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aka Le Fatiche di Ercole.
Or should I say Hercules and the golden fleece, as it's really a retelling of the classic story from his point of view. With the odd lion and bull wrestling, and a meeting with the Amazonians, thrown in, before Jason defeats a dragon (looking like a clumsy T-rex) and obtains the fleece.
This is the film that made Steve Reeves a star and spawned the sword and sandal genre. It's an enjoyable take on the myth, though it has it's problems with pacing and falls a little flat at times, but it's generally entertaining and looks good courtesy of some fine cinematography by Mario Bava.
aka Ercole e la regina di Lidia. Hercules and the Queen of Lydia. Hercules and the Queen of Sheba
Hercules returns to Thebes on an important mission, but on drinking from an enchanted spring he loses his memory. He then falls under he spell of Queen Omphale of Lydia. Ulysses comes to his rescue, trying to help him regain his memory. Can he overcome his amnesia before the political tension in Thebes explodes into civil war?
Though the middle section where Hercules gets amnesia slows the pace of the film, cinematographer Mario Bava provides a good looking and light hearted action adventure, a fine way to waste 90 minutes if you like watching oiled up musclemen fighting off tigers, other oiled up musclemen and most importantly servent girls! If you have to watch only one peplum, then this would be a good one.
aka I Tre volti della paura. The Three Faces of Fear. The Three Faces of Terror. Les Trois visages de la peur.
A horror in three parts, introduced by and featuring Boris Karloff as the Wurdalak. Firstly, The Telephone where a woman recieves a series of phone calls from her ex-pimp who has escaped from prison. She enlists the help of her lesbian ex-lover Mary, who comes over, but this just serves to rack up the tension and claustrophobia as they await the coming of Frank. Second we have The Wurdalak: A 19th Century tale of a young man who stumbles on a family awaiting the return of their father, who they now believe to be a Wurdalak. A walking cadaver who feeds on the blood of the living, preferably close friends and family. The final story is The Drop Of Water. In Victorian London a woman is called to a house to dress the corpse of a medium, and whilst doing so steals a ring. She is subsequently plagued by a fly and visions of the corpse. The fantastic photography and lighting lends extra atmosphere to these three very claustrophobic and stylish stories. See this film, but preferably in the original Italian version. AIP for some reason decided to tamper and released it with the stories rearranged and eliminating some of the sub plot elements.
aka The Evil Eye, La Ragazza che sapeva troppo.Credited as the first giallo film, The Girl Who Knew Too Much, was a Hitchcock style thriller where an American tourist (John Saxon) gets caught up in the hunt for a killer whilst in Rome. It even has time to throw in some comedy along the way. Well worth the price of admission and a glimpse at the future of Italian horror courtesy of Mario Bava.
aka Black Sunday. House of Fright. Mask of the Demon. Revenge of the Vampire. The Demon's Mask. The Hour When Dracula Comes.
Or La maschera del demonio as it was known in Italy, was an early indication of Mario Bava's talent, being his directorial debut. It was considered gruesome at the time and was banned in the UK for eight years. But don't let the squemish British censors put you off - it's really a beautifully evocative piece of storytelling.
aka Le Fatiche di Ercole.
