Two Gladiators (1964)

Original title: I Due Gladiatori

Peplum. Italy. Starring Richard Harrison, Piero Lulli, Moira Orfei, Mimmo Palmara & Giuliano Gemma. Directed by Mario Caiano.

ERA Home Video (Taiwan). English dubbed. Fullscreen.

Mediocre gladiator flick which left no permanent place in my memory. 2/5

Hercules Unchained (1959)

Original title: Ercole e la Regina di Lidia

Peplum. Italy/France/Spain. Starring Steve Reeves, Sylva Koscina, Sylvia Lopez, Gabriele Antonini, Patrizia Della Rovere, Mimmo Palmara & Daniele Varga. Directed by Pietro Francisci.

Standard Video )Holland). English dubbed. Fullscreen.

The follow-up to Francisci's Hercules is even better than the first one. Essential viewing. 4/5

Original title: La Guerra di Troia

Peplum. Italy/France. Starring Steve Reeves, John Drew Barrymore, Edy Vessel, Arturo Dominici, Lidia Alfonsi, Mimmo Palmara & Carlo Tamberlani. Directed by Giorgio Ferroni.

Sunrise Tapes (Holland). English dubbed. Letterboxed. Dig the waltzing Reeves dental work on the (über-gay) cover.

Well-made, above average sword and sandal spectacle with Steve Reeves. 3/5

The Colossus of Rhodes (1961)

Original title: Il Colosso di Rodi

Peplum. Italy/Spain/France. Starring Rory Calhoun, Georges Marchal, Lea Massari, Mimmo Palmara, Ángel Aranda, Carlo Tamberlani & Nello Pazzafini. Directed by Sergio Leone.

DVD: Warner (USA). English dubbed. Widescreen. Excellent quality!

Leone's directional debut is a really good, intriguing peplum with excellent FX and productions values (I suspect that the film was a lot cheaper than it looks though). My only complaint: Calhoun, while a reasonably good lead, is not buff enough to make it as a Hercules-type hero. 4/5

Temple of the White Elephant (1964)

Original title: Sandok, il Maciste Della Giungla

Exotic adventure. Italy/France. Starring Sean Flynn, Giacomo Rossi-Stuart, Alessandra Panaro, Mimmo Palmara, Arturo Dominici & Dakar. Directed by Umberto Lenzi.

René Chateau Video (France). French dubbed. Widescreen. SECAM.

The Trojan War (1961)

Original title: La Guerra di Troia

Peplum. Italy/France. Starring Steve Reeves, John Drew Barrymore, Edy Vessel, Arturo Dominici, Lidia Alfonsi, Mimmo Palmara & Carlo Tamberlani. Directed by Giorgio Ferroni.

DVD: New Entertainment (Germany)English/german language options. Widescreen. Nice quality.

Well-made, above average sword and sandal spectacle with Steve Reeves. 3/5

Uomi Forti (2006)

a.k.a Iron Men

Peplum related documentary. Italy. Directed by Steve Dalla Casa.

DVD: Istituto Luce (Italy). Italian with english subtitles. Fullscreen.

Uomi Forti is a documentary chronicling the Italian peplum / sword and sandal genre from Hercules - Maciste - Samson - Goliath to Ursus. The film details the rise of the "strong man", the director and various actresses who would make the genre popular worldwide. Interviews with Carlo Verdone, Enrico Lucherini, Carlo Lizzani, Citto Maselli, Rosalba Neri & Mimmo Palmara. 3/5

The Last Days of Pompeii (1959) + Gli Ultimi Giorni di Pompei (1913)

Original title: Gli Ultimi Giorni di Pompei

Peplum. Italy. Starring Steve Reeves, Christine Kaufmann, Fernando Rey, Mimmo Palmara & Carlo Tamberlani. Directed by Mario Bonnard & Sergio Leone.

Marketing Film (Germany). English/german/italian language options. Widescreen. Very good quality. This 2-disc edition also includes the 1913 silent Gli Ultimi Giorni di Pompei (sadly no english options there).

Well made, glossy peplum with impressive earthquake FX by Leone. 3/5

Sandokan the Great (1963)

Original title: Sandokan, la Tigre di Mompracem

Pirate/Exotic. Italy/France/Spain. Starring Steve Reeves, Geneviève Grad, Andrea Bosic, Rik Battaglia, Adolfo Celi & Mimmo Palmara. Directed by Umberto Lenzi.

DVD: Impulso Records & Films (Spain). English/spanish language options. Widescreen. Good quality, except for a 5-10 minute part in the middle which appears to be sourced from VHS.

Lenzi's first Sandokan flick - 100% classic stuff! My favorite Steve Reeves film. 5/5

The Trojan War (1961)

Original title: La Guerra di Troia

Peplum. Italy/France. Starring Steve Reeves, John Drew Barrymore, Edy Vessel, Arturo Dominici, Lidia Alfonsi, Mimmo Palmara & Carlo Tamberlani. Directed by Giorgio Ferroni.

Epic Home Video (South Africa). English dubbed. Widescreen. Very good quality. Selltape or possibly a bootleg.

