the gods can help him, if he listens.
Iolaus: Come! Gather around, soldiers of Thrace, and behold, when Hercules gives an order, even the gods listen!
[the soldiers gather round Iolaus]
Iolaus: Zeus’ master ironsmith, using the forges of your own citadel, has crafted
these divine weapons that will make you invincible. As steel is hewn into shields, so, too, will you be hewn into warriors. You shall carry the shield of Hercules!
[Tydeus holds up a shield and one of the soldiers takes it]
Stephanos: It’s lighter.
Iolaus: Infused with the souls of Stymphalian birds from Hercules’ sixth labor!
Stephanos: Spirits of birds? How does that work, exactly?
Iolaus: Well, much as birds take flight, so, too, are these shields lighter than air. It’s in the fibers. Here.
[he holds up one of the helmets]
Iolaus: Try on the helmet of Hercules.
[another solider takes the helmet and puts it over his head]
Demetrius: It covers my whole face.
Iolaus: Forged after Hercules’ very own helmet, when he defeated the demon Geryon.
Sitacles: You sure it wasn’t your horseshit that frightened Geryon to death? Hmm?
Iolaus: General Sitacles, perhaps you would care to inspect the armor of Hercules?
[Iolaus gives one of the armor’s to Tydeus who gives it to Sitacles]
Sitacles: Leather armor? Hm? We will be skewered like pigs.
[suddenly Tydeus swings his axe at Sitacles, it hits the armor which protects Sitacles from getting wounded]
Iolaus: Linothorax. Hewn from the skin of the Erymanthean Boar. It’s indestructible.
Stephanos: Oh, wait. If it’s indestructible, how did Hercules cut it off the boar?
[Iolaus hesitates a moment to come up with a plausible answer]
Iolaus: He used an indestructible blade.
[Sitacles throws the armor down in anger and walks off]
[Hercules and his comrades commence training Cotys’ soldiers again; to the soldier he’s knocked down]
Hercules: Get up. Next!
[Autolycus does sword training with the soldiers]
Autolycus: Again!
[Atalanta does archery training with them]
Atalanta: Both eyes open.
[the soldier shoots his arrow and it misses his target]
Atalanta: Keep practicing.
[Hercules and Tydeus shows the soldier how to fight in combat]
Hercules: Firmer grip.
[back to archery training with Atalanta]
Atalanta: Elbow up.
[this time the same solider manages to shoot his arrow and hits the target]
Atalanta: Good.
[back to Autolycus’s training them with their shields]
Autolycus: Shield wall! Form!
[back to archery training with Atalanta]
Atalanta: Stand tall.
[just as the soldier is about to shoot his arrow she uses her bow and presses it against his crotch and he shoots and manages to hit the center of the target]
Atalanta: Excellent.
[as the soldiers are being trained, Iolaus trains behind the tent by himself with his knife when he notices Sitacles watching him]
Sitacles: Careful you don’t cut yourself, boy.
[to the soldiers as they train with their swords]
Autolycus: Again!
[pointing to the map]
Autolycus: Rhesus is here. Close enough to stick a blade between his ribs.
Hercules: What did you see?
Phineas: Centaurs. Half man, half horse. Hundreds of them.
Autolycus: He saw shadows in the night.
[to Cotys]
Phineas: My Lord, I will go ahead into the Rhesus camp. I will bring word of his plans.
[Phineas leaves the tent]
Hercules: If we let them get past Mount Asticus, Thrace will fall. You want to stop Rhesus? We’ll go through the forest and they’ll never see us coming.
Autolycus: It’ll slow down our chariots. A gamble.
Hercules: I have a plan.
[Hercules walks over to Amphiaraus]
Hercules: The scouts have returned. Rhesus has made his camp in Mount Asticus, seventy-two leagues away. Once these men are ready, we march. So, have you seen if we win or lose?
Amphiaraus: The gods have been annoyingly silent on that matter.
