All'ombra delle aquile

Set in the first half of the first century A.D. , and after the death of a great emperor : Octavian Augustus , in Rome governs his successor : emperor Tiberio , then the rebellious Teutonic populations of Illyria and Pannonia pose a grave threat to the Roman Empire. Tribune Marcus Ventidius (Cameron Mitchell) is sent by the Senate high hiearchy to subdue the invader German tribes and halt the murderous uprisings . At the beginning Marcus tries to gain an allegiance from the rebel tribes , but subsequently Venditius attempts to stifle the upheaval at whatever means . Pursuing some Teuton barbarian fugitives and after a bitter battle , Marcus captures Pannonian chief Magdus (Alex Medar) together with a number of women hostages. These include Magdus's own daughter Helen (Beba Loncar) , betrothed to ruthles Illyrian warrior chief Batone (Alex Gavin) who provokes a general rebellion against Roman domination , as he rallies his people and tribes when they are threatened by an powerful army commanded by Vetidius . Meantime , Batone massacres several Romans and has laid many traps to soldiers . Julia (Gabriella Pallota) , daughter of the Roman governor Messala (Paul Windsor) , is in love with Tribune Marcus and, jealous of his sympathy for the barbarian girl, schemes a getaway for Helen and her father. Only Batone is evil and treacherous enough to vanquish the brave Roman tribune .

This is a ¨sword and sandals¨ movie with action , adventures , fighting , duels and based on legendary deeds as well as historical events . Here there is romance , usual dances and blood curdling battles, as the barbarian tribes and Roman Legions fight a violent war .This is a fairly Sword and Sandals standard from the 60s . It's made middling scale with some spectacular scenes staged with a lot of extras and in Peplum style . It concerns about a tribune and his war against Barbarians , including feats , fights , political events , betrayal , wars and lovers . Although the deeds described are historically inaccurate , some events are vivid and authentic . The action is regularly done and the story occasionally drags , however to be liked for hardcore Peplum lovers. It is a poor sequel to ¨Massacre in the Black Forest¨ , shot at the same time , with similar artistic team , as actors : Cameron Mitchell , Beba Loncar , Peter Carsten , Remo De Angelis , as technician experts , as composer : Carlos Savina and filmmaker , Ferdinando Baldi or Freddy Baldwyn . ¨Massacre in the black forest¨ dealt with the German the tribes, led by Arminius The Terrible played by Hans Von Borsody , against the cruel and conquering Roman Empire led by Varo performed by Cameron Mitchell , this film is better than ¨In the Shadow of the Eagles¨ , because regarding the brutal uprising of Arminius the Terrible from Queruscos tribe ,a tough warrior who is so brutal and terrible that Arminius becomes a legend throughout the empire, while Varo and his army are defeated in Teoteburg Woods . Stars Cameron Mitchell who gives a mediocre intepretation ,he was an American prolific actor who started working in Hollywood : Carousel , They were expendable , Flight to Mars , and he then emigrated Italy where he played all kinds of genres , as he performed Western : Minnesota Clay , Tension at Table Rock , Last gun , Texas detour , Rebel rousers , The Andersonville trial , Ride in the whirlwind ; Adventure : Conquest of the Normands , Knives of the avenger , Julius Caesar the conqueror , Escapade in Japan , Desiree, and Terror : Slaughter , Blood and black lace , Toolbox murders , Nightmare in wax museum , Frankenstein island , The demon , Blooklink , Medusa , Haunts , Autopsy of a ghost , among others .

The motion picture in medium budget was regularly realized by Ferdinando Baldi . Direction by Ferdinando Baldi is middlingly crafted, here he is more slow and violent and packs too much dialogue , as well as some battle scenes . Baldi makes a passable camera work , including spectacular dancing choreography on the atrium , fighting , and brief masses movements . Baldi was a craftsman who directed all kind genres as Peplum and adventure : ¨Horaci and Curiazi¨ ,¨The Son of Cleopatra¨, ¨ David and Goliat¨, ¨Duel selvaggi a corte¨ , ¨Taras Bulba il Cosacco¨, ¨Pirates of the Green Island¨, ¨Pedro il Cruel¨ , but especially Western such as "Carambola's Philosophy: In the Right Pocket" , "Django, Prepare a Coffin" , ¨Adios Texas¨ , ¨Rita in the West¨ , ¨The stranger¨, ¨Get mean¨and of course ¨Il Pistolero dell'Ave Maria" or USA original title "Forgotten Pistolero" at his best . All'ombra delle aquile(1966) is an uneven story, but will appeal to Peplum aficionados . Rating : 5, riotous Peplum in which there's too much dialog , action and battles and excitement enough .

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.

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).

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...

1966...where was this shot? It looks like Spain, and the sets look like those from The Fall of the Roman Empire. The big interior set is probably one of the 33 entire finished interior spaces built for that massive Anthony Mann film that were never used in the production. Otherwise, this movie stinks, with awful dramatic scenes and absurd battles - the people who made this movie apparently never heard of the Roman legion, as the fights all involve a bunch of extras just running at each other in chaotic scrimmages.