La rivolta dei pretoriani

Sandals film with Richard Harrison and Giuliano Gemma

This 1964 Italian film is about Emperor Domitian (Piero Lulli), who rules Rome with cruelty in 96 AD. When he, together with his lover Artamne (who always has different colored wigs that match the respective outfit: Moira Orfei), summons several beautiful virgins (including Paola Pitti as Lucilla) to the palace in order to abuse and steal from them, he wakes up the resistance of Valerius Rufus (Richard Harrison), the leader of his Praetorian Guard, who is also engaged to Lucilla. Since he doesn't yet dare to openly resist, Valerius hides behind a wolf mask and is henceforth feared as the "red wolf". The resister receives support from the senator Nerva (Giuliano Gemma) and the short court jester Elpidion (Salvatore Furnari), who help the hero to get the rest of the Praetorians on their side.

The great thing about this otherwise rather average sandal film are the many fight scenes, which are particularly notable for the fact that there are two actors, Richard Harrison and Giuliano Gemma, who also have experience as stuntmen. Salvatore Furnari provides the comic moments as a short court jester, but also contributes significantly to the success of the uprising. Moira Orfei, who comes from a circus family, and the usual diabolical Piero Lulli are convincing in the evil roles. The fight scene at the end of the film in particular shows how much the Italian genre film has benefited from its actors, who often come from circus backgrounds. Knives are thrown and fire is breathed, and it is a joy.

This film is not a masterpiece of the genre, but its actors provide fun and entertaining entertainment. The mix is right, so this film is not only recommended for fans of the genre.