[Hercules laughs]
Amphiaraus: What they have told me is that I’m soon to discover there truly is a heaven or a hell.
Hercules: When will you die?
Amphiaraus: Within a week in a place that looks an awful lot like hell. As always, the gods are generous with hints, but cheap on specifics.
[Amphiaraus laughs to himself and sees Hercules looking serious]
Amphiaraus: Oh, cheer up, Hercules. I have lived, not always well, but long enough. I’m ready for what’s next.
[Hercules nods at his friend]
[to the soldiers]
Autolycus: Thracians, halt! Shield wall, form!
[the soldiers form a shield wall]
Autolycus: Battle positions!
[the soldiers get into position]
Autolycus: Tydeus?
[Tydeus charges at them and this time he is not able to penetrate the soldiers shield wall, Tydeus rises, looks over at Autolycus and smiles confirming the soldiers are ready]
[Hercules leads the soldiers to Mount Asticus towards the Thracian border]
Sitacles: There is no enemy camp.
Hercules: This is the right place.
[the stop and see what appear to be centaurs in the distance]
Iolaus: Centaurs! They’re real.
[more of them appear and head towards the Thracians]
Hercules: It seems that we’re expected.
[as Rhesus’s men ride closer we see that they turn out to be simply men riding horses; to Iolaus]
Hercules: Centaurs?
[a couple of Rhesus’s soldiers ride towards them, their leader takes his helmet off revealing that it’s Rhesus himself]
Lord Cotys: Rhesus!
Rhesus: You have come looking for a fight, and we are happy to oblige. Hercules, the son of Zeus. Your legend ends here.
Hercules: Look at me. Do I look afraid?
[Rhesus looks to the soldier next to him and he takes his helmet off to reveal Phineas]
Lord Cotys: Phineas! Traitor! Hades will have you!
Phineas: After it has you, my Lord.
Rhesus: It is over, Cotys. Mount Asticus on your front, the woods at your back. And my troops outman you three to one. Surrender now, and we shall consider being merciful.
Sitacles: Men die who speak to my Lord in such a manner.
Rhesus: You’ve made your choice.
[Rhesus and his soldiers ride off to join the rest of his men, Hercules, Cotys and Sitacles turn to join their soldiers; to Iolaus]
Hercules: Go!
[Iolaus joins Cotys and Sitacles while Hercules addresses the soldiers]
Hercules: In this moment, on this day, become the man you were born to be! You have it within yourselves to write your own legends! Let it be to death or victory!
[to his soldiers]
Rhesus: Charge!
[Rhesus’s soldiers start heading towards the Thracian soldiers]
Hercules: Shield wall! Flanks out!
[to Hercules as Rhesus and his soldiers are getting closer]
Amphiaraus: Maybe today.
[as Rhesus soldiers get close]
Hercules: Now!
[suddenly Atalanta and Tydeus appear riding in a chariot along with more chariots being ridden by the soldiers all shooting arrows at Rhesus’s soldiers]
Iolaus: Watch as the Amazon uses the arrows of Artemis…
Lord Cotys: Silence, boy!
[to the soldiers]
Hercules: Spears forward!
[Hercules uses his club to hit and throw Rhesus’s soldiers off their horses]
Sitacles: Archers, ready! Loose!
[as they let loose their arrow more of Rhesus’s men get killed, the Thracians, along with Hercules and his comrades take on Rhesus’s men, proving more powerful than before]
Hercules: Advance!
[the soldiers start advancing forward with their shield wall]
[to his men]
Rhesus: Set them aflame!
[they release their flaming arrows at the Thracians]
Hercules: Take cover!
[the soldiers raise their shields to cover themselves]
Sitacles: Defend Lord Cotys!
[as the flaming arrows start falling around them, Amphiaraus, thinking his time is coming, stands with his arms raised out welcoming death, but not a single arrow hits him]
Amphiaraus: Maybe not.
Hercules: Shield wall, attack!
