Marco Polo

If his Hollywood career stalled a bit, an actor like Rory CALHOUN (1922-1999) could still work in the Roman Cinecitta.

His performance as "Marco Polo" is certainly not one of the highlights of his career, but it certainly turned out to be a very respectable adventure film. He has made even greater films alongside Marilyn MONROE in "River of No Return" and under the direction of Sergio Leone in "Il colosso di Rodi". Not to mention the many westerns!

What is very impressive is that the star did not allow himself to be blackmailed with his criminal past in the 1950s, but instead informed the public himself. This is what is called civil courage.

Lavish Italian entertainment based on the exploits of the 13th-century famed Venetian explorer who rescues the daughter of the Mongol leader Kublai Khan, meets a hermit who has invented gunpowder and builds a cannon . Rory Calhoun plays the role of Marco , a venetian philander adventurer , in this Ravioli production of Marco Polo's adventures . Young Marco travels to China to help Kublai Khan fight against rebels, headed by his own assistant , with a new invention : gunpowder . Entertaining motion picture about oriental and medieval feats in superb colour cinematography and luxurious scenarios . Acceptable budget Italian production deals with Marco Polo travels from Venice to China , where he falls in love with the Emperor's daughter . Marco (sympathetic Rory Calhoun) becomes the first traveler to record his visit to the Eastern court of the Emperor Kublai Khan . Once there he possesses his protection to merchandise between China and Europe but he prefers to seek out for more adventures . There Marco falls for gorgeous Princess Amurroy (Yoko Tani) . Grand Khan (Camillo Pilotto) is a kindly emperor , but his villain aide Mongka (Robert Hundar) wants to get rid of Khan so he can be emperor, and to get rid of Marco Polo so he can marry the princess . Then Khan sends Marco Polo to the West to fight rebels led by a chief called Kudai (Pierre Cressoy), Khan's niece , but he goes back just in time to save the day . The Italian explorer rescues the daughter of the emperor Khan from nasty Prime Minister , and meets a wise man who has invented gunpowder . During his adventures Polo is imprisoned and will suffer numerous dangers , adventures and risks ; besides he'll quickly encounter many Chinese invents as silk ¡ spaghetti! , postmen , and gunpowder , among others .

It's a spectacular adventure and plenty of emotions , Chinese dances , action , romance and evocative musical score from Angelo Francesco Lavagnino and Les Baxter (US version) . The picture blends far eastern adventures and medieval scenario . The movie results to be an inferior remake to classic Hollywood film 'Adventures of Marco Polo' starred by Gary Cooper and including a villain performed by Basil Rathbone who bears remarkable resemblance to Robert Hundar . This is one of the most bemusing Italian oriental adventure movies ever made , being well produced , lush production design and shot in awesome brilliant photography Riccardo Pallottini . This juvenile romp is utterly amusing and entertaining though inexactly based on facts . Don't expect historic accuracy from this typical Spaghetti product full of adventures , a love story and lots of action . The producers ,Luigi Carpentieri and Ermanno Donati were more concerned with offering moving and enjoyable amusement than factual information . With the huge exterior sets, lavish interior sets and a multitude of Asian extras left over from this flick , the producers realized a sword-and-sandal/mythological muscleman epic, ¨Maciste in the court of Grand Khan¨ played by Gordon Scott and also Yoko Tani , placing hero Maciste in a Chinese setting . The motion picture was middlingly directed by Piero Pierotti and Hugo Fregonese . The film was received poorly at the box-office, becoming a moderated flop . The flick will appeal to far eastern saga fanciful and adventure enthusiasts.

