Famous Movies Based on Ancient Myths and Legends

Since their beginning, films have told the stories of mythology. We’ve brought together some of our favorite mythological movies for your viewing pleasure.

Troy (2004) – Bringing the Legendary Trojan War to the Big Screen

The epic blockbuster movie Troy tells the story about the legendary Trojan war. While it is assumed by most to be based on a true story, these days historians wonder if the Trojan War actually ever took place. Although it is described in riveting detail in Homer’s Illiad, a work of literary genius which captures timeless truths about the savagery of war, there is still no real proof for Homer’s Trojan war.

At the center of the mythological movie is the character Helen of Troy, played by Diane Kruger. In Greek mythology, Helen was the daughter of Leda, tricked into copulating with the god Zeus disguised as a swan. Said to be the most beautiful woman in the world, once again the gods intervened by promising Helen to the Trojan prince Paris, in exchange for choosing Aphrodite as the most beautiful of the gods. The wife of Menelaus, Helen is taken by Paris back to Troy, kicking off the whole messy affair, the wrath of the Spartans and the supposed Trojan War.

The mythological movie covers all the bases and complex relationships of the original story of ancient Troy: Brad Pitt plays Achilles, Orlando Bloom the part of the Trojan Prince Paris, Eric Bana is the Trojan prince and warrior Hector, and Rose Cyrne is Briseis, the virgin priestess of Apollo, given as a war prize to Achilles only to be taken away by Agamemnon. Although a pretty loose adaptation of the Iliad, it does bring the 3,000-year-old story to life through stunning combat sequences, with a little Hollywood sparkle.

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Wonder Woman (2017) – Princess of the Amazons Fighting to Protect Humanity

Starring Gal Gadot, the 2017 Wonder Woman adaptation was created by DC Films. Put simply, the film follows Diana Prince, a Louvre art historian / Amazon princess, who sets out to stop World War I. Her quest begins after a pilot crashes on the island nation Themyscira, the shifting female utopia of the Amazonians which is protected from the outside world by a magical fog. The aim of the movie is to establish the background and motivations of the comic book character Wonder Woman.

Historians believe that the Amazons of Greek mythology were a closed society of women, of enormous physical strength. They were mentioned in ancient literature, such as the Iliad, and the Argonautica. Greek historian Herodotus wrote of the Amazons as a tribe of fierce warrior woman, now believed to have been the descendants of the nomadic ancient Scythians and Sarmatian people, according to archaeological discoveries if female warrior burials.

In the movie version, Diana is daughter of Hippolyta, the Queen of the Amazons, and niece to Antiope (played by the spectacular Robin Wright), who trained Diana as a warrior. When she finds out about the great war, Diana abandons the island to stop Ares, who has plotted to cause the downfall of humanity. After she kills him, she continues to fight for good as Wonder Woman.

Hellraiser (1987) – The Gateway to Hell

The first in a seemingly never-ending franchise of movies, the 1987 film revolves around a magical puzzle box, supposedly created by a French toymaker known as Philip Lemerchand and named The Lament Configuration. This outwardly innocuous puzzle box has the ability to open up a gateway to Barker’s version of Hell, the world of the Cenobites.

These cenobite demons were once humans, transformed in their quest for physical gratification. Once the box’s gateway is opened, the Cenobites harvest the souls of unwitting victims. In Hellraiser, the character Frank Cotton attempts to escape the Cenobite realm when the blood of his brother reopens gateway, and tries to regenerate his own body with the blood of other victims.

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Medieval legends talked about gateways to Hell, also known as hellmouths, while similar concepts have been recorded throughout Asia, as well as in Hawaiian and central American mythology. Based on Clive Barker’s 1986 novel, The Hellbound Heart, Hellraiser the movie is a modern-day take on ancient legends discussing these mythological concepts.

Coco (2017) – Sharing Aztec Mythology with a Younger Audience

Disney and Pixar joined forces in 2017 to make what The New York Times described as a “family-friendly cartoon about death.” Using color and magical graphics, it manages to share the culture and beliefs of the Mexican Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead). Through the story of Miguel, a young boy who dreams of being a famous musician, it takes viewers on a marvelous journey into the Land of the Dead

Coco even presents its young audience the with the concept of the Xoloitzcuintli, the hairless dogs who guided the souls of the dead through the underworld. It’s a marvelous feat indeed, that a film about death and skeletons, can make you feel quite so warm and, well, fuzzy. The importance of family, both living and dead, and ancestral history comes to the fore in this memorable PG production.

Leprechaun (1993 - 2003) and Hellboy II – The Golden Army (2008) – Representing the Mythical Elementals

Ever since antiquity, the mythical elementals have been associated with the elements of nature. From salamanders and undines, to elves and gnomes, in modern times elementals have been reduced to absurd and comical images like those of Santa's elves. However, in the past, they were highly feared beings, whose existence was not subject to human concepts of morality and conscience, and who considered humans as inferior. In fact, legends place elementals beneath gods, but above humans.

If you’re looking to explore the original legendary concepts of the elementals, it’s worth watching both the Leprechaun horror series and Guillermo del Torro's film Hellboy II – The Golden Army. In fact, Hellboy II is based on a very old myth which talks about the gnome king Mathias, who is said to sit on his throne, albeit asleep, in a giant subterranean room hidden somewhere deep inside the earth along with his army. Legend has it that, when the time comes, a chosen one will unsheathe the sleeping king's sword, thus waking him along with his army and therefore obtaining the chance to change the world.

Child's Play (1988) – Exploring Concepts of Voodoo

Throughout history, African diasporic voodoo has fascinated and terrified, inspired and scared. The 1988 movie Child's Play tells the story of a serial killer who transfers his soul into the body of puppet doll, by invoking Damballah, one of the primary voodoo loa spirits known as a spirit of the sky and a creator of life. Associated with snakes in Haiti and New Orleans, Damballah is also depicted in snake form.

Child’s Play, created by Don Mancini, inspired a franchise of sequels, some of which were box-office sensations. Since he first appeared on the big screen, Chucky, the possessed voodoo doll (which no sane parent would ever buy for their child!) has become a horror movie icon, known for comic and unforgettable one-liners such as “Hi, I’m Chucky. Wanna Play?” or “You just can’t keep a good guy down”.

Top image: Wonder Woman is just one of the mythological movies based on legendary myths told throughout ancient history. Source: Stanislav / Adobe Stock