Sign of the Pagan

If Charlton Heston had been born Jewish, he'd have been Jeff Chandler, a lookalike who lost out on both The Ten Commandments AND Ben-Hur to Old Granite Jaw. Had Chandler nabbed those roles, he may have become a superstar himself. As is, he played the leads in studio program pictures, those B+ movies that disappeared with the end of the 'studio contract' system in the early sixties. By then, Chandler was already gone, having died while filming a WWII action flick, Merrill's Marauders, for Sam Fuller in the Phillipines. Anyway, his director for this costume mini-epic was Doug Sirk, an expert out of making magic from routine material. Chandler's the Roman centurion who must push back the invading armies of Atilla the Hun. Ludmilla Tcherina is one of a number of flashy looking women (Blonde Allison Hayes, later the sixty foot woman, is another). Lots of fairly big and semi-spectacular action sequences, with Jack Palance hamming it up even more than usual as Atilla. Nice production values, given a moody atmosphere by the always fascinating Sirk. This is one of those films that have been so completely forgotten that even Turner Movies doesn't revive it. Too bad - for this represents a fun aspect of the Old Hollywood in its final hours that ought to be reclaimed by contemporary viewers.

Made the same year as another sword and sandal movie dealing with the same subject ,"Attila Flagello Di Dio" (starring Anthony Quinn and Sophia Loren),it is an icily impersonal movie from Douglas Sirk.It's watchable ,but it could have been done by anyone at all.Sirk's métier was melodrama (he was the master of the genre in the fifties) and western ("Taza,son of Cochise" ) and epics are not obviously his forte.

Although Jack Palance was potentially as ideal as Anthony Quinn to portray the king of the Huns,the screenwriters made him a too polite ,too sentimental ,not bestial enough character (just compare with Anthony Quinn's performance,in a movie which was not better though).

Sirk did not seem to put of lot of effort into his work:"Christian" best describes it:the thunderbolt,the Roman talking about the Virgin and her son to the pagan daughter ,the pope 's intervention (there's a similar scene in the Italian movie),the final victory which was given by "their" God...

Overall production value is not very high on this film; I seem to recall the film's inability to pass off studio sets as exterior locations. My recollection is of a very "TV-like" production on the level of a "B" movie with a large then usual budget. However, Jack Palance is excellent as Attila the Hun. He really does come across as a barbarian, giving a very intense performance that compares well with his earlier role as Toriano in "Arrowhead" with Charlton Heston. Some great supporting roles, also, with Jeff Morrow (This Island Earth) playing the grizzled Roman General, and Alexander Scourby (famous for his narration/voiceover work) playing Chrysaphius the Eunuch, advisor to Theodosius II. Jeff Chandler's subdued performance is a good match for the stoic Christian Roman he plays. It's a good counterpoint to Palance's growling Attila. For years, I thought Palance was short of stature, based on his sword fighting here with Jeff Chandler, but it was just that Chandler was several inches taller than Palance who was himself 6' 2"...

Interesting trivia:

The uncredited narrator of the film is Rex Reason who co-starred with Jeff Morrow in "This Island Earth."

Very enjoyable Douglas Sirk one and only foray into the sword and sandal genre. Competently made, it has a lush look though obviously made on a small budget. With the stilted dialogue one might expect of such a saga, it somehow remains credible though at times teeters precariously on the borders of camp.

Jeff Chandler turns in a solid performance delivering his lines with diction suited to Shakespeare. Panther like Jack Palance sporting a Fu Manchu moustache is perfectly suited to playing Atilla the Hun which he does with much relish. Despite the numerous forgettable roles in equally numerous trivial movies, one senses that there was something there that never quite came to fruition. The closest he came to really great acting was "The Big Knife" made the following year.

Although Sirk wasn't originally allotted to this movie, it would seem he was willing to try his hand in a genre new to him. As with his only western "Taza Son of Cochise", he proved himself able to work in the genre as well as most, though added little extra of any note.

Expertly filmed by the great Russell Metty who Sirk wisely used on most of his movies.

This movie is not exactly great, but it is probably my personal favorite. And it's all because of Jack Palance's performance as Attila the Hun. I just love Jack Palance. He is one of Hollywoods first real tough guys. Before Stallone and Van Damme, there was Palance. It is sad that his early films have been sort of forgotten. They were classics. And "Sign of the Pagan" was one of his finests acting jobs. He played the part like he was born for it. All the other characters in the film were far less colorful. He stole the show! The story of the movie is definitely more Hollywood then history. And the real Attila the Hun was a dwarf. But that's okay, it still is most enjoyable. I've watched it maybe about 100 times. I don't think most people will want to do that. However, the princess is a mighty hot looking babe with a fine body. She could dance for me anytime. Attlia gets to kiss her too. Lucky Guy!