Other pictures based on this legendary character are the followings : Classic version ¨Adventures of Marco Polo¨ by Archie Mayo with Gary Cooper , Alan Hale and Basil Rathbone ; "Marco the Magnificent" by Raoul Levy and Denys de La Patellière with Horst Buchhold, Anthony Quinn , Elsa Martinelli , Akin Tamiroff and Omar Sharif ; ¨Marco¨ (1973) by Seymour Robbie with Desi Aznar Jr , Zero Mostel ;¨The Incredible Adventures of Marco Polo on His Journeys to the Ends of the Earth¨ (1998) with Don Diamant , Jack Palance and Oliver Reed ; and ¨Marco Polo¨ (2007) by Kevin Connor with Ian Somerhalder , BD Wong and Brian Dennehy . The best results to be ¨Marco Polo¨ TV (1982) by Giuliano Montalvo with Ken Marshall , David Warner , F Murray Abraham , Leonard Nimoy .

I added the Italian poster to the gallery. Notice that there are 3 women on the left and Yoko Tani on the right. Rory Calhoun was involved with the 3 women on the left and was forced to leave Venice after his playing around became dangerous for him. You can see all three women in the Spanish version and Rory's interaction with them. In the USA release we see only one of the women before Marco Polo heads out on his eastern journey. In the Blu-Ray release they show 2 women only. The rest of the English language movie is the same as the Spanish version. I have also posted a still showing the blonde Thea Fleming in a line-up with the other women Marco Polo has to choose from. That is the only scene Thea Fleming has in the movie. Look at the half-sheet (22x28), poster in the gallery. They chose that scene to include on the poster even though it was such a minor bit in the story. The sets constructed for MARCO POLO were later used for SAMSON AND THE 7 MIRACLES OF THE WORLD with Gordon Scott. I have added 7 stills to the gallery for fans to enjoy.

I saw the American International, English version on a triple bill in the 1960s. I just watched the Kino Lorber, Blu-Ray version and found it to be very entertaining and a great clear print. However, there is a very small scene of a sword, sticking out of the lone Mongol, who ran off with Yoko Tani. I guess the editors thought that scene was to gory for 1961. Also, Lex Baxter name was not mentioned, even though this is the Italian/English release, his name would have been known to fans. There has never been a video release of this movie in English, that I have been able to find, but a few in Spanish.

Does anyone know the name of the actress who plays Marietta? I visited Rory Calhoun's vacation villa in Acapulco, Mexico in 1979. His movie posters were plastered all over the adobe walls. Larry Anderson.

Colorful but lackluster peplum version (a measure of its clumsiness is the fact that a sarcastic narrator is heard intermittently during the film's initial stages, but after a while he's all but forgotten!), in which a good deal of the detail is identical to the equally fictitious 1938 film: Marco Polo falls for Kublai Khan's daughter, Khan's evil lieutenant - played to the hilt by Robert Hundar - is planning to usurp the throne and marry the princess himself, our hero befriends a band of rebels and leads them - in explosive fashion - into the city, etc. Still, it's not hard to see how Rory Calhoun here is even less suited to the requirements of the role, though he's even more of a ladies' man than Gary Cooper!

In itself, the film is harmless enough but since an even more elaborate (if no more successful) version - the star-studded MARCO THE MAGNIFICENT (1965) - was just behind the corner, this one feels quite redundant; that said, its vast Chinese settings were re-used later for Riccardo Freda's silly hybrid SAMSON AND THE SEVEN MIRACLES OF THE WORLD (1961)!

Someone obviously thought that the "Conqueror" (1956) wasn't a bad idea, so decided to assign B-movie stalwart Rory Calhoun the task of portraying the legendary Venetian explorer Marco Polo as he ventures into the Chinese empire. As history has rather defined the man, there is not a great deal of jeopardy to this story - it's all about the creative narrative, and that delivers us a perfectly enjoyable adventure film with plenty of Oriental mischief-making, plotting, intrigues - a smattering of gunpowder, and a little romance with the dazzling Princess "Amurroy" (Yôko Tani) who is daughter of the all-powerful Kublai Khan (Camillo Pilotto). It is an Italian production, but that doesn't seem to have added much authenticity to this - it is still a relatively low budget affair that centres around a star who really wasn't big enough to carry the role (if not the part) leaving us with, well, just a little too little. That said, it's watchable on a the telly on wet afternoon, just be aware - historians need probably not bother.