Le gladiateur invincible

Probably the best of the 'gladiator' sword-n-sandal films of the 1960s, or at least that I have seen. The plot has plenty of twists, but never gets so convoluted that it can't be followed with interest. The fight scenes are pretty well done, especially the final revolt at the end. The acting is above par, even from sword-n-sandal regular players - Harrison is surprisingly effective.

There was a pretty amusing moment towards the end, when one of our heroes is attacked by an angry gang of midgets. Well, I guess you can't get through one of these films without some toss off goof.

On the whole, one of the more entertaining 'muscle' films of its era.

Above average peplum with Richard Harrison showing some real acting talent, as well as muscle, in this, his first Italian adventure feature. The fight scenes are very well done and Harrison is given a real chance to show his athletic abilities and coordination, and the budget is obviously a cut above what was normally shelled out for this type of picture.

As a kid growing up in the sixties, sword and scandal epics ranked right up there with Tarzan, Frankenstein, King Kong, Shirley Temple and Batman. Occasionally I still watch. For the most part they haven't held up very well over the years but this one can certainly still hold its own. The story itself is fairly standard but the movie is so well paced and full of action that you're not likely to get bored. The cast is pretty darn good too with Richard Harrison standing in for Steve Reeves very nicely. The head villain is nasty, the gladiators are well played and the leading lady is very nice to look at...whoa! I agree with the other reviewers that this one is a keeper. The gladiator fights, of which there are many, are nicely done. There are also a couple of big battles that look good and even a chariot race. The bald actor that played the owner of the gladiators was a real treat, a very gnarly and quite believable actor. This one is recommended and it deserves and 8 for being one of the best of its particular genre. I also give a tip of the ole baseball cap to whomever designed the costumes, especially the gladiator helmets. Nice.

This is a very typical peplum, one of countless efforts dealing with the Roman Empire and which involve slaves fighting it out in the arena; I have at least three other such films lined up for the current Easter marathon (apart from one I had watched prior to it). Being English- dubbed, panned-and-scanned (the copy I watched was culled from "You Tube"), the debut of director De Martino (albeit in collaboration and who would eventually specialize in horror movies) and star Richard Harrison's first European venture, I was not counting on it being very good; however, it turned out an above-average outing with standard plot and excitements, to be sure, but certainly not a total waste of 91 minutes.

Unusually, we start off with Harrison already awaiting to see one-on-one combat duty for the entertainment of the jaded masses; the gladiatorial instructor (Livio Lorenzon) gives his men a long-winded talk about the honour of their 'profession' (while suggesting they will not be allowed to die as the sovereign would then have to pay him for the lost members of his team!), while Harrison's military background allows him to speak out for the necessity of self-preservation over comradeship to a fellow slave (since, following each individual duel, the eventual winner has to match himself against his peers all over again)! Presiding over the carnage is villainous Regent Leo Anchoriz (in a surprisingly dignified and two-dimensional characterization), flanked by the boy heir to the throne and his elder sister Isabelle Corey; the latter, who secretly leads a group of brigands that look more like cave-men(!), displays an unwarranted coldness towards the hero when he accepts to serve Anchoriz by hunting down the rebels. Amusingly, the Regent takes the protagonist into his employ after a javelin he had defiantly thrown in his direction happened to hit instead an assassin approaching from behind him! Apart from Corey, the opposition here is very weak and this makes Harrison join her cause and, at one point, saves the child from certain death after his chariot has been maliciously tampered with!

The climax sees the star take on a Mongol warrior (whose face seemed familiar from others of its ilk) in the arena, after the latter had defeated his sidekick – with the bizarre aid of rampaging bloodthirsty dwarfs! In the meantime, Lorenzon leads a gladiatorial revolt underground but takes his sweet time to reach the surface and join our hero…even if he still manages to be the one to execute Anchoriz (after the latter has engaged in a staff duel a' la Robin Hood – at which he had professed to be unbeatable – with Harrison)! An odd touch here concerns the score which, at certain moments, builds to a crescendo and sustains it far longer than necessary…which might explain the fact that the film's official length is given as 105 minutes on IMDb!

This movie was great. I got clued into this movie from Harrison's "Vengeance". Another GREAT movie.(For the first twenty minutes I was waiting for Richard "Harris" to appear. Duh.) Also I didn't know Harrison was the guy who suggested Clint Eastwood to Leone... ...until I learned it here. How bout that.

If you're both a movie buff and into "Roman" stuff Michael Curtis Ford's "Gods and Legions is the book to read. If you're into history I suggest you get Ammianus Marcellinus' History to read along with this novel. The ass kicker here is that Marcellinus actually went to battle with Emperor Julian. The 3-Volume Loeb Classic is almost an adventure novel all by itself.

As far as Gladiators go a couple of "definitive" books are The Way of the Gladiator by Daniel P. Mannix and Spartacus by Howard Fast. Here are books from my library. Ass kickers every one.

Ammianus Marcellinus History The Battle for Gaul by Julius Caesar The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire by Edward Gibbon The Way of the Gladiator by Daniel P. Mannix Spartacus by Howard Fast Julian by Gore Vidal Gods and Legions by Michael Curtis Ford The Ten Thousand by Michael Curtis Ford The Last King by Michael Curtis Ford The Sword of Attila by Michael Curtis Ford The Fall of Rome by Michael Curtis Ford Gates of Fire by Steven Pressfield Tides of War by Steven Pressfield The Virtures of War Steven Pressfield Alexaneder the Great by Paul Cartledge The Spartans by Paul Cartledge Eagle in the Snow by Wallace Breem The Eagle and the Raven by Pauline Gedge