Hercules is a 2014 American action-adventure fantasy film directed by Brett Ratner from a screenplay by Ryan J. Condal and Evan Spiliotopoulos.

It stars Dwayne Johnson as Hercules, a self-proclaimed demigod who is hired to lead the armies of Thrace into battle against a warlord.

Ian McShane, Rebecca Ferguson, Rufus Sewell, Joseph Fiennes, Peter Mullan, and John Hurt also star.

Hercules leads a band of mercenaries composed of king-turned-prophet Amphiaraus of Argos, thief Autolycus of Sparta, feral barbarian Tydeus of Thebes, Amazon archer Atalanta of Scythia, and storyteller Iolaus of Athens.

Hercules is said to be the demigod son of Zeus, who completed the legendary Twelve Labors after being betrayed by Hera, who drove him insane and caused him to murder his wife and children during a visit to King Eurystheus.

Her father King Cotys wants Hercules to train the armies of Thrace to defend the kingdom from bloodthirsty warlord/sorcerer Rhesus.

Hercules accepts after being offered his weight in gold and the band is welcomed to Thrace by Cotys and General Sitacles, leader of the Thracian army.

After the Bessi are defeated following a long and disastrous battle which results in at least half the Thracian forces being killed, Hercules and his allies properly train the army.

In a show of superhuman strength, Hercules breaks free of his chains, saving Ergenia and defeating the wolves single-handedly.

In the ensuing battle, Tydeus is mortally wounded while protecting Arius, but fights on, slaughtering numerous soldiers until he falls and dies in Hercules's arms.

Impressed by this feat, the surviving soldiers bow to Hercules, recognizing him as a demigod and the son of Zeus as lighting strikes in the background.

[21] Ray Subers of Box Office Mojo opined this was "not a particularly strong start" for Hercules given that "star Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson's The Scorpion King opened to $36 million" in 2002.

"[23] Subers stated, "The fact that Hercules got close to $30 million is a testament to The Rock's ability to mobilize his massive fanbase.

He concluded that "[Hercules's] strongest asset is surely Johnson, who continues to foster one of the most affable, guileless screen personas in movies today.

The effects are impressive, but there are none bigger than the star Dwayne Johnson's massive powerful physique which perfectly suited the character and the large-scale movie."

"[32] John DeFore of The Washington Post stated, "[The film] simply fails to exploit its assets: an amusing, revisionist take on the mythological strongman, and the charisma of Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson.

"[33] Critic James Berardinelli said, "A big-budget misfire of a sizeable order, a visually busy but emotionally dead endeavor that wearies the viewer with endless computer generated special effects while failing to provide a scintilla of human interest.