Le vergini di Roma

I really love the crack another viewer made about casting the urbane Louis Jourdan as a barbarian warrior. Was not Cary Grant available? I could not possibly top that.

Other than ludicrous casting Amazons Of Rome is a passably interesting peplum picture concerning those events in early Roman history when it was just trying to survive as a city against some very nasty Etruscans who rule the countryside. The legendary hero Horatio is played by Italian actor Ettore Manni who did more than a few of these kind of films.

While Horatio is trying to regroup and retrain an army, the women of Rome take to the field led by the aristocratic Sylvia Sims. It's there that she meets Jourdan. If they can make peace, is it possible for the rest?

The Etruscan leader is played by Julien Chevrier who would like a permanent peace, but has some folks who are looking for glory and conquest and as long as they get it doesn't matter how much blood is spilled.

Poor Louis Jourdan, he looks like he is annoyed that a table at Maxim's isn't ready.

Wow! I wish all my Sword and Sandal films looked this good. He print shown on TCM was crystal clear and in widescreen! The story is OK but it is the Cinematography that really makes this film shine.

Sylvia Syms is absolutely gorgeous in this one and I don't agree with the reviewer who says that Louis Jordan is miscast for the part. Oh, I agree he is no barbarian. But that isn't his role. His charismatic portrayal is perfect for the part. The opening battle scenes is where he steals the show.

Seeing this one in widescreen good quality was a real treat. It's too bad all of the other Sword and Sandal movies couldn't be viewed the way they were meant to be seen. That is good quality and widescreen. See this TCM print!

Good looking spectacle with a cast of tens. You can see that actors are playing both sides in what amounts to a Euro-western set in the ancient world. Its Etruscans vs Romans with the woman taken hostage after they dressed as Roman soldiers after their side lost. The dialog is stupid and the romances wobble any hope of a decent story. Its the kind of film that almost seems good but isn't so seems much worse as a result. I've seen it twice by accident and I hope never to see it again.

AMAZONS OF ROME is certainly a well-mounted peplum of the era, with the right kind of budget to do justice to the sets and costumes, so it's a pity that in terms of plot this one's a bit of a yawner. The story begins well with the obligatory Roman battle sequences, but then we move to barbarian intrigue and the unwelcome introduction of a bunch of 'Amazonian' female warriors, led by British import Sylvia Sims. These actresses, complete with their obligatory early '60s hairdos, are utterly unconvincing and the women's lib-style plotting rings hollow throughout. A shame, as seasoned professionals like Louis Jourdan and Ettore Manni were on hand to add some solid performances here.

I recently saw AMAZONS OF ROME on cable. The first thing that stood out was the look. The quality of the transfer was truly beautiful: pristine and sharp. The lighting, the background sky, the sets, the costumes, everything looked authentic and gorgeous. Credit should go to cinematographer Marc Fossard. It looked like it was filmed yesterday. Much better looking than 90% of Peplums made during that time, including the stilted and dull THE 300 SPARTANS. With that said, the story is lifeless. It lacks urgency. Is it a comedy or a drama? The whole thing looks like a bad sex comedy. Sorta like GIDGET GOES TO WAR. Or THE COLOSSUS & THE AMAZON QUEEN.

But the film's biggest liability was casting Louis Jourdan as a Barbarian. What, Cary Grant wasn't available? I'm certain producers hired Jourdan in order to get financing for the film but it was a big mistake. He's simply too debonair to be a Barbarian. Sylvia Syms looks like Julie Andrews before Julie Andrews made her first movie. The best actor in the whole thing is Ettore Manni. Totally believable in anything he does, certainly in Sword & Sandal films. What a great, overlooked actor.

It's a shame the production team for this film wasn't involved in a more action oriented or serious story. The looked of it all would have rocked even more if it hadn't been involved with such a lightweight story.