Theme: Greek Mythology

Greek Myth refers to a series of stories that emerged from Greece around 800-100 BCE. These tell variously the stories of the gods that live on Mount Olympus, the demigods and the adventures of human heroes. The most famous of these works was Homer’s The Iliad, telling the story of the Trojan War, and its follow-up The Odyssey. There are numerous other works by different (usually unknown) authors that have been grouped together in the same tradition.

There have been a number of Epic Fantasy films adapted from assorted Greek Myths, particularly popular being the stories of Hercules, Jason and the Argonauts, Odysseus, Theseus, and Orpheus and Eurydice. Hercules became the hero of an industry of Italian films during the 1960s (the Peplum or Sword and Sandal film) where he was played by assorted body-builders undergoing adventures.

Also common has been the appearance of assorted monsters and creatures from Greek myth such as the Cyclops, the gorgon, the roc, centaurs, Cerberus, sirens and muses, as well as the idea of the Labyrinth. These appear in terms of Monstrous Encounters in fantasy or assorted horror films where they are frequently removed from the original context in which appear.

Other films have conducted retellings of the stories set in the present. Greek gods have a habit of being found alive in the present-day. The Greek underworld Hades also makes occasional appearances.