Here’s a fun collection of Italian musclemen and peplum action films from Something Weird.
It begins with a super cut of title screens from a bunch of Hercules movies. Everything from The Sons of Hercules series to the Hercules films starring Reg Park to gladiator epics is included. Then we are treated to several condensed versions of Hercules and/or Hercules adjacent actioners.
Our first mini-movie is from the awesome Fire Monsters Against the Son of Hercules which features one of the goofiest looking monsters in togaploitation history and sexy slave girl dance numbers. From there we get a bevy of scenes from other Italian peplum movies. Terror of Rome Against the Son of Hercules boasts gladiator battles (including one with a guy in an ape suit), Conquerors of Atlantis contains improbable fights with robot men, and The Medusa Against the Son of Hercules offers more silly sea serpents and a title monster that looks like a cross between the aliens in The Green Slime and Sigmund the Sea Monster.
The compilation hits its stride in the middle section. It’s here where we get scenes from the hilarious looking Mole Men Against the Son of Hercules. We see Maciste fishing for a whale before tangling with a bunch of dudes in white cloaks who die if they stay out in the sun too long (he also fights a guy in a monkey suit). Finally, Maciste is put to the test by an evil queen who forces him to lift massive amounts of weights in what looks like a prehistoric home gym. She also runs him through what looks to be a human car wash at one point.
Then it’s on to a slew of Reg Park Hercules movies. First up is Hercules the Avenger where Herc travels to the underworld and fights zombies to save the woman he loves. I thought I was having déjà vu from Hercules in the Haunted World, but it turns out the Avenger recycles some of the same footage from that movie, so at least I know I’m not (that) crazy.
Of course, it makes sense that Haunted World would be the next film on the docket…. And it’s promptly skipped over since all the best stuff has already been shown. Then it’s on to Hercules and the Captive Women where Park battles a shape-shifting god that turns into (among other things) a lion, a vulture, and a rubbery looking dinosaur man.
The last half hour is reserved for sword and sandal trailers. The highlight is the ad for The Tartars, which features Orson Welles in yellowface!
Is Italian peplum my favorite genre? Not really. Would I have preferred this to be a straight-up trailer compilation rather than a mix of clips bundled with trailers? Sure. Would it have been cool to see a montage of all of Hercules’ feats of strength back-to-back? You bet. Having said that, there is still plenty to enjoy here. It’s breezy fun, and the condescended sword and sandal epics are short enough that they don’t wear out their welcome. Be warned though: That damn Sons of Hercules song is a real ear worm.
The complete trailer list is as follows: Atlas, Seven Slaves Against the World, The Tartars, Hercules Against the Moon Men, The Revenge of the Gladiators, Revenge of the Musketeers, Hercules of the Desert, Samson and the Seven Miracles of the World, The Witch’s Curse, Goliath and the Vampires, Goliath and the Dragon, Hercules in the Haunted World, Hercules Against the Moon Men (again), Giant of Metropolis, and Goliath and the Sins of Babylon.
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