Customer Reviews

Hercules in New York [VHS]

5 star:		(34)
4 star:		(14)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(9)

 

 

Who would have thought that before all those great action movies and "I'll be back"'s, Arnold S. had already appeared in a cult classic?? I recently watched this movie and have enjoyed it very much, never knowing how cheesy and campy a movie can be?

First, THE reason this movie is brought back on DVD is not for its qualities. It's just to see Arnie in his first movie where he pulls off a really great BAD performance. Both versions of the movie are great (on TV, i saw the dubbed version which was funny to see a great Austrian guy with the voice of an English professor with no knowledge of putting intonation in his voice), but i prefer the one with Arnie's almost ridiculous accent. The story itself is also bad-to-the-bone : Hercules is bored on Olympus and wants to go on a vacation in New York, but Zeus doesn't like this as it would confuse the humans. Hercules, however, pursues and gets dropped in the sea where a boat picks him up and brings him to New York. When he arrives, his vacation begins...

The whole movie is worthwhile just because of the cheesy acting of our Arnie. With the role of Hercules played by an unknown actor, the movie would have gone into obscurity from the moment it hit the theaters, but Arnie stays the main reason to watch this. Highlight is the fight against a grizzly bear who fights as a human and also lays for death on the ground as a human (his arms spread!!!)

Searchig a serious film about Greek mythology?? Keep away. Looking for a "so bad it becomes good" movie, you are in heaven with this little cult gem.

Low budget is the key phrase in describing this film debut of the pre-'Pumping Iron" Mighty Ripped One, Arnold. But don't let that keep you from enjoying the film, flaws and all, for it really is a lark and a half. The movie is also known as "Hercules Goes Bananas", and that ought to tell you something.

The music is heavily zithered, a la "The Third Man", but seems oddly appropriate to the film. It actually grows on you, believe it or not. We get an interesting view of the gods hanging out on Mount Olympus, and we meet a dashing Pluto (AKA Death). Tony 'Mr.World' Carroll cameos in a weightlifting contest with Herc, and "Dark Shadows" alum Tracy Loomis plays Herc's love interest, Helen. Soap opera regular Ernest Graves steals all of his scenes as Zeus.

On the DVD, you can choose between the Real Arnold voice track, and the dubbed voice track. I sampled the dubbed version, and then quickly opted for the Real Arnold, with his classic Arnold accent that renders him almost unintelligible ("Eye yam Her-cue-leesse!"). The dubbing is classic in it's own way, however, with the ridiculously deep, white, all-American, manly voice so common to dubbed pictures of Herc, et al. But, with an Arnold movie, we need the sound of Arnold's own vocal undulations as he navigates the rocky waters of the English language.

Arnold Stang actually gets top billing over Arnold Strong (Schwarzenegger). Stang was a memorable, but largely forgotten comedian from the golden age of television. Perhaps most memorable for the voices of "Top Cat" (Hanna-Barbera)and "Herman" (Famous Studios), Stang also appeared in "It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World". Here, Stang plays the goofy schlub "Pretzie" (so named because he sells pretzels), a perpetually bewildered person who befriends the bewildered Herc.

Herc has been cast out of Olympus for talking smack to his dad, Zeus. Herc wants to meet new people, and see the mortal world, and when Zeus gets tired of hearing about it, he hurls a lightning bolt (which looks suspiciously like a bent piece of re-bar that was spray painted silver), and POOF! Herc is falling to Earth. Before you know it, he's teaching athletes how to throw the discus and javelins, becoming outraged when he sees a movie poster for a Herc movie, beating up escaped grizzly bears, etc. He also starts making time with the daughter of a college professor (with an interest in mythology, of course), and takes up wrestling.

Half the fun is Arnold's acting. The other half is the valiant attempt of the filmmakers in making lemons out of lemonade on their skimpy budget. Stang is a bit over the top at times, but really helps to keep things moving in a typical kid's movie kind of way.

Probably the biggest flaw with the movie is that the relationship between Herc and Helen is never resolved. In fact, Helen inexplicably vanishes before the movie is all wrapped up. The movie does end delightfully, with the mighty Zeus casting an eye towards his old stomping grounds, but the loose ends are kind of annoying.

Besides the dual voice track, the DVD also offers some TV spots from the movie's 1980 re-release (post-"Conan"), in which Arnold is given heavy play.

The DVD is a must-have for Arnold fans, or fans of low-budget dreck for the 70's. Suitable as a guilty pleasure, or as a treat for the kid in all of us.

Folks, this is a real gem! They don't make these kinds of movies any more, and it's a damn shame too.

I STRONGLY urge you to watch both versions of this movie. In the first, Arnold's voice is not dubbed, and his accent is extremely thick. His English was not exactly up to snuff so he delivers most of his lines with absolute hilarity. My favourites are "You have striked Hercules!" and "Why he always got to be necking me?" If you're not laughing within 5 minutes of this movie something is definitely wrong.

The second version is where Arnold's voice is dubbed. Many say this version is even funnier since Arnold's voice is dubbed by what sounds like a 70 year old English professor. The lines are delivered in such a tepid and uninspired fashion that one can't help but to laugh uncontrollably!

The storyline is ridiculous, so don't even bother with it. This movie is BAD and it knows it, but it's so hilarious that you won't even care by the end. Watch it with your friends and spread the word!