[the Thracians start marching forwarding holding their shield wall in place]
Hercules: Push forward!
[Rhesus watches as his men start turning to get away from the Thracians as they continue to advance upon them]
Rhesus: To kill a snake, cut off its head.
[Rhesus charges toward Hercules on his horse]
Iolaus: Victory is yours, Lord Cotys!
Lord Cotys: It is not over yet!
[they watch as Rhesus charges towards Hercules, suddenly Hercules grabs the horse, flips it and Rhesus over who collapses to the ground]
Hercules: Fucking centaurs.
[Rhesus and his men are taken back to Thrace where they are booed and have garbage thrown at them]
Sitacles: Halt!
[Sitacles kicks Rhesus and he falls to the ground]
Sitacles: Get up. Get up.
[as Rhesus goes to gets up Sitacles knocks him down again with his foot, the Thracian crowd laughs]
Sitacles: Up.
Hercules: Enough!
[Hercules helps Rhesus stand]
Rhesus: You helped a tyrant enslave a nation.
Hercules: All I did was stop you from burning more villages.
Rhesus: I burned no villages.
Hercules: Then who did?
Rhesus: Ask yourself, if Cotys is beloved, why did he need to hire mercenaries to do his dirty work?
Sitacles: Keep moving, dog.
[Sitacles pushes Rhesus to keep walking]
Rhesus: You’ve been fighting on the wrong side.
[later that night a feast is held, with Rhesus being chained up as a prisoner, Ergenia feels pity for him, she goes to bring him water when Cotys stops her]
Lord Cotys: Where are you going?
Ergenia: I’m taking some water to the prisoner.
Cotys: Sit down.
[Ergenia reluctantly sits down; to Sitacles]
Lord Cotys: It’s time.
[Cotys dismisses the dancers and the music stops]
[Sitacles picks up a crown and addresses the crowd]
Sitacles: Thrace is finally united. One land, one king, one Thrace.
[he places the crown on Cotys’ head]
Crowd: One land! One king! One Thrace!
Rhesus: Thrace is not a man, a king, or a God! Thrace is her people!
[the guard behind him hits him in the back and the crowd laughs]
[as Hercules watches with disapproval at the way Rhesus is being treated]
Autolycus: Who cares what Rhesus claims? Our work is done. Let’s collect our fee and be gone.
[Hercules watches as Ergenia leaves and gives Rhesus a look of pity]
Autolycus: Don’t do anything foolish.
[Hercules rises to leave]
Atalanta: Where are you going?
[Hercules walks off and catches up with Ergenia]
Hercules: I saw pity in your eyes for Rhesus. Why?
[Ergenia tries to leave but Hercules won’t let her]
Hercules: Look at me. Cotys is responsible for this war, isn’t he?
[from the look on her face Hercules realizes the truth]
Hercules: You lie very well. Clearly, your father’s daughter.
Ergenia: I didn’t do it for my father, I did it for my son. If I disobeyed Cotys or resisted in any way, Arius would be executed. I did what any mother would, I protected my child. My husband was king, and Cotys poisoned him to take his place. Rhesus fought back, civil war broke out. Arius is the legitimate king. My father is old, he will not live forever, and once he is gone, my son will be a good king. And he will heal this land.
Hercules: That’s a dream.
Ergenia: And you can help. Please, when you leave Thrace, take Arius with you. Please keep him safe.
Hercules: Find another savior.
[just then they are interrupted by Sitacles]
Sitacles: Hercules. The king commands your presence.
[Hercules starts walking off]
Sitacles: My lady.
[Hercules walks over to Cotys to confront him]
Lord Cotys: Ah, champion of Thrace!
[Autolycus stops Hercules before he reaches Cotys’ table]
Autolycus: Something tells me we’re not gonna get paid.
Hercules: You could be right.
Autolycus: Oh, shit.
[Hercules goes over to Cotys]
Hercules: You wanted conquerors, not heroes. You betrayed me, Cotys.
