Hercules Unchained

The sequel to HERCULES (1958) is even less enthusing but remains, nonetheless, an adequate example of the peplum genre.

Sylva Koscina's role of Iole, Hercules' love interest, is diminished here since the most prominent female figure on display emerges to be the femme fatale-ish Queen of Lidia Omphale (the film's original title, incidentally, translates to HERCULES AND THE QUEEN OF LIDIA) – the latter is played by another red-headed beauty Sylvia Lopez, who died of leukemia not long after the film's release! Needless to say, the muscle-bound hero (Steve Reeves) falls under her spell after having conveniently drunk from a spring that renders him an amnesiac (though not before he's been engaged in an irrelevant wrestling bout with ex-heavyweight champion Primo Carnera as an irascible giant!); his friend Ulysses, however, is on hand to watch over him (ostensibly in the function of Hercules' deaf-mute slave). Meanwhile, back home in Thebes, two brothers fight it out over the throne – with Iole at the mercy of a cackling maniac (an over-the-top Sergio Fantoni)...

By the way, both of these Hercules films featured atmospheric cinematography by Mario Bava - who would himself direct one of the better adventures revolving around this mythical figure, HERCULES IN THE HAUNTED WORLD (1961) starring Reg Park. As for Francisci, he worked most often in this genre: from ATTILA (1954; co-starring Anthony Quinn and Sophia Loren) – which is overdue for a reappraisal and has, incidentally, just been announced as an upcoming DVD release from Lionsgate! – to the low-brow HERCULES, SAMSON AND ULYSSES (1963; with Kirk Morris now as Hercules) and SINBAD AND THE CALIPH OF BAGHDAD (1973; his last film and which I recall watching eons ago on Italian TV).

This is the second Hercules flick featuring Steve Reeves as the man of muscle. The legendary Reeves melds with the god/man Hercules and turns what could have been a cheesefest into an action/adventure spectacle as tightly woven as Hercules' toga. Competing with Reeves for biggest chest is his umptuous co-star Sylvia Lopez as the evil Queen Omphale who makes living statues out of her conquests. Hercules' pals include Gabriele Antonini as Ulysses who gives the man of muscle a mighty rubdown and competes for Herc's attentions with his sexy wife Iole, played with sweet sassiness by beautiful Sylvia Koscina. With Hercules shirtless (and occasionally oiled) for most of the flick and his mini-toga riding up his thick manly thighs there's something for everybody to enjoy. Of special note is the dance of Queen Omphale's slave girls and Herc's wrestling match with real life Italian pro-wrestler, Primo Carnera. Keep an eye out for plentiful low camera angles.

I grew up watching this stuff as a Saturday afternoon matinee 30 years ago & now, it's still as much fun to watch.

Hercules, now married to Ioli, is returning to Thebes to help sort out a dispute over who has the rights to the throne of Thebes. Along the way, Hercules loses his memory & is seduced by the evil Amphale who goes through husbands like Elizabeth Taylor, however, Amphale is something of a black widow & uses a few Egyptians to preserve her ex-husbands in the family crypt.

However, one look at the rugged carved from granite Steve Reeves & all her black widow tendencies fly out the window, but she still wants him for good.

Of course it all ends up in a good ruckus with sword fights, chariot duels, Hercules throwing tables & coffins at rushing troops, 2 insane brothers with a hatred for each other (& their father) & inevitably the faithful sidekick who chimes in with a few vital day-saving moments.

Clint Eastwood may have been the king of the Spaghetti Western, but Steve Reeves was the king of the Spaghetti Swords & Sandals. So if that's your cup of tea, I recommend this movie as an excellent addition to your collection.

Laughing heartily in the face of danger, Steve Reeves leads the way in Hercules: Unchained, a film about just how much tail you can get with a good beard. Okay, so there's a story about two sassy brothers' fight over a kingdom, a random encounter with the son of the Earth god and waters of forgetfulness... great. The real story here: oiled-up men in loincloths having their way with giggling servant girls. This movie jam packed with servant girls running from Herc and Ulysses down stairs, around corners and pretty much any direction that shows off the goods. As if that wasn't enough to get you totally pumped about this movie while cleaning the house... fake tigers! If you're a fan of fake tigers in fake tiger fights... you'll need to rent this one soon. Mostly though, its about the servant girls. 8 out of 10.

This film is a nice sequel to Francisci's gem "Hercules," the film that launched a seven-year festival of swords, sandals, cloaks, daggers, musclemen, and gorgeous women in the Italian cinema. In this sequel, Mario Bava returns as the FX man, and dazzles us with an array of visual effects which impart to this film an almost Hollywood-like sensationalism. The problem is, there is too much of it! After the first 30 minutes or so, the stuff tired me, sheerly through the fact that my mind ceased to remain in the elevated state necessary to appreciate and "roll with" what the director wanted to achieve visually. So there were alternate periods of depression and elevation, although the film, when viewed as a whole, must be one of the most stunning sword-and-sandals of all time. In this respect, Pietro Francisci did well. However, I still prefer the first entry to this one.