Well-made, above average sword and sandal spectacle with Steve Reeves. 3/5

Sandokan the Great (1963)

Original title: Sandokan, la Tigre di Mompracem

Pirate adventure/Exotic. Italy/France/Spain. Starring Steve Reeves, Geneviève Grad, Andrea Bosic, Rik Battaglia, Adolfo Celi & Mimmo Palmara. Directed by Umberto Lenzi.

VTC (Sweden). English dubbed. Letterboxed.

Lenzi's first Sandokan flick - 100% classic stuff! My favorite Steve Reeves film. 5/5

Tharus Son of Attila (1962)

Original title: Tharus Figlio di Attila

Peplum. Italy. Starring Jerome Courtland, Lisa Gastoni, Mimmo Palmara, Rik Van Nutter, Livio Lorenzon & Riccardo Montalbano. Directed by Roberto Bianchi Montero.

Video Alsen (Greece). English dubbed. Fullscreen.

Hercules Unchained (1959)

Original title: Ercole e la Regina di Lidia

Peplum. Italy/France/Spain. Starring Steve Reeves, Sylva Koscina, Sylvia Lopez, Gabriele Antonini, Patrizia Della Rovere, Mimmo Palmara & Daniele Varga. Directed by Pietro Francisci.

DVD: Concorde (Germany). English or german language options. Widescreen. Nice quality.

The follow-up to Francisci's Hercules is even better than the first one. Essential viewing. 4/5

Hercules (1958)

Original title: Le Fatiche di Ercole

Peplum. Italy/Spain.

Starring Steve Reeves, Sylva Koscina, Fabrizio Mioni, Gianna Maria Canale, Arturo Dominici & Mimmo Palmara. Directed by Pietro Francisci.

DVD: Concorde (Germany). English and german language options. Widescreen. Nice quality. It's has a few seconds worth of insignificant cuts though, so the french disc is preferable for the peplum aficianado. But this disc also have the best version of Hercules Unchained, so both discs are needed.

The original muscleman epic! Not my all time favorite peplum but still, classic stuff. 4/5

Hercules (1958)

Original title: Le Fatiche di Ercole

Peplum. Italy/Spain. Starring Steve Reeves, Sylva Koscina, Fabrizio Mioni, Gianna Maria Canale, Arturo Dominici & Mimmo Palmara. Directed by Pietro Francisci.

DVD: DVDY (France). English and french language options. Widescreen. Nice quality.

The original muscleman epic! Not my all time favorite peplum but still, classic stuff. 4/5

The Pirates of Malaysia (1964)

Original title: I Pirati della Malesia

Pirate adventure/Exotic. Italy/Spain/West Germany/France. Starring Steve Reeves, Jacqueline Sassard, Mimmo Palmara, Pierre Cressoy & Dakar. Directed by Umberto Lenzi.

VTC (Sweden). English dubbed. Letterboxed.

The follow-up to Sandokan the Great is not quite as brilliant as the first movie, but still a wonderful adventure film and one of Lenzi's best! Steve Reeves is at his best, even if you don't believe him as an indian. 4/5

Kindar the Invulnerable (1964)

Original title: Kindar l'invulnerabile

Peplum/Arabian adventure. Italy/Egypt. Starring Mark Forest, Rosalba Neri, Mimmo Palmara & Howard Ross. Directed by Osvaldo Civirani.

EVC (Holland). English dubbed. Widescreen.

Very good arabian peplum with some always appriciated fantasy touches. The long scene with the two muscular brothers taking off their cloths and whipping each other out in the desert is pure gay S/M-pulp aesthetic! Mark Forest is a bundle of charm as always, you've got to love the guy! Recommended. 4/5

Hercules and the Masked Rider (1963)

Original title: Golia e il Cavaliere Mascherato

Peplum/Zorro. Italy. Starring Alan Steel, Mimmo Palmara, Arturo Dominici, Ettore Manni & Sal Borgese. Directed by Piero Pierotti.

VTC (Sweden). English dubbed. Widescreen. Very nice print, blows away the dutch EVC tape I had earlier!

Curious genre mixture between peplum and Zorro adventure. Actually the Goliath/Hercules (depending on which print you're watching) character plays second fiddle to the Zorro character, plus he's 100% gay (watch the ending if you don't believe me)! Highly entertaining, good- natured swashbuckling with a little muscleman action thrown in for good measure - what's not to like? 4/5

Ten Gladiators (1963)

Original title: I Dieci Gladiatori

Peplum. Italy. Starring Dan Vadis, Roger Browne, Susan Paget, Mimmo Palmara & Franca Parisi. Directed by Gianfranco Parolini.

MV (Greece). English dubbed. Fullscreen.

Two Gladiators (1964)

Original title: I Due Gladiatori

Peplum. Italy. Starring Richard Harrison, Piero Lulli, Moira Orfei, Mimmo Palmara & Giuliano Gemma. Directed by Mario Caiano.

PVP (Greece). English dubbed. Fullscreen.

Mediocre gladiator flick which left no permanent place in my memory. 2/5