A simplification of the first part of the 13th century epic poem «Nibelungenlied,» concerning the story of Siegfried (Sigfrido, here) fighting the dragon, gaining access to King Gunther's court and winning his confidence, wooing his sister, princess Kriemhild (Crimilde), fooling Queen Brünhild/Brunilde, and ignoring courtier-warrior Hagen's palace intrigues, which lead to Sigfrido's death.
For good measure, the scriptwriters added part of Crimilde's revenge, solved in the last minutes, in a fast sequence. Unfortunately for me the copy of the film (at least the one I can appreciate best, with Spanish translations) is not of the best quality: the hues and colors change constantly to the point that I felt that it was a visual strategy. It is a pity because it was conceived as a lavish adventure film for youngsters, with elements of Medieval fantasy throughout the story (in spite of being a tragic story).
For its time and the resources the personnel had, it is attractive: while it is true that Carlo Rambaldi's dragon is far from his later fine achievements, but to be fair it is not too different from the dragons, sea serpents and other monsters we saw in other productions of the 1950s and 1960s. The work by production designer Beni Montresor and cinematographer Carlo Nebiolo is above average, composer Franco Langella makes good use of themes by Richard Wagner, and the whole cast is more than serviceable, especially German actor Sebastian Fischer, projecting much enthusiasm as the young Sigfrido.
