Minotaur (2006)

Long ago in the Iron Age, a shadow loomed over a lonely village. For generations, the village youths were stolen from their families and delivered as sacrifice to a mythical beast - the ... See full summary »

Director:

Jonathan English

Writers:

Nick Green, Stephen McDool

Stars:

Tom Hardy, Michelle Van Der Water, Tony Todd

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Tom Hardy	...	Theo
Michelle Van Der Water	...	Raphaella
Tony Todd	...	Deucalion
Lex Shrapnel	...	Tyro
Jonathan Readwin	...	Danu
Rutger Hauer	...	Cyrnan
Maimie McCoy	...	Morna
Lucy Brown	...	Didi
James Bradshaw	...	Ziko
Fiona Maclaine	...	Vena
Claire Murphy	...	Nan
Ingrid Pitt	...	The Leper
Ciaran Murtagh	...	Turag
Angela Furtado	...	Raphaella's Handmaiden
Donata Janietz	...	Ffion

Storyline

Long ago in the Iron Age, a shadow loomed over a lonely village. For generations, the village youths were stolen from their families and delivered as sacrifice to a mythical beast - the Minotaur that dwells beneath a great palace. Theo (Tom Hardy), haunted by the loss of his love in an earlier sacrifice is convinced that the beast isn't real, and that his girl still lives as a slave within the palace. His father, Cyrnan (Rutger Hauer), the village leader, tries to reason with Theo not to go, but Theo is driven by blind rage. He devises a plan and is taken with the other youths who are dragged screaming from their families.

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Plot Keywords:

psychotronic film | minotaur | queen | bull | empire | 

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Taglines:

In His Maze, All Paths Lead To The Grave.

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Fantasy | Horror | Sci-Fi | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for violence and some nudity

Did You Know?

Trivia

This movie is an adaptation of the ancient Greek story of Theseus and the Minotaur. In the story, the Minotaur was born after King Minos' wife had sex with a bull and the beast was kept in a labyrinth built by inventor Daedalus. When King Minos' son was killed in Athens, Minos ordered that the Athenians sacrifice their children to the Minotaur every nine years as recompense; this practice continued until Theseus - the Prince of Athens and son of sea god Poseidon - travelled to Crete and killed it.

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Goofs

In many scenes, especially the scene where Tyro and Didi climb up the wall, there is clearly a steel-wire lifting the actors up, when they are supposed to be climbing by themselves.

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Quotes

Deucalion: [to his sister, co-'throne' occupant] If this is your pleasure, then so be it; I will corrupt you with every soldier and slave in the palace; I will cast you to the lepers and watch them crawl inside of you. Then when you WILL beg for me - then will come the bull!
[=Minotaur: pregnant pause]
Deucalion: But first, your young shepherd; heh, heh, heh!

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Connections

Remake of The Minotaur, the Wild Beast of Crete (1960)

User Reviews

Don't be fooled, it's JAPMTVM...

Just Another Poorly Made TV Movie.

A combination of poor script, minimal SFX, and wild over-acting by Todd and company make this a pretty sad take on the well-known myth. Corn syrup blood spews and there's a lot of noise. That's about it.

I did derive a bit of pleasure from trying to sort out all the different influences on Todd's portrayal of the "psycho" potentate. It's Frank Booth ("Blue Velvet") meets Thulsa Doom ("Conan the Barbarian"), with a bit of Jabba the Hutt thrown in for good measure. Until you've seen someone taking a "hit" off a cattle skull, you haven't seen good cinema.

There's some vague hope that things will pick up, until the victims are tossed into the labyrinth. From that point forward, it's a complete waste of time...typical monster-in-a-cave fare. You could probably make a drinking game out of it, though...everyone slams a shot whenever a foam rubber rock moves.

Save your time and rent "Jason and the Golden Fleece" or some other film that is at least a little entertaining.

Details

Official Sites:

Sci Fi Channel

Country:

UK Luxembourg Germany France Spain Italy

Language:

English

Release Date:

11 May 2006 (Russia)

Also Known As:

Minotaur

Filming Locations:

Carousel Picture Company, Luxembourg, Luxembourg

Box Office

Budget:

$7,000,000 (estimated)

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$892,786

Company Credits

Production Co:

Centurion, First Look International, Lions Gate Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

93 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1