Hercules and the Amazon Women (Film Review)

1994 Renaissance Pictures/Universal Television
Directed by: Bill Norton; Written by: Jule Selbo, Andrew Dettmann, and Daniel Truly
Starring: Kevin Sorbo, Anthony Quinn, Michael Hurst, Roma Downey and Lucy Lawless
MPAA Rating: NR; Running Time: 91 Minutes
The Nicsperiment Score: 5/10

The legendary warrior, Hercules, visits his best friend, Iolaus, only to find that the latter is up and getting married. Before the big day, Iolaus wants to go on one last adventure with Hercules, and just Iolaus' luck, a weary man has come to their village begging for help. The man says that beasts have beset his own village, and only Hercules can help. Sure enough, Herc and Iolaus venture out, but before our hero knows it, Iolaus has been killed, he's been captured, and the village he set out to save looks soon to be slaughtered. And the beasts aren't monsters...they're women (so I guess it's subjective?...I KID!). Can Hercules solve the mystery of these Amazon Women and stop the slaughter of the all-men village he set out to save?
1994's Hercules and the Amazon women acts as both introductory TV movie and pilot for the 1990's syndicated series, Hercules: The Legendary Journeys. It features some clear pilot struggles, as the fun yet goofy tone of the series isn't ironed out yet. The special effects are pedestrian, barely above community theater level, including one of the poorest looking hydras in any mainstream production. The fight choreography isn't much better. The plot also flirts with originality and silliness. The actual nature of the Amazon Women village features a nice twist, thought though the moralizing afterward feels a bit like an after school special. With all that said, Hercules and the Amazon Women is still pretty fun.
Kevin Sorbo brings an affable nature to the titular hero that gives the impression he already has a firm grasp on this character. The writers and Sorbo already know that Hercules' greatest feature isn't his big muscles, but his even bigger heart, which resolves the conflict at the heart of this TV movie. Sorbo already has easy chemistry with sidekick, Michael Hurst, as Iolaus, which either shows the benefits of heavy screen-testing or serendipitous happenstance. Also, a goofy, irresistible good-naturedness permeates this production, even in the campy performances of Roma Downey and (a pre-Xena) Lucy Lawless as the leader and chief warrior of the Amazon women, respectively. So while there are better ways of spending time than watching  Hercules and the Amazon Women, there are certainly many, many much worse labors than this one.