Lord Cotys: Betrayed? A mercenary who has long since sold his conscience for gold can hardly presume to judge his employers. Let’s not quibble about details.
[Cotys indicates for Hercules to step closer]
Lord Cotys: We all know your legend, Hercules, but here is mine. When I was a general in the army of Thrace, I had dreams of ruling this kingdom. But thanks to you, my dreams have grown. I now crave an empire. My thousands will train more thousands, and they even more. The lessons of Hercules will spread. What you began here can never be stopped. And if you fear what such an army may do, then lead it.
Hercules: You want me to serve you?
Lord Cotys: Spare me the moral outrage! Child killer!
[Hercules moves to attack Cotys but Autolycus stops him]
Autolycus: Getting us all killed, bad idea.
Lord Cotys: Well, I must take this as a “no.” In that case, your services are no longer required. You will be paid in full. Bring them the gold.
[after they are paid Hercules and his comrades walk away from the palace when Hercules notices the people in the refugee camps watching them]
Autolycus: If we hurry, we can be spending our fortunes in Macedonia.
[Hercules drops his bag of gold on the ground in front of Autolycus]
Hercules: Take mine, too.
Autolycus: What do you think you’re doing? Let’s go.
Hercules: There will be no more innocent blood on my hands. I can’t leave without setting this right.
Autolycus: Oh, I see. And who’s gonna be paying us for this suicidal endeavor?
Hercules: Thrace needs our help.
Autolycus: To hell with Thrace, we have gold. You remember the Black Sea, that beach you spoke of is within reach. Leave now, be free.
Hercules: I would never be free.
Autolycus: In this fight, you’re alone.
[Autolycus turns, getting ready to leave]
Amphiaraus: Never saw that one coming.
Iolaus: How can you just walk away?
Atalanta: You can’t just leave.
Autolycus: Why not?
Hercules: It’s alright. You’ve sacrificed your lives for me, now you can finally be free. Whatever debt you feel you owe me is paid.
Atalanta: Debt? You think we follow you because we owe you? Look around, Hercules. We’re family. All we have is each other. We will fight for you, and if it’s our time, we will die for you. Because you would die for us.
[Amphiaraus drops his bag of gold on the ground]
Amphiaraus: Take that, too. I have no need of it.
Autolycus: This is madness.
Amphiaraus: You want madness? Tonight, a spear of flame will pierce my heart. Is that not the most insane death you’ve ever heard of?
[Autolycus picks up the bags of gold off the ground]
Autolycus: Crazy. The lot of you.
[he starts placing the bags of gold in his chariot]
Atalanta: Autolycus.
Hercules: Iolaus, go with Autolycus.
Iolaus: I think I’ll stay.
Hercules: Nephew.
Iolaus: Uncle, all I’ve ever done is tell stories of great deeds performed by others. It’s time I stopped telling their stories, started living my own.
Autolycus: Well, you may have all completely lost your minds, but not me. Not me.
Hercules: Autolycus?
[Autolycus turns to look at Hercules]
Hercules: Live like a king, my friend.
[without a word Autolycus rides off in his chariot]
Atalanta: What about Cotys?
Hercules: He paid us to save Thrace, let’s not disappoint him.
[as Hercules and his remaining comrades enter back inside the palace they are surrounded by guards]
Sitacles: Lay down your arms. Lay down your arms! Or your nephew dies first.
[reluctantly Hercules drops his weapon and his comrades do the same, Cotys then joins them]
Lord Cotys: I invite you to join me, you refuse. I order you to leave, you return.
[a guard brings over Ergenia and Arius]
Ergenia: Get your hands off me!
Sitacles: I overheard her conspiring with Hercules. They were planning to remove the young prince from your protection.
[Cotys goes over to Ergenia and pulls away Arius from her arms]
Ergenia: No. Let go of him! Don’t touch him!
