Ator l'invincibile

Lots of people would call "Ator" a bad movie. I, personally, would call it delightfully cheesy, like an unintentional spoof on itself. The random use of pyrotechnics at the end, the extremely low quality acting, the plot line that was, at the same time, both stupidly simple AND made no sense, and an arch-villain that wouldn't scare a baby unless it was hit by lightning. Don't see this movie for technical genius, see it for laughs. But, make sure not to become to overcritical of the movie. It may be an extremely bad movie, but I think you will find it hard to enjoy if you are looking for problems. Just sit back, and let the cheesiness do it's work.

Conan the Barbarian you could say was at the top of the pile of these derivative sword and sorcery enterprises that were being churned out in the early 80s and the main influencer for these films. "Ator" was at the very bottom of the pile and was a quick cash-in on the former by notorious director Joe D'Amato. It's quite bad. More so in a banal and simple-minded way, this is unforgivable. What happens is second-rate and hasty in its execution and with little fun attached to it. A bemused Miles O'keeffe plays the title character and goes about things in a rather laborious manner (uneventful journey with plenty of strutting and flat sword choreography)… although there are some amusingly terrible dialogue exchanges (the heart to heart talk about love with romantic interludes), a lousy twist… and a battle scene with a slow moving gigantic spider… but other than that not much to recommend. It's just risible more so than thrilling. Oh I did forget something… the bear cub. I don't know what it had to do with anything, but its presence was a welcome inclusion.

The fearless warrior Ator and his brave female companion, the Amazon Roon, travel through miles of primitive villages, forests, caves and castles to destroy the "kingdom of the spider" (or something) and kill its evil ruler. It's a dull and clunky journey. My advice is: watch the sequel ("The Blade Master") instead. Not only is it slightly more watchable than this film, but it also includes a brief "recap" of it, which enables you to see every single scene of the original that's worth seeing (so to speak) in a matter of a few minutes. (*1/2)

This film is absolutely brilliant. I was flicking through the sky channels today and noticed "Ator: Flight of the Eagle", and after seeing one of the first battle scenes i was hooked. Anyone who gave this film less than 8 out of 10 obviously missed the great comments like "but father, why cant i marry my sister" and Keog's the baby bears attempt to save Ator from the evil ladies by making love to the nearest tree.

Now I admit this is a bad film, but thats why its so good. Never have i seen such a bad film.

This is a must see. I give it 9/10.

This movie was a somehow successful rip-off of "Conan, the barbarian"because it was released a very short time after but it has nothing of the value of the film starred by Schwarzenneger. It is cheesy, non-spectacular, special effects are not good and the acting is horrid, although the blonde actress Sabrina Siani is really nice to look (She was seen in other turkeys such as "2020: The rangers of Texas" and I don´t know what happened to her later but in any case, she is the best of this movie which resembles a revision of those antique Italian peplums about Hercules, Ursus or Maciste. It´s equally bad. From director Joe D'amato I prefer his film "Absurd" which was at least gory and much funnier than this.