All'ombra delle aquile

This film was made in a time where many Italian directors and their teams were really taking their depictions of the Greco-Roman era very seriously and making very thorough historical renditions, recruiting stellar actors and going all out for sets, costumes, etc. Originally in Italian, I had to wait for a good English dub to follow properly and enjoyed the storyline (no spoilers). The costumes fell short (except for the jewelry design for one of the female characters). The progression of the film is great at the beginning but then drags a little in the middle for no apparent reason. If you like this movie you will also enjoy FALL OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE with Sophia Lauren vs. Christopher Plummer (OOF! 9/10 imo).

Definitely a B movie but entertaining and correct; the uniforms and staging were quite excellent and the fight scenes sufficiently prof. A film of the times, seen in perspective, see it and enjoy. I have only seen the lead Tribune as a detective or other roles of that niveau but he handels his star roll as a good actor would. Good film.

IN THE SHADOW OF THE EAGLES is an extremely rare peplum directed by Ferdinando Baldi, apparently shot back-to-back with his MASSACRE IN THB BLACK FOREST. Cameron Mitchell more or less repeats his role from that film, staring as a Roman general matching wits with a rebellious tribe of barbarians at the border of the Empire. Recommended.

you won't miss much if you turn the sound off. The score is a bizarre mix of uninspired marches and weird chords that sound more appropriate to a bad Euro sexploitation flick. The characters are one-dimensional and the script makes little sense. The romantic scenes are about as passionate and believable as watching paint dry. On the positive side, the sets (mostly borrowed from better productions), and costumes are quite good, as was common to many of the Italian B epics. The Yugoslavian locations are at least accurate to the story, and in late winter/early spring, they lend a properly bleak and lonely look to the borderlands of civilization. Despite the care and striving for authenticity put into those elements, the director cared little for how the Romans waged war. They charge willy-nilly at the enemy to fight man to man, rather in proper formations.

As another reviewer mentioned, this is a sort of companion piece to 'Massacre in the Black Forest'. If you have a choice, go for that one instead.

What is immediately striking about this adventure is the production. It is really rather superior to most of the Cameron Mitchell efforts produced in Italy in the 1960s. Gone are the garish sets and over-lit studio sets, replaced by largely outdoor - and quite authentic looking - rustic scenarios. This time our hero plays Roman Tribune "Ventidus" who has been charged with suppressing a rebellion from the Pannonian tribes in Germania. That tribe had peacefully co-existed with the legions until their leader "Magdo" (Alex Medar) is deposed by the upstart "Batone" (Alex Gavin) who has designs not just on his leadership but on his feisty daughter "Helen" (Bela Loncar). What now ensues is the usual set-piece historical drama with some over-staged sword fights and tit-for-tat battles that serve to tee up an ending that is not just very predictable, but really flat in it's delivery too. Mitchell stands head and shoulders about the rest of the truly mediocre cast, and the director and dialogue add little to the tension or action elements. It's a shame - Mitchell has starred in far better stories with far worse production. This time it is the other way around...