[as Hercules goes to help Arius, Sitacles punches him in the stomach, the guards grab hold of the others as they go to help Arius]
Ergenia: Arius! No!
[Arius pulls away from Cotys and runs into Hercules’ arms, then Cotys grabs Arius by his hair and starts to pull him away from Hercules]
Ergenia: No! You’re hurting him! No!
Arius: Hercules, no! Help me! Stop!
[as Arius is being pulled away from Hercules he slips him the Nemean Lion’s tooth Hercules had given him]
Arius: Help! No!
Ergenia: Arius. No. Arius! No!
[Hercules quickly hides the Nemean Lion’s tooth before he gets knocked out by Sitacles]
[Hercules wakes to find himself chained in the dungeon, he starts hallucinating to see what appears to be Cerberus, he blinks and looks again to find three wolves in front of him]
King Eurystheus: Magnificent, aren’t they? An extraordinary species. Incredibly loyal. As long as they’re fed. Remember them?
Hercules: Eurystheus.
[Eurystheus walks over to Hercules]
King Eurystheus: They remember you. Confused, Hercules?
Lord Cotys: Kingdoms are won with armies, but empires are made by alliances.
[Hercules looks behind him to find his comrades, Ergenia and Rhesus locked up in cells]
Lord Cotys: King Eurystheus and I will now rule all of Greece.
[Hercules looks over at the three wolves]
Hercules: Cerberus only exists in my mind.
King Eurystheus: Speak a little louder, Hercules.
[suddenly Eurystheus slaps Hercules in the face]
King Eurystheus: I didn’t quite catch that.
Hercules: The wolves, they were there that night. The wolves were there. You drugged me.
[we see flashback to Hercules being drugged and then the three wolves attacking his wife and children]
Hercules: The wolves were there the night my family was murdered.
[Atalanta and Ergenia are visibly shocked]
King Eurystheus: My men told me how your children screamed as my wolves gnawed on their bones. As their fangs despoiled your daughter’s pure flesh.
[Hercules, clearly distraught, tries to attack Eurystheus but is stopped by his chains]
King Eurystheus: When the people called out your name louder than mine, you see, when they saw you as a God, how long before they saw you as their king?
Hercules: I wanted nothing!
King Eurystheus: Precisely! Your sin, Hercules, was that you had no ambition! I can deal with an ambitious man! He can be bought! But a man who wants nothing has no price! Killing you would have turned Athens against me. I had to ruin your name.
[Hercules pulls against his chains to attack Eurystheus, but Eurystheus just turns and starts walking away]
Hercules: My wife! My children!
Lord Cotys: Well, you have our permission to join them in death. All of you! Starting with my faithless daughter!
[the guard drags Ergenia out of her cell]
Ergenia: No! Get off me! No! No! No! Unhand me! No!
Hercules: She’s your own flesh and blood!
Lord Cotys: I will raise Arius to be my worthy successor!
Ergenia: You stay away from my boy! You monster, you bastard! You’re a monster! You’re a monster!
[the guard places Ergenia’s head on an execution block]
Hercules: No!
Ergenia: You’re not a man! You’re a demon!
[Amphiaraus watches from his cell as Hercules pulls on his chains]
Amphiaraus: Who are you? Are you a murderer?
[the guard continues to strap Ergenia onto the execution block]
Ergenia: Damn you! I curse you!
[to Hercules]
Amphiaraus: Are you a mercenary who turns his back on the innocent?
Ergenia: Stay away from my son!
[to Hercules]
Amphiaraus: Are you only the legend?
Ergenia: Arius!
Amphiaraus: Or are you the truth behind the legend?
[as the guard sharpens his axe to execute Ergenia]
Ergenia: No! Father, please, please, please.
[to Hercules]
Amphiaraus: We believe in you. We have faith in you. Have faith in yourself.
Ergenia: Save me!
[Hercules starts pulling on his chains]
Amphiaraus: Remember the man that you are.
Ergenia: Father, the gods will punish you! You cannot escape this time!
