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Description
The Depths of the Inferno is an extension of a classic Greek myth. This feature film screenplay is the story of the hero Theseus of Athens, who goes to battle with the Minotaur on the island of Crete. The underpinning idea of this screenplay is that the legends are true: the Greek gods are real, and demigods exist on Earth because of the divine blood that runs through their veins. The feud between two royal families, those of Athenian and Cretan descent, continues into contemporary times, and the destiny of humankind lies in the balance. In The Depths of the Inferno, an ancient Hellenic prophecy foretells that Theseus is the only person who can end this blood feud, and only with the sword of his birthright. If he succeeds in his mission to kill the Minotaur, the destructive war planned by King Minos will be averted. A classic tale re-envisioned, The Depths of the Inferno, is based upon the work of mythologist Joseph Campbell. Campbell's Hero's Journey monomyth structures the story of the screenplay's protagonist, Theseus. Theseus is living in an orphanage when he experiences `separation' from his ordinary life; he is `initiated' into a special world full of mythical creatures set on killing him; and he `returns' heroically from conquering the Minotaur to bestow blessings and wisdom onto humankind. Paralleling his external voyage to vanquish the Minotaur, Theseus experiences an inner journey to find courage and to recover his true self after suffering amnesia. The themes and conventions that play out during The Depths of the Inferno are consistent with the action-adventure genre, similar to the film Indiana Jones and Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981). The split of the narrative into `special' and `ordinary' worlds is reminiscent of films such as Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (2001) that exemplify the fantasy genre. Because of the deep-rooted symbolism imbedded in the Greek myth, however, the most comparable film genre is mythopoeia, with the more recent Clash of the Titans (2010) film bearing the most similarity.
