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Hercules Unchained [1960] (NTSC)


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Steve Reeves' second (and last) Hercules film
Review date: 2005-05-23 Rating: 8 out of 10

Hercules Unchained (Ercole e la Regina di Lidia, aka Hercules and the Queen of Lydia aka Hercules and the Queen of Sheba) was Steve Reeves' second (and last) Hercules film, a direct follow-up to the well-received original Hercules. A lot more money went into the production of this film, but it never succeeds in becoming anything more than merely good. Perhaps part of the problem is the fact that the storyline diverges from the original mythology of Hercules and stumbles here and there along its way. There's nothing wrong with Herc and his fellow good guys, but the villains here are just a little bit too silly to really take seriously. The women in this film, on the other hand, are gorgeous, and that's always a plus.

Herc, Laertes, and the guys have just returned home, and Hercules, with wife Iole (Sylva Koscina) and young Ulysses (Gabriele Antonini) in tow, can't wait to return to his beloved Thebes. Before he even gets there, the half-god Antaeus attacks him just for passing through his land. It soon becomes clear that the portrait Herc has been painting of the city is way off, as bad times have fallen on Thebes. Oedipus has been forced into exile, while his two sons, Eteocles and Polynices, stand on the verge of a civil war to determine the rightful king. Herc undertakes a peace mission, but during his journey he makes the mistake of drinking from the Waters of Forgetfulness. Ulysses clams up and plays the role of a deaf-mute as he and Herc are transported to the island of Lydia, where Queen Omphale (Sylvia Lopez) waits to add Hercules to her collection of stuffed and mounted former lovers.

The amnesiac Hercules truly forgets everything, including his marriage vows to fair Iole, as he embraces the life of a king with the dangerously becoming Omphale at his side, serving girls trotting and giggling all over the place, and not a single care in the world. Ulysses, now a slave, keeps trying to awaken Hercules' memory as he awaits the aid of his father Laertes and his allies. All the while, as Herc is eating grapes and smooching with the queen, disaster draws nigh for the city of Thebes, and his wife Iole stands in mortal danger.

Pietro Francisci directs this 1959 Italian release, while the great Mario Bava oversees photography and special effects. If you ask me, the best special effect is Sylva Koscina, but a number of fights and even a chariot-drawn duel ensue as the movie winds toward its conclusion. For whatever reason, though, it's just hard to get overly excited about any segment of this film - but at least it's not as silly as some of the other Hercules movies.

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Product Details/Specifications


Actor(s):
Primo Carnera
Steve Reeves
Sylva Koscina
Gabriele Antonini
Sylvia Lopez

Creators:
Steve Reeves (Primary Contributor)
Sylva Koscina (Primary Contributor)

Director(s):

Recording label: Alpha Video
Manufacturer: Alpha Video
EAN: 0766483166267
Binding: DVD
Number of items: 1
Format: Colour, DVD-Video, NTSC,
Release date: 2002-04-16
Universal product code (UPC): 089218321695
Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
Running time: 105 minutes
Theatrical release date: 1960-07-13
Language: Italian (Original Language)
Language: Spanish (Original Language)

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