[to Hercules]
Amphiaraus: Remember the deeds you have performed, the labors you have accomplished!
[the guard places his axe against Ergenia’s neck]
Ergenia: No! No!
Atalanta: Stop it!
Iolaus: Leave her alone!
[as Hercules continues to pulls against his chains]
Amphiaraus: Now, tell me!
Ergenia: Please! No!
[to Hercules]
Amphiaraus: Who are you?
Hercules: I am Hercules!
[suddenly he breaks off the chains with the rocks still attached to the bottom]
Ergenia: Please!
[Hercules jumps and swings at the guard, stopping him from taking off Ergenia’s head]
[to his guards]
Lord Cotys: Unleash the wolves!
[Hercules frees Ergenia from her bonds and pushes her away]
Hercules: Get away!
[the wolves attack Hercules]
Hercules: Ahh!
[Cotys, Eurystheus and the guards step out of the dungeon and watch the wolves attack Hercules]
Lord Cotys: Three wolves should be more than enough for one lion.
[as Hercules fights with the wolves Ergenia goes to free the others from their cells]
Rhesus: Hurry! Hurry!
Atalanta: Hurry!
[as they watch the wolves attacking Hercules]
Atalanta: No!
[suddenly Hercules slams one against the wall, then breaks the jaw of another, and then finally kills the last one with the Nemean Lion’s tooth Arius had passed it back to him]
[Ergenia manages to break the others free their cells as Hercules breaks Amphiaraus out from his]
Amphiaraus: The gods have revealed your innocence. The final labor is complete.
Hercules: But I’m just getting started.
[they all walk over to the dungeon’s door where Hercules manages to easily lift it up]
Amphiaraus: Doesn’t take a vision to know what’s waiting for us up there.
[they start fighting with Cotys’ soldiers as both Cotys and Eurystheus run off, one soldier hurls a spear that passes through fire at Amphiaraus]
Amphiaraus: My time.
[he stands there, ready to accept his fate when suddenly Hercules grabs the spear and throws it back at the soldier]
Amphiaraus: Excuse me. That was my moment, my fate.
Hercules: You’re welcome.
[they all continue to fight off the soldiers]
Hercules: I’m going after Eurystheus!
[Hercules sets off the others kill off the remaining soldiers]
[Hercules finds Eurystheus who tries to get away unsuccessfully from Hercules]
King Eurystheus: Hercules, listen to me. None of this is my fault. You see, Cotys poisoned my mind, turned me against you. I like you.
[Hercules continues to advance on him]
King Eurystheus: No, stop. I command you to stop! I’m your king! You took an oath to obey me! You swore to Zeus!
[Hercules continues to close in on him]
King Eurystheus: Wait, wait, wait. You fight for gold. I have plenty of gold. Name your price. Find it in your heart to forgive.
[Eurystheus kneels in front of Hercules who then grabs him by the throat]
King Eurystheus: You want forgiveness?
[Eurystheus nods his head, Hercules throws Eurystheus and he lands in Cotys’ seat of throne, Hercules walks over to him, takes Eurystheus’ dagger and stabs him with it]
King Eurystheus: Ask my family for forgiveness.
[Eurystheus dies]
[as Hercules kills Eurystheus suddenly Sitacles uses his whip to grab around Hercules neck from behind and pulls him down to the ground, he grabs his club]
Sitacles: I’ve never killed a God before.
[as Sitacles is about to kill Hercules with his club suddenly Iolaus impales him from behind with a dagger and kills him]
Iolaus: I really think I’m ready to fight now.
[Hercules rises and shakes Iolaus’ hand]
Hercules: Well done, warrior.
[Hercules and Iolaus walk back to find the others as they continue to fight the soldiers]
Rhesus: Eurystheus?
Hercules: Dead.
Ergenia: We need to find Arius.
Hercules: Follow me.