Let's get one thing straight. This is an ultra low budget movie with all of the trappings that come from that. It's Arnold Schwarzenegger's first movie appearance and it shows. So why does it get such a nice rating from me? Because the movie is so much fun to watch! I'll be the first to admit this movie isn't for everyone, but for those of you who enjoy a little camp now and then will truly get a kick out of Hercules in New York.

Lets start with the dubbing. Oh, the wonderful dubbing. Arnold has been dubbed out of the movie and replaced by a voice that reminds me of a radio or TV personality. The new voice is completely out of character with the way Schwarzenegger looks. It's great camp value. I had the pleasure of checking out the included undubbed version with true Arnold dialog. Trust me, it's good they dubbed him (I am 'hur-koo-leeeeze'). Either dub you listen to will be very funny by the way. The "theatrical" version for it's too-perfect voice casting and the unedited version for Arnold stumbling over the lines with little or no actual acting.

Suprisingly enough some of the actual acting is quite good. I particularly liked Michael Lipton as Pluto, Arnold Stang as 'Pretzie' and Ernest Graves as Zeus. Schwarzenegger, bless his heart, just isn't up to par on this movie. It's perfectly understandable as he just made the move from his body building career so he hasn't had the experience yet. Besides that's fun to watch too.

There's plenty more camp value where that came from. Sound effects can be out of place like when you hear car tires burning rubber while driving in the grass. Props are funny with things like Zeus' thunderbolts made from industrial galvanized steel rods. And wait until you see the fight scene with the escaped bear. Sure they keep mixing up the names of greek gods with their roman counterparts. Sure stuff like serious cinematography and lighting were thrown out the window, but as unforgivable those aspects are for many mythology and movie buffs I just can't help finish this movie with a smile on my face.

One final thing to mention is the music. The opening credit score is extremely cheesy, but when you actually get to the movie you are treated with some authentic greek music. I mean the kind of music they play at traditional parties with mandolins and lutes. It's really fun to listen while you see Arnold romp around tossing people or things all over the place. Hats off to John Balamos for the music.

In case you haven't noticed I love Hercules in New York because it was done bad, but with LOTS of style. If you're not into campy movies then you probably won't enjoy it. If you're a Schwarzenegger fan with a sense of humor go rent it. For everybody else it really depends on how forgiving you will be for all of the low-budget fallacies. I say check it out just for the experience alone. Just make sure you get the version with both the dubbed and the original Arnold dialog and get the best bang for your buck.

Hercules in New York (a.k.a. Hercules Goes Bannanas) was Arnold's first movie that he ever made. It originally came out in 1970 in which it tanked something fierce.

Part of this was justified as the movie itself is terrible in addition to the fact that since the studio felt like that no one would understand Arnold due to his thick Austrian accent, they got some Steve McQueen soundalike to dub Arnold's lines throughout the film.

The best part of this DVD is that it features both the original audio track featuring Arnold's actual voice in addition to the dubbed track.

A huge part of how much you'll enjoy this so-bad-it's-great movie depends on how big of an Arnold fan you are. I grew up with Arnold's films in the 80's and I remember how almost every kid wanted to be Arnold back in the day.

While it does get kind of tough to discern what he's actually saying, that's a huge part of the film's charm. While the whole plot (Hercules gets bored and decides against Zeus' wishes to go on a trip to New York to "fool around") is stupid, Arnold's charm was already on display in spades in this film which makes it work in a weird way.

Almost about every line he utters in this movie is memorable. Mainly due to his thick accent and how the lines end up being delivered. He was also right in the thick of his body building career as well during the making of this film so as a result, other than Pumping Iron and Conan, you'll not likely see another Arnold movie in which he was more built.

The rest of the cast is uniformly terrible, in addition to Arnold Stang as Pretzy. Stang had a huge career doing voices for Hanna Barbara cartoons but he really needed to just stay behind the scenes as his wretched performance in this movie will prove.

The movie has a super cheap look to it and literally looks like the budget was maybe 100 dollars.

Anybody who loves cheesy B-movies or Arnold films in general will really get a kick out of this awful movie as it is still a whole lot of fun.

Others need not apply and should stay far, far away from this one.

******************BTW, my 5 star rating is purely on a cheese scale.***********

This is a riot! That movie is not made with exquisite quality but the story full of fun and in its simplicity is hilarious and good. It does not pretend to be brilliant or a block buster as it never did. It is only a comedy/spoof like movie with a dash of naivity in its making. take it for what it is: a movie that embodies muscle and the human form with a touch of a laugh nothing more. A must to see for not only Arnold's fan but for anyboy liking greek mythology and the human physique at its best and just remember it with a smile.

Cmon! Just look at the DVD cover! If that alone doesnt make you laugh then nothing will!

This film is a must for those who love bodybuilders. It is actually a comedy, but every 5 minutes or so you see Arnold take off a piece of clothing and flex. This was his first film so his bod is more beautiful than in any of his other films. You will never see a more beautiful male body in any film.

This was a very funny movie. It shows how green Aaahhhnolld was in his early acting career. I bought it to complete my Schwarzenegger collection of movies.

It is very difficult ot capture the myriad of nuanced hilarity that this film encompasses. But, to be brief, I can safely say that this may be one of the greatest films of all time, simply because it's so bad. And I do not mean normal bad; we're talking over-the-top, monumental and for-all-time horrendous bad.
Reading a review just doesn't do it justice, you have to see it to beleive. It's as if the writers didn't actually bother thinking the script through, and then the director was asleep half the time. Amazing.
In any case, if you need a really good laugh, and appreciate poorly done films, this is the perfect movie. I wholeheartedly recomended it.