[as Hercules and his comrades step outside the palace they are met Cotys standing before his soldiers]
Hercules: Soldiers of Thrace, you followed me in battle! Follow me now.
Lord Cotys: Don’t be fools! Hercules is mortal! Not a God! Anyone who sides with him will die! And I will show you. Bring him.
[two soldiers bring out Arius with his hands tied and a knife against his neck]
Ergenia: Arius!
Arius: Mother!
Ergenia: No! He’s your grandson!
Lord Cotys: You failed to save your children, Hercules. But you may yet save him.
Ergenia: Please, father! No!
Lord Cotys: Admit defeat! Bow to me! You have until the count of three! One! Two!
[suddenly the soldier holding a knife against Arius’s throat is killed by a knife, thrown by Autolycus]
Autolycus: Don’t just stand there! Kill someone!
[Hercules’ comrades start killing the soldiers]
Soldier: Protect Lord Cotys!
[Cotys is placed behind the soldiers shield wall]
Ergenia: Arius, run!
Arius: Mother!
[Arius starts running towards Ergenia]
Lord Cotys: Get the boy!
[as Arius runs to Ergenia Tydeus runs over and protects him from the soldiers arrows as he runs into Ergenia’s arms, Tydeus is then hit by an arrow but he manages to attack the soldier and kill them all as they repeatedly shoot arrows at him]
Hercules: Tydeus!
[Tydeus falls to the ground]
Lord Cotys: Attack!
[the rest of the soldiers start advancing on them]
Hercules: Hold them back!
[the crew spills oil and fire to block the soldiers as Hercules picks up Tydeus]
Lord Cotys: Spears!
[the soldiers start throwing their spears]
Lord Cotys: Go through the fire!
[the soldiers start running through the fire, to Iolaus as they try to spill over more fire oil and fire]
Amphiaraus: Here! Here! Help! Come on!
[Hercules places Tydeus’ body gently on the ground]
Autolycus: Easy, Tydeus.
[Amphiaraus and Iolaus manage to spill over the large oil and fire which stops the soldiers from advancing any further and setting some on fire; back with Hercules and Tydeus who is lying mortally wounded in Hercules’ arms]
Tydeus: Hercules.
[they both smile after which Tydeus dies]
[to the soldiers]
Lord Cotys: Lock shields! March!
[they start marching through the fire; to Tydeus after he’s died in his arms]
Hercules: Find peace, my brother.
[as they advance towards Hercules and his crew]
Lord Cotys: As you said, Hercules, there is no way to defeat a shield wall! There is no way out! Come out and face me!
[Hercules begins to push the giant statue of Hera from its base]
Lord Cotys: You’re no hero! You’re no God! You’re nothing but a mercenary! Your wife and children deserved to die!
[Hercules continues to push the statue and as the soldiers are about to reach them he finally manages to break the statue from its base]
[the soldier start running off as the statue starts to come crashing down]
Lord Cotys: What are you doing? Get back up there! Hercules must die!
[the statue starts tumbling down crushing some soldiers; to Ergenia and Arius as pushes them out of the way]
Rhesus: Come on!
Lord Cotys: Kill that filthy bastard!
[just then the statue’s head rolls and smashes into Cotys, throwing him over the edge of a cliff, Hercules then appears with his club in hand, the surviving soldiers lay down their weapons and bow before Hercules]
Soldiers: Hercules! Hercules! Hercules! Hercules! Hercules! Hercules! Hercules! Hercules…
[last lines; Hercules and his crew watch in awe as the soldiers continue to chant Hercules’ name]
Amphiaraus: [voice over] You want to know the truth about Hercules? There it is. To be honest, I prefer it to the legend. The world needs a hero they can believe in. Is he actually the son of Zeus? I don’t think it really matters. You don’t need to be a demi-god to be a hero. You just need to believe you’re a hero. It’s what worked for him. But then again, what the hell do I know? I’m supposed to be dead by now.
[Amphiaraus looks up at the sky and smiles]
Total